Single Ladies (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Single Ladies is a television series on the VH1
network in the U.S. created by Stacy A. Littlejohn
and produced by Queen Latifah
's Flavor Unit Entertainment for the MTV network-owned cable channel. The show chronicles three friends, Val, Keisha and April, and their relationships. The series premiered on May 30, 2011 with a two-hour television film.
) - An aspiring fashion mogul who purchased a fashion boutique in "one of the hottest areas of Atlanta," the VH1 website says, "Ultimately, she's a "good girl" looking for a good man."
Keisha Greene (LisaRaye McCoy
) - A former hip-hop music video model turned semi-professional poker player who relies on her head instead of her heart when it comes to relationship decision-making.
April Goldberg-Jenkins (Charity Shea
) - April has been married for seven years to Darryl, and hopes to pursue her career dream by moving from assistant to the record label's owner to an A&R executive. As she begins to spread her wings, she realizes that marriage may not be her ideal situation. On April's birthday, Darryl served her with divorce papers.
Malcolm Franks (D. B. Woodside
) - He turned his fathers jewelery store into a successful international business. According to the VH1 blog, "He loves the ladies, and the ladies love him."
Christina Carter (Kassandra Clementi) - A fashion intern with a free spirit and "an eye for fashion". She is a party girl and wild child.
and directed by Tamra Davis
, both of whom are also executive producers. The series is being produced two episodes at a time to save money.
The series executive producers include: Queen Latifah
, Shelby Stone and Shakim Compere for Flavor Unit; Maggie Malina for POPfilms; Jeff Olde and Jill Holmes for VH1.The show is filmed and centered in Atlanta.
Latifah says she is "particularly proud" of the series, stating that ""We wanted the ladies to be able to talk about mature things. (Sex and the City) was an inspiration, but the real inspiration was real life...These are virile women who have emotions and desires, and they will be out there looking, but they'll do it on their own terms."
Writer Littlejohn believes that "“Single Ladies” could be a “jewel in the crown” for VH1." She also said that she feels like she is breaking new ground and setting a precedent, where VH1 and scripted shows are concerned, saying "I’m creating the formula".
The show was tested as a movie before being turned into a 12-episode series. Executive director Olde reports that "TV, sometimes, under the best of circumstances, is a gut business," and went on to say that, after testing the script, the response was good enough for them to develop it into the series.
Critical reception was not too favourable, Media Life Magazine reporter Tom Conroy reported that, "The female characters are either one-note (Keisha), inscrutable (April) or incoherent (Val). It’s unfair to blame the actresses. The writers are the ones who can’t decide if Val, for example, is the kind of girl who would make men wait 90 days or the kind of girl who would use a phrase like “tap this” referring to herself."
Ginia Bellafante of The New York Times reports that "“Single Ladies” has issues with black men, who are depicted as way too self-regarding, and blond women, who are simply taking up too much space on the planet. Not altogether predictably, the show reserves a certain kindness for that forgotten minority: the boyish white man. Apparently “Single Ladies” has yet to see “The Hangover Part II”." Hank Steuver of the Washington Post said that, "It's the TV equivalent of a beach read with no words. Even if "Single Ladies" can be enjoyed in some basic brainless way (and even though it's safely sequestered on VH1, where standards are aggressively low), there's something steadfastly embarrassing about it."
Britni Danielle of clutchmagonline.com said "VH1 released the trailer for its new show, “Single Ladies” over the weekend and it looks promising!" and went on to say that "With shows like “Basketball Wives,” “What Chili Wants,” and “Lets Talk About Pep,” VH1 has been trying hard to produce (reality) shows that appeal to Black women. Let’s hope this new one is worth our time."
David Hinckley of the NYDailyNews.com said "In any case, "Single Ladies" has stretches when it gets stuck in its own cliches and must fight its way through the soap suds." going on to add, "But it comes out the other side not looking half-bad. By the end of the first episode, it has created three distinct characters whose vulnerability and basic decency make us like them in spite of some obvious flaws." He went on to say, "There's a lot of soap, and the dialogue can make you wince. But the characters just might make you care."
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
network in the U.S. created by Stacy A. Littlejohn
Stacy A. Littlejohn
Stacy A. Littlejohn is an American screenwriter, producer and showrunner. She is the creator, writer and executive producer of the VH1 network television series Single Ladies. The hour-long scripted drama is set in Atlanta, Georgia and stars LisaRaye McCoy , Stacey Dash and Charity Shea...
and produced by Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah
Dana Elaine Owens , better known by her stage name Queen Latifah, is an American singer, rapper, and actress. Her work in music, film and television has earned her a Golden Globe award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Image Awards, a Grammy Award, six additional Grammy nominations, an Emmy...
's Flavor Unit Entertainment for the MTV network-owned cable channel. The show chronicles three friends, Val, Keisha and April, and their relationships. The series premiered on May 30, 2011 with a two-hour television film.
Characters
Valerie "Val" Stokes (Stacey DashStacey Dash
Stacey Lauretta Dash is an American film and television actress.-Career:She made her first TV appearance in Farrell for the People starring Valerie Harper and a virtually unknown Ed O'Neill in 1982, which did not make it past its pilot episode...
) - An aspiring fashion mogul who purchased a fashion boutique in "one of the hottest areas of Atlanta," the VH1 website says, "Ultimately, she's a "good girl" looking for a good man."
