Taking the role as a full-time housewife on season 16 of Atlanta Housewives after being a friend of the show, she’s bringing everything we love to see in a housewife
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00:00Hey, Essies.
00:01It's your favorite entertainment editor, Shelby Stewart.
00:03And with me today, I have a woman of many titles.
00:06Actress, host, performer, dancer, vocalist.
00:10But the most important title of all right now
00:12is the most recent peach holder on The Real Housewives of Atlanta,
00:16Shamia Morton.
00:16Oh, hey, guys.
00:18How are you?
00:18Hey.
00:19We're having great, Essies.
00:21So excited to be here hanging out with you.
00:24So tell me, how does it feel to be holding a peach in season 16?
00:28Oh, it's amazing.
00:29I've been friends with this franchise for such a long time.
00:32So it's nice to finally be able to showcase my family, my fame,
00:38fashion or lack thereof, and just friendships.
00:42Honestly, it feels good.
00:43You know, you said fashion or lack thereof.
00:45What do you, a lot of fans have had a lot to say,
00:48but what do you think about your fashion choices on the show?
00:51You know, I honestly think it's not the clothes, it's you.
00:55You pick the clothes.
00:56And every time I put something on, I feel beautiful and I feel fashionable.
01:01And I think that's all that matters.
01:02Absolutely.
01:03You know, I'm not wearing it.
01:04Okay.
01:05I'm not wearing it most of the time anyway.
01:07So we are nine episodes into this season.
01:10We're just about midway.
01:12All the girls are talking.
01:14What has it been like watching yourself back this season as the new anchor of the Real Housewives of Atlanta?
01:18Oh my goodness, what an honor, first of all, to be, you know, going the new anchor.
01:23Yeah.
01:24I mean, wow, I'm living up to that, to get that title.
01:27But I must say, it's a new year for the franchise.
01:31Yeah.
01:32Fresh and vibrant energy.
01:34So just watching myself on the screen, before I would pop in as a brain, it would be so dramatic.
01:39Now, I'm my worst critic for everything.
01:42Yeah.
01:43But I, I'm true to who I am and what you see is what you get.
01:47I'm an authentic person.
01:49So I just, I can't be so mad at myself watching myself because it's like, well, this is who you are.
01:54This is who I am.
01:55This is who I've always been.
01:57So it's fun to be able to showcase who I really am to the world.
02:01Because good, bad, or indifferent, I feel like there's somebody out there that understands,
02:06that has probably walked in some of my shoes and, um, and I'm relatable to them.
02:13Yeah.
02:13Has anything surprised you or hit differently in hindsight?
02:19Yeah, actually, the outpour of love and support.
02:21Because prior to getting my peach, I was called so many things and was like, oh, I'm not here for sure to get a peach.
02:29I would never give anybody a peach nowadays.
02:31I mean, it was just such nasty.
02:32They answer back and forth on Instagram.
02:35The comments were nasty.
02:36And they always say, you don't read the comments.
02:37But where are you, man?
02:38You don't see people excited for me.
02:40Do they want me in this space?
02:41And most of them weren't.
02:43So just to see a complete, like, just turn completely around in my favor, it's always, it's like, you know, God's time is the right time.
02:53You just have to be patient.
02:54And you can't, you know, follow the naysayers.
02:56You can't listen to them.
02:57His, you know, hey.
03:00Yeah.
03:00His plans.
03:01Absolutely.
03:02How would you say you mentally and or spiritually prepared to be on camera in this capacity?
03:08I think I've been preparing for this my entire life.
03:11I've always lived my life out loud.
03:13From being signed early on in high school to a major label.
03:16I was always made for the stage.
03:18I came close to the stage play with Tyler Perry before the Have and Have Nots.
03:22It was an actual, you know, sitcom or a series.
03:27I was on stage by singing.
03:28So my life has always been an open book.
03:31I've always been very open, transparent, and vulnerable about me and my life.
03:36So the cameras were just an addition.
03:38Sometimes I'm almost like, are they there?
03:40I forget they're on.
03:41Yeah, absolutely.
03:43So your relationship with Portia has always been one that fans have rooted for.
03:48Two ATL girls who really know each other.
03:51As we saw in sort of the trailer coming up, you guys' friendship gets tested in ways that
03:57we haven't seen before.
03:59So do you think that anything shifted between you guys?
04:02I think that our friendship has been tested over the years a lot.
04:06It's just that you were only seeing one side.
04:09Because I wasn't a peach holder.
04:10I didn't have a microphone.
04:12I didn't have a platform to share my side of things or my point of view or my reaction
04:19to some of those things that were happening in past seasons.
04:22But now that I do have this platform, it is an awkward space because it's not just I'm
04:28a friend of.
04:29I'm here too and I'm in this group.
