Live Civil: AMANDA SEALES’S ‘SMART, FUNNY, & BLACK’ COMEDY GAME SHOW IS A MUST SEE & MUST FEEL
Game shows are a huge part of Television culture, from Jeopardy to Who Wants To Be A Millionaire to The Price Is Right, these classics are staples in every family’s home in America. Diversity in mainstream television has always been an issue. While creators in the POC community continue to fight for the right to see representation in this industry, people like comedian and actress, Amanda Seales have already started thinking outside of the box.
Amanda Seales is known in mainstream entertainment for her role on HBO’s trailblazing TV series Insecure. Beyond her role on the show, she has been curating a masterpiece that has been dubbed as Smart, Funny, and Black. Amanda told us during her NY show that Smart, Funny, and Black is,
“Where black laughs matter and white tears don’t"
& we were totally here for it.
The game show celebrates black culture through various games that explore black history, the black experience, and black pop culture in front of a live audience. Amanda was tired of seeing a number of negative images of black people in media outside of the comedies face but on the news.
Here’s how it works:
The players of the show are some of your favorite funny folks. The roster has been filled with people like Issa Rae, Bresha Webb, Charlamagne Tha God, Kid Fury, Bevy Smith, and more. The hosts battle in the “Hall of Flava” to compete in a head to head battle of wits that test their knowledge of black history, black culture, and the black experience. After a night of fun as hell games, flanked by a live band, and a turnt up audience, each show ends with one guest, literally, taking the “L”, the other, taking the crown, and being inducted into the “Illustrious League of Master Blacksperts”
Other than bragging rights, the winner of the night receives the most valuable weapon that can be used for anyone, especially African Americans, a book. All of the books given out as prizes are written black authors, which is dope af. The show is honestly a must see and a must feel. In order to truly capture the essence of it, we recommend that you attend one for yourself when it comes through to your city. After experiencing it in person we put together some of our favorite stand out thoughts/moments. Explaining what the way the show works can get confusing for some so we asked our self, “What is Smart, Funny, & Black?”
Smart, Funny, & Black is filled with hip-hop/R&B quizzes. Throughout the show you will either learn a new song that you should have probably known before if you consider yourself a hip hop fan or have a blast singing a long to your favorite old school classics with a room full of beautiful people.
Smart, Funny, & Black is Interactive, although the audience is not playing the actual game to win we are all in it together. You will feel apart of something greater and interact with the hosts and everyone around you.
Smart, Funny, & Black will teach you something you did not know about our history.
Smart, Funny, & Black brings about friendly yet constructive and necessary conversations through a game show. Along with those conversations doable solutions are discussed when it comes to the issues that we face as people of color.
Smart, Funny, & Black has an amazing live band that will have you singing, swaying, and jigging all night long.
After the show we we spoke with New York Times Best Selling Author, media personality, co-host of The Brilliant Idiotspodcast and the nationwide syndicated morning show, The Breakfast Club, Charlamagne Tha God after he lost to comedian Yamaneika Saunders and here’s what he had to say:
“Smart, Funny, & Black is a phenomenal show and I don’t why it’s not on TV yet. Amanda Seales is an amazing host and talent, but we already knew that. This is like a real, real live dope ass game show for television and I hate when networks say stupid shit like we don’t want the game show to be too black, because black is what’s poppin’, black is what controls the cool right now so you should want Smart, Funny, & Black because it’s the best game show that I’ve ever been on. I mean, maybe it’s the only one too but still it doesn’t matter.”
All upcoming shows for the month are sold out but if you would like to attend “do the bright thing” and follow @smartfunnyblack or @amandaseles to see when she’s coming to a city near you.
Happy Black History Month Folks!
