Today we’d like to introduce you to Tenishia Wilson.
Hi Tenishia, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to be an actress. I didn’t know I wanted to make people laugh until I saw my all-time favorite movie “Coming to America”. When I was about eight years old, I remember my father telling me that Eddie Murphy played the white Jewish man in the barbershop scenes. I knew he played a few different roles in the movie but when he told me that and I saw his name pop up at the end, I said to myself that’s what I want to do. I want to be able to transform into characters completely opposite of myself and make it so believable that people literally say wtf! However, I was told that wanting to be in movies is fine and dandy but I need a “real job”. Growing up, I was a military brat. My father was in the Army so we moved around a lot. Being the new girl every 2-3 years caused a lot of anxiety. So to settle into different schools or social settings, I just cracked jokes or did things to make people laugh. Comedy became my comfort zone at a very young age. I come from a big family of natural born comedians. Every family gathering is full of laughter, roast sessions and overall good vibes.
At the age of 19 I joined the Army. Met my husband and became a mother. After four years, I got out and started going through careers like a hot whore through rubbers. I became a cosmetologist, quit. Became a tax preparer, quit. Became chef, quit that too. I even started school to become an educator, all while making people laugh along the way. I was good at everything but never great because it wasn’t pursuing my passion. I could never get to the next level because I had no desire to do so. Then I started seeing how people on social media were living my dream. They were creating skits and getting picked up in movies and tv shows. So I decided to give it try. My first few videos were ok. I was uncomfortable in front of the camera and it showed. I was too worried about what everyone would think. Would they find me funny? Am I too old? Am I attractive enough to make these kind of jokes? I got a few laughs from friends and family and so that encouraged me to keep trying. I didn’t care if they were pitty likes or not I just needed the motivation.
After a few more tries, I realized that I just had to let loose and unlock my inner crazy. No more worrying about if I looked cute on camera or if my footage was professional, I had to just show the world who I am. So Thanksgiving eve 2017, I’m cooking mac and cheese, you know prepping. I started missing family and all the funny conversations. That’s when I created my first viral character, Auntie Shady. Shady is a combination of my aunties, family friends and women that I’ve met along my life”s journey. We all know an Aunty Shady. I ran up to my room, threw on my most auntyish outfit. Recorded my material (which was all improv) did my beginners editing and posted the video to Facebook. About an hour later, my phone was getting hella notifications. I went viral on Facebook. Aunty Shady got to 3mil views over the weekend. I couldn’t believe it. I just knew Ellen was going to call me. But that heffa still hasn’t reached out. After that, I went on to create a whole family of characters that have gained me a pretty decent following! However, my most popular character is my alter ego Belair Blair AKA the Ri$h Bit$h and her man servant Fredrick; my loving husband Torian Wilson. That’s right, his name is not Fredrick in real life, lol. I play children, men, old ladies, different types of women, but that damn Blair kills them every time.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Comedy hasn’t been as easy as I thought it would be. Standup is a major part of being a comedian. I struggle in that arena. I haven’t found the courage quite yet to not edit myself and just be me. I can’t express myself on stage the way I can through my characters. I’m always afraid of revealing too much and turning the crowd off. I feel boxed in a lot because I’m known for my work online. When people come to see me, they want Blair or Cousin Pam not Tenishia. I receive good feedback because I crack good jokes. I can be relatable, I just feel like I’m not as connected to the stage as I am to my characters. I get good feedback; I just know I could be better.
Being an influencer, you don’t get much respect from the standup comedians. Which sucks because I’m already a woman in this industry and Black, so I’m already boxed into stereotypes. “Oh women only talk about sex”,,, You damn right we do. Men talk about sex and it gets mad play. But when a woman does, it’s considered our crutch. “Oh she about to talk about being a single black woman or her baby daddy”, Um no. I’m married and my baby daddy is my husband. On top of that nonsense, I gotta deal with “influencers don’t do real comedy”, the standups think it’s easy to just make skits and post it online. News Flash people it isn’t! The same anxiety attack you get hitting the stage, you get every time you hit post. Yes, it’s hard t stand in front of people and tell jokes, however it’s just as hard to put yourself out there for the world to see and judge. And believe me the keyboard gangstas are way more harsh. They get to sit behind a keyboard and talk about everything but the content in your video. “Why her walls bare?” ‘Who’s big ass shoes are those in the corner?” like really?? oh and let’s not forget the flat out ” she’s not funny” ” this is getting old” comments.
I’ve watched standup comedians do the same set for literally four years straight. Meanwhile, I have to create new fresh material every single post or my 5 mins of fame is over boo boo. So for me, I say let’s stop looking down upon each other and just go hard in whatever lane you’re in when comes to comedy because if posting skits online was so easy then every comedian I know should have 100k plus follower, and that’s on Mary had a little lamb, no scratch that, that’s on Blair had fur coat.
I’m not going to get into the things females face in this industry simply because it’s the same song and dance. Harassment, rape, lower pay. It’s the same ball game just a different ballpark as my mom would say. That’s why I created my show BOOM! just for women. “She’s So Funny” coming soon (shameless plug lol)
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a Comedian/ content creator, but we can go ahead and add writer and entrepreneur to the list! I specialize in comedic acting and I’m best know for my character Belair Blair AKA the Ri$h Bit$h. What sets me apart right now from my peers is the ability to bring multiple characters to life and make them relatable. I most proud of my biggest project yet. I just completed filming my very own tv show in December of last year. We are in the editing phase and I’m so excited for the world to see my vision. I am also most proud of showing my daughters what following your dreams looks like. Thank God for this journey
What does success mean to you?
Success to me is doing what you love! When you’re doing what you love, using the gifts God gave you, you can’t be anything else but successful.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sheisthe_t
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iamthetwilson
