Posted by: JustGrinding
Back when Kandi Burruss was in the group Xscape, the Notorious B.I.G. dissed the group on an unreleased song- suggesting that he would rather have sex with drag queen Rupaul then with them. Kandi recounts how he apologized to the group on the night of his death…(via Nahright.com)
Filed under: Television, Interviews
Make no mistake about it, no one behind the scenes is telling ‘Real Housewives of Atlanta’ star Dwight Eubanks what to do. The Atlanta native went from having a simple cameo as Nene Leakes’ scene-stealing “gay boyfriend” to becoming a main cast member on the second season of the hit Bravo reality television series.
“I am not an actor. I was asked to come on and be a part of the show and to be real…I am not the sixth housewife,” Eubanks told the BV Newswire yesterday.
“If I wanted to be with a woman, I will be with a woman and if I want to be with a guy, then I will be with a guy,” he declared. “I like all fruits, but I do have a problem with [people] dwelling on ‘Dwight the gay housewife.’ Let’s get to know Dwight.”.
As of late, his no-holds-bar attitude has made his relationships with some of the ‘Housewives’ stars a bit tense.
“I just don’t understand it,” he noted. “Some of the other people have problems with me being friends with the other women….girls harp on situations [like] ‘You said this,’ or ‘You did that’ versus saying ‘B****h, did you say this?’ and going directly to the source of the problem.”
But, Eubanks isn’t holding it against them.
“They perceive me as a b***h. I have nothing but love for all of them.”
What many viewers of the successful Bravo television network franchise do not know is that the self-proclaimed style purveyor actually knew Sheree Whitfield and Lisa Wu Hartwell well before becoming fast friends with his close gal pal Leakes.
“I knew Sheree and her husband Bob,” he revealed. “She had a store called Bella Azul [and] my partner at the time was doing Lisa’s hair and I knew of Lisa when she was going through her divorce situation [with Keith Sweat] but I didn’t really meet her until the show.”
As for the show’s resident vixen, he adds, “I was really more friendly with Greg than Nene and we grew to be a part of each other’s lives and it grew to being what it was.”
These days, the fashionable entrepreneur has grown incredibly fond of the newest ‘Housewives’ star, Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Kandi Burruss.
“I met Kandi this year and never knew about Xscape,” Eubanks explained. “I like her as a person and her mother and I clicked and before I knew it I had dinner at their house.”
Now, the unlikely pair do dinner together, often, and according to the former Saks Fifth Avenue style director, they have become a sort of adopted family.
Until now, little has been known about the man that is Dwight Eubanks. Recently he’s been a little more open about his past – telling Essence.com that his minister parents beat him for playing with his sister’s dolls, until his grandmother helped them accept him for who he is. Born at Grady Hospital and raised on Atlanta’s Southside area, Eubanks credits his godfather with nurturing his love for hair by allowing a young Dwight to apprentice in his salon.
As for his feelings on the show as a whole? “The reality show is what it is. We don’t have to agree. They have gone through a whole season disagreeing. And agreeing is not reality. I like to move on.” There are talks that Eubanks may soon have his very own television show, but until then he’s happy doing what he’s been doing for the past 21 years.
“Reality television don’t pay no money. I had this life before [‘Housewives’] came on and I have four [mortgage] notes to pay – that’s a lot and I haven’t ventured off to doing any new ventures lately,” he declared.
He doesn’t know how they will figure out what to do for a show of his own, adding, “most days I don’t know what to do with myself. I know I am a lot.”
Off-camera, you can catch him at one of his two successful Purple Door Atlanta salons. “I still do hair every day and I enjoy being at the shampoo bowls. I like doing everything that I do. This is why I choose this profession.”
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Filed under: Music, Television, News
‘Real Housewives of Atlanta’ star Kandi Burruss‘ ex-fiance Ashley ‘A.J.’ Jewell was killed after a fight outside popular Atlanta strip club, The Body Tap, late Friday night.
He was rushed to Piedmont Hospital, where he later died.
Atlanta Police Lt. Keith Meadows confirmed, “It appears he was involved in an altercation in the parking lot and received a severe blow to the head.”
Meadows said that the police have developed a person of interest in the case, adding, “we’ve made contact with him to question him about the incident.”
(SEE ARREST UPDATE BELOW.)
The Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter’s publicist, Lisa Nelson, confirmed to WSBTV.com that Burruss was “stunned and speechless” and that “the family is asking for privacy during this very difficult time.”
Burruss, a former member of the platinum ’90s R&B group Xscape, recently revealed that she and Jewell split.
The couple, who were engaged earlier this year, have chronicled their relationship on the Bravo reality show ‘The Real Housewives of Atlanta.’
Burruss is also currently raising Jewell’s twin daughters.
“AJ’s murder is horrific, not only for his family, including the six beautiful children he is leaving behind, but also for Kandi, who obviously still loves him despite their broken engagement,” Atlanta-area entertainment journalist Isoul Harris, who has a professional friendship with Burrus told BV Newswire today. “Also, this is another case of senseless violence that’s not only rampant in Atlanta, but all over the country.”
UPDATED, 11:33 a.m.: Police told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper that they have charged Frederick Richardson with voluntary manslaughter in the beating death of Jewell. Richardson is currently hospitalized at Grady Memorial Hospital for injuries sustained in the fight. He will be jailed once released by medical staff. Though the cause of the fight is still unknown, police confirmed that witnesses were cooperating.
‘It’s a great thing that a suspect has been arrested in this case,” Harris added. “It surely brings a little comfort to his friends and family.”
In the meantime, Burruss, who’s a single mother of one daughter, took to Twitter.com early Saturday morning to break her silence about the tragic loss. “I’m bout 2 give my swollen eyes some rest now. I just wanted to say thanks 2 everyone for their prayers. I gotta get up & go 2 my uncle’s funeral. I could never in a million years imagine this happening.”
The Atlanta native, who also changed her Twitter profile picture to a flick of her and Jewell, ask fans to remember Jewell leaves behind six children. “Please pray for AJ’s children, that’s who im the most concerned 4. Im just in one of those moods where I dont wanna talk, I dont wanna b held & told its gonna b ok. I just wanna cry myself 2 sleep, alone.”
“Right now, she is just trying to wrap her head around the fact that he is gone,” Harris concluded.
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