Keisha Greene (LisaRaye McCoy
LisaRaye McCoy-Misick
LisaRaye McCoy , commonly known as LisaRaye, is an American actress and fashion designer. She is also the ex-wife of Michael Misick, a former Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands...
) - A former hip-hop music video model turned semi-professional poker player who relies on her head instead of her heart when it comes to relationship decision-making.
April Goldberg-Jenkins (Charity Shea
Charity Shea
Charity Shea is an American actress. She is best known for her role as troubled teenager Samantha Best in The Best Years. She has starred in films including Alpha Dog with Justin Timberlake and Bruce Willis...
) - April has been married for seven years to Darryl, and hopes to pursue her career dream by moving from assistant to the record label's owner to an A&R executive. As she begins to spread her wings, she realizes that marriage may not be her ideal situation. On April's birthday, Darryl served her with divorce papers.
Malcolm Franks (D. B. Woodside
D. B. Woodside
David Bryan "D.B." Woodside is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his portrayal of White House Chief of Staff Wayne Palmer on the FOX action/drama series 24...
) - He turned his fathers jewelery store into a successful international business. According to the VH1 blog, "He loves the ladies, and the ladies love him."
Christina Carter (Kassandra Clementi) - A fashion intern with a free spirit and "an eye for fashion". She is a party girl and wild child.
Production
The show was created by Stacy A. LittlejohnStacy A. Littlejohn
Stacy A. Littlejohn is an American screenwriter, producer and showrunner. She is the creator, writer and executive producer of the VH1 network television series Single Ladies. The hour-long scripted drama is set in Atlanta, Georgia and stars LisaRaye McCoy , Stacey Dash and Charity Shea...
and directed by Tamra Davis
Tamra Davis
Tamra Davis is an American film, television and music video director.-Biography:She is known for directing films such as Billy Madison, CB4 and Half Baked and television shows such as My Name Is Earl and Everybody Hates Chris. She also directed the film Crossroads, starring Britney Spears.She...
, both of whom are also executive producers. The series is being produced two episodes at a time to save money.
The series executive producers include: Queen Latifah
Queen Latifah
Dana Elaine Owens , better known by her stage name Queen Latifah, is an American singer, rapper, and actress. Her work in music, film and television has earned her a Golden Globe award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Image Awards, a Grammy Award, six additional Grammy nominations, an Emmy...
, Shelby Stone and Shakim Compere for Flavor Unit; Maggie Malina for POPfilms; Jeff Olde and Jill Holmes for VH1.The show is filmed and centered in Atlanta.
Latifah says she is "particularly proud" of the series, stating that ""We wanted the ladies to be able to talk about mature things. (Sex and the City) was an inspiration, but the real inspiration was real life...These are virile women who have emotions and desires, and they will be out there looking, but they'll do it on their own terms."
Writer Littlejohn believes that "“Single Ladies” could be a “jewel in the crown” for VH1." She also said that she feels like she is breaking new ground and setting a precedent, where VH1 and scripted shows are concerned, saying "I’m creating the formula".
Reception
Initially the program received reasonable ratings. The two-hour premiere gained a 1.2 rating in the 18-49 demographic with 2.8 million total viewers. It also scored a slightly higher 2.0 rating in the 18-34 female demographic.The show was tested as a movie before being turned into a 12-episode series. Executive director Olde reports that "TV, sometimes, under the best of circumstances, is a gut business," and went on to say that, after testing the script, the response was good enough for them to develop it into the series.
Critical reception was not too favourable, Media Life Magazine reporter Tom Conroy reported that, "The female characters are either one-note (Keisha), inscrutable (April) or incoherent (Val). It’s unfair to blame the actresses. The writers are the ones who can’t decide if Val, for example, is the kind of girl who would make men wait 90 days or the kind of girl who would use a phrase like “tap this” referring to herself."
Ginia Bellafante of The New York Times reports that "“Single Ladies” has issues with black men, who are depicted as way too self-regarding, and blond women, who are simply taking up too much space on the planet. Not altogether predictably, the show reserves a certain kindness for that forgotten minority: the boyish white man. Apparently “Single Ladies” has yet to see “The Hangover Part II”." Hank Steuver of the Washington Post said that, "It's the TV equivalent of a beach read with no words. Even if "Single Ladies" can be enjoyed in some basic brainless way (and even though it's safely sequestered on VH1, where standards are aggressively low), there's something steadfastly embarrassing about it."
Britni Danielle of clutchmagonline.com said "VH1 released the trailer for its new show, “Single Ladies” over the weekend and it looks promising!" and went on to say that "With shows like “Basketball Wives,” “What Chili Wants,” and “Lets Talk About Pep,” VH1 has been trying hard to produce (reality) shows that appeal to Black women. Let’s hope this new one is worth our time."
David Hinckley of the NYDailyNews.com said "In any case, "Single Ladies" has stretches when it gets stuck in its own cliches and must fight its way through the soap suds." going on to add, "But it comes out the other side not looking half-bad. By the end of the first episode, it has created three distinct characters whose vulnerability and basic decency make us like them in spite of some obvious flaws." He went on to say, "There's a lot of soap, and the dialogue can make you wince. But the characters just might make you care."