04:31And at times, I'm sure that can be difficult for her maybe, as we've seen.
04:37So I think, you know, now it's just about navigating new space.
04:39And hoping that at some point, we can get back on the same page.
04:43And so there was a moment in, I think, episode four when Portia questions whether it's your
04:49voice on your song, Never Had.
04:51Can you walk me through how that felt for you?
04:54Oh, it was very nerve-wracking.
04:55I've been singing since I was a child.
04:57We went to the same high school.
04:59Yeah.
04:59Every time I've had a platform and, you know, she wanted to release music or do her, she
05:06sang the anthem with me at the Hawks game.
05:08So I think it's very clear that we know Judson voices.
05:11Yeah.
05:11So just to see that, hear it, live it, and then relive it once it aired was hurtful.
05:19And I told her what I felt about it.
05:21Contrary to proper belief, a lot of conversations about things that hurt me in our friendship
05:26happen off camera.
05:28Yeah.
05:28So I've always been private about personal relationships and stuff like that.
05:34So I've always given that grace of it's not their business.
05:37But as you see in the season, our friendship is put to the test and it's open for discussion
05:43on her part.
05:44She's allowing these ladies to pick us apart.
05:46Yeah.
05:47And instead of turning a deaf ear to it and bringing it to me directly, she's engaged
05:51in them.
05:52And now the fire, you know, the smoke is there.
05:55You know, the fire is flame and I'm just trying to put it out.
05:59Absolutely.
06:01So with that being said, in your opinion, what makes a girl's girl?
06:06What makes a really solid friend?
06:08Being able to share the spotlight, being able to share the space, getting able to uplift people,
06:15support people, you know, show up for people, just loyalty.
06:24Yeah.
06:25Absolutely.
06:26And like I said, we're about nine episodes into the show now, and we've seen your like
06:33very adamant support of Portia as one of your very close friends.
06:37Do you think that people look for a reason to dislike you?
06:41And for the people that do, what do you say to that?
06:43You know, you can't be liked by everybody.
06:45That's true.
06:45You know, for those that like me and love me and support me, I love you too.
06:49And I like you too.
06:49And thank you.
06:51But for those that don't, I'm sorry.
06:53That's your loss.
06:54You know, I mean, I honestly, you know, I would love for the whole world to love me because
06:59I want to love on the entire world.
07:01Yeah.
07:01But I have to understand that that's something I'm even trying to mature and grow better at.
07:08Just being able to just move forward.
07:12Yeah.
07:12You can't please everybody.
07:14I've naturally been a people pleaser.
07:17I mean, that's my job.
07:17Yeah.
07:17I hope that I entertain, even down to the NBA, it's about making the crowd happy, keeping
07:23them engaged, you know.
07:24So, actually, that's my personal life as well.
07:27I'm keeping people happy, leaving people better than I've found them.
07:30So, when I feel like I've failed in that area, it's disappointing for me.
07:34But I feel better.
07:35And so, one of the most powerful things I would say about this season is that we get
07:39to see you in your full glory.
07:41You're expressing yourself.
07:42You're unfiltered, unmuted.
07:44What are you most proud of about how you showed up for yourself this time around?
07:47Oh, my goodness.
07:49Thank you for asking me that, Shelby.
07:50I'm so excited by just being able to showcase my music.
07:57Yeah.
07:57You know, me being a singer, and I don't know if you understand, but back in the day,
08:00it was not easy.
08:01You had to do a showcase for A&R and get the approval of a label to have them put their music
08:06out there.
08:06But with social media being what it is today, you can do your own thing.
08:10You can create your own lane.
08:12You can put your own music out there.
08:13Do what you want.
08:14And that is exactly what I've done.
08:16I'm taking the power.
08:16And I'm making my own dreams come true.
08:19Instead of being on this platform, to showcase that, it helps.
08:23Yeah.
08:23And people are loving it.
08:24And I'll be there bumping down the head, tagging me in the video.
08:27I'm like, hey, thanks, y'all.
08:30You know, and it feels good.
08:32It feels like I'm going to be validating.
08:33Like, just, I've always wanted to sing.
08:36I started having the sun being choir at the Church of God in Christ.
08:39So imagine me being just at my big age.
08:42But back in the day, people said, oh, you aged out at a certain age in the industry.
08:45Like, we are kind of hard on each other.
08:47But even Killa Mike showed that you can sweep at your big age.
08:51So I'm just happy to be able to showcase my music.
08:55I actually want to pinpoint something you said.
08:57You grew up in a Kojic church.
08:59So can you walk us through a timeline?
09:01We got a little bit of it on The Real Housewives, obviously.
09:04You worked with Carrie Hilson.
09:05But I'd love to kind of detail your journey a little bit more in music.
09:09And it's so started out singing in the choir.
