Novi Brown On Colorism In Hollywood: ‘A Blatant Disrespect’

Tyler Perry’s BET series Sistas is about a group of single Black women from different upbringings coming together over their failures in their love life. In reality, one of the four main characters of the show wishes the same sort of solidarity would occur in Hollywood, especially when it comes to colorism. 

Novi Brown, who plays Sabrina Hollins, sat down with the Sirius XM’s The Clay Cane Show on Wednesday (January 15) and discussed how colorism affects darker-skinned women in Hollywood.

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“As a brown-skinned girl in the industry, especially with natural hair, it’s been very difficult,” she described. “People don’t know what to do with your hair. You come out to set, they have your photo, they don’t know how to do your makeup and it’s like, ‘Oh, so you don’t even appreciate who I am as a peer, as a co-worker of yours – that you would even go out there and learn your artistry as a make-up artist or a hair stylist because to incorporate somebody who looks like me?’ Why is that not in your education? Why do I have to come with my hair prepped? Why do I have to come with my own foundation? Why do I have to teach you how to light me?”

She continued, “There is a blatant, subconscious disrespect, period.”

Powerful words from the Afro-German actress. 

Tyler Perry’s Sistas airs on BET Wednesdays at 10 p.m. EST. Listen to Novi Brown’s interview segment on The Clay Cane Show below.