SERIES REVIEW: Red Table Talk
Will Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett attending a past event. Jada Pinkett-Smith is one of the stars of Red Table Talk. PHOTO| FILE| NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Jada, her daughter, also had a pretty rough childhood, and is famed as well for being one of Tupac's closest friends.
- She too delved into the drug thing a little bit, but to deal, and be in dangerous neighbourhoods (as parts of Baltimore are sometimes considered), and also claw her way to where she is now.
Starring Jada Pinkett-Smith, Willow Smith, Adrienne Banfield-Norris
If you haven't seen Red Table Talk, then you are missing out! These three generations of women in the same family come together to try and have conversations about the things that really matter – body image, dealing with grief, intergenerational differences and so much more.
What's different about this show – and is actually my favourite thing about it as well - is that they try and be as real as they can – or so it seems – with their audience, especially on difficult issues like self harm and sadness, and really dissect what they think about whatever they're talking about.
And what's even more special, for me, is that they allow all the women to speak from whatever point of reference they have – Adrienne is Jada's mother, and grew up in a completely different time frame.
NOT THE BEST LIFE
She had Jada quite young, and, as is revealed in later episodes, didn't have the best life as she was taking care of her young one, and proceeded to get into drugs, which led to a 20-year-long addiction problem.
Jada, her daughter, also had a pretty rough childhood, and is famed as well for being one of Tupac's closest friends.
She too delved into the drug thing a little bit, but to deal, and be in dangerous neighbourhoods (as parts of Baltimore are sometimes considered), and also claw her way to where she is now.
Willow offers the perspective of a younger generation dealing with issues that generations before never really had to; social media, the prevalence of mental health conversations and depression, early celebrity because of her parents, and the effects that had on her as a very young child.
I love to watch these points of reference come together, and watch them also speak on important topic, with other guests – such as Will Smith's sister, Ashley Marie, and musical sensation August Alsina.
They all talk to each other and about these topics in a way that allows for everyone to speak their mind with no judgement or favour. It's a beautiful thing, and in an ideal world, it is a wonderful way for mothers and daughters to just talk. You can watch the free episodes on Facebook. And this show is further proof, if you didn't already gather from Will Smith's Instagram, that the Smiths are ruling the interwebs right now, point blank period.