09:12And I would be very adamant about leading, you know, on Sundays.
09:17They were going to be at one song, okay?
09:19That's it.
09:19And I'd come here and be like, well, I got one more I want to sing.
09:21You know, and it kind of moved towards me being in girl groups.
09:25I would do talent shows and pageants.
09:29And my talent would be singing.
09:30And then I got in a girl group.
09:34One of my early girl groups is with Shamari Here's Devo now.
09:39She was in the group Black.
09:40But prior to her getting in that group, we were in a group called Intrigue.
09:44And we both went to the same high school.
09:46And we had a girl group.
09:48And, you know, we did our thing.
09:50But then she moved on and went into the group Black.
09:53And, of course, I moved on.
09:55I got in a group called Chase Seven.
09:57And from that group, I got in a group called Pretty Tony.
10:01And that group was when I was in with Carrie Hilson.
10:03From there, I got a group called Co-Ed.
10:06We released a song called Roll With Feet.
10:09It charted.
10:09It did really well.
10:10It was number one for forever.
10:11But, again, these are all groups.
10:14And a lot of times in groups, if one person gets pregnant or they decided they don't want to do it anymore,
10:20now the group is done and you've got to start all over.
10:24And then sometimes you don't want to sing because they're singing.
10:27Or you don't want to perform at the venues and perform that.
10:30You're doing it on your own.
10:31It's all about you.
10:32You're having your own financial backing.
10:34It's all about you.
10:35What you say goes.
10:36And what you put out there is all you.
10:37It's a representation of you.
10:39Absolutely.
10:39And that's where I'm at with it now.
10:41And, you know, with that being said, you've been in so many different groups.
10:45And you've been, like, sort of a support or a part of something else.
10:48So how does it feel to just have that spotlight solely on you?
10:52It is amazing.
10:53It's like a one-woman show.
10:54So, you know, like I said, I always call myself the female Jamie Foxx.
10:58Just being able to sing, act, dance, host.
11:02Like, I feel like when I hit the stage, I'm right where I'm supposed to be.
11:06Yeah.
11:06Right where I'm supposed to be because it's like I could do it all.
11:10You know, I've made it by the host of me.
11:12I think that's something that fans will look forward to as well on these things that I'm
11:15going to be outside of the banner.
11:16Yeah, absolutely.
11:18Oh, I love that.
11:19So I do want to ask you, you know, we've gotten to see some of your journey in music on the
11:24show.
11:24We saw you working with R.L.
11:26You're in the studio.
11:27I thought that was super dope.
11:28So what is your opinion on Drew working with Dennis of, like, all music producers to work
11:34with?
11:35You know, at first I was like, well, that's kind of weird because I never knew Dennis to
11:39do music.
11:40Yeah.
11:40But now we know because she's released her album.
11:43It's great.
11:44Yeah.
11:44It's really good.
11:46I'm all about uplifting and empowering another one.
11:48If you really want to do it, go for it.
11:50It's like, I got your back.
11:52But initially when it was brought to me and when I heard about it, it was brought like
11:56they were dating.
11:57And of course, as you see in like that first scene or the first episode, I asked her, where
12:04are you dating Dennis?
12:05And she said no.
12:06And then I was done with it.
12:07Yeah.
12:07Of course, it continued to go because you know how it is.
12:10You know, other people get with it and it's changed all back and forth.
12:14But ultimately, I want Drew to do what she's passionate about.
12:18I'm excited for her.
12:19And yeah, Atlanta, it was a mecca of all.
12:21Amazing.
12:22I mean, Jermaine Dupree, Ryan Cox.
12:24I mean, there's, the list goes on.
12:26R.L.
12:27B-flats.
12:28But she chose Dennis.
12:30The album is great.
12:32Of course, she seems to not mind it.
12:34They just got all those rumors, I guess.
12:37So, hey.
12:37Yeah.
12:38Good luck.
12:39So, you say you're ending the season with a bang.
12:42What would you say we can expect to come?
12:45Showcasing my music.
12:47All of it.
12:49You know, and I'm not done with my album just yet.
12:52But I am, you know, recording my video, my video shoot.
12:57And, I mean, they'll get to really see me perform.
13:02Yes.
13:02It's one thing to play a song.
13:04In the studio, they hear it or you can hear it on the radio.
13:06But to perform it, I'm a performer.
13:09And I'm excited that I actually get a chance to do that.
13:13And I just want to.
13:14My song.
13:15I love them.
13:16They're like my babies.
13:17So, I just hope that people accept them and they feel, and they feel the intent behind
13:22them, the passion and the love.
13:23I hate them while doing them.
13:25Okay?
13:25I love that.
13:26I really appreciate and love and support that instance.
13:29And that's what they're showing me.
13:30That is nothing for God.
13:32For real.