It wasn’t long ago when standup comedian and actor Katt Williams started the new year shaking tables during an episode of “Club Shay Shay,” the podcast hosted by 3x Superbowl champion Shannon Sharpe. In the middle of Williams dissing several of his famous contemporaries, he said, “This is reckoning, 2024.” He might be right about that, especially with the way Black celebrities are going on these days.
It’s forcing us to confront uncomfortable truths about the entertainment industry and the people we once admired. In recent months, a series of disturbing allegations and scandals have rocked the world of Black culture’s beloved figures.
One such example is the case of rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, whose once-untouchable image has been tarnished by accusations of sexual assault and misconduct. Beginning in November 2023, multiple women came forward with allegations against Combs, including his former girlfriend Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, who filed a lawsuit alleging rape, sex trafficking and domestic violence. The severity of these allegations prompted a federal investigation, culminating in raids on Combs’ properties by Homeland Security agents.
The revelations surrounding Combs are just one example of a larger pattern of abuse and exploitation within the entertainment industry.
The one that had folks in a chokehold was the recent documentary series “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids’ TV,” which sheds light on the disturbing realities faced by child actors on popular Nickelodeon shows, exposing allegations of racism, bullying and even sexual assault behind the scenes. Mind you, this documentary didn’t focus solely on Black entertainers. It was a tough pill to swallow, having fond memories of watching these shows as children while learning about the suffering they endured over time.
When replaying scenes that you thought were innocent, it looked crazy now that we’re adults. If young actors dealt with this on Nickelodeon, it would make you question how other networks treated their actors.
Let’s not forget actor and writer Christian Keyes, whose novel “Ladies Night” was adapted into the BET+ show “All the Queen’s Men,” and how he shared his experience being sexually harassed at the hands of a “powerful man” in Hollywood in December 2023. Even though he made this explosive revelation last year, the question many people still have today is, who was he talking about? Plus, it goes to show you that it’s not only women who deal with situations like this. And it was great that his peers showed him support after he came forward because it usually doesn’t happen that way.
At this rate, there are many more of these stories out there, and we don’t know who’s next in line for the heat that’s about to come. Regardless, this is just a snippet of what I think will be a very interesting year.
