Summer House: Martha’s Vineyard is well into its second season and continues to set Black Twitter ablaze every Sunday.
Watching the series, which focuses on friends enjoying their summer vacation on “The Vineyard,” has been refreshing. We finally see Black men equally represented on a show, sharing just as much of their lives as the women.
“I always have to give credit to where credit is due because these types of Black men, unfortunately, for my life, are not the Black men who I’m used to in my life. And so, I just really, appreciate that that is what representation can look like for us,” Preston Mitchum shared in The Quintessential Gentleman‘s exclusive interview.
For cast members, Mitchum, Nick Arrington and Alex Tyree, coming into this season was harder than their first.
“There’s new layers to Alex. There’s new layers to me. There’s new layers to Preston. And now our lives are so intertwined. You want to give your roommates at this point, I don’t want to say castmates, roommates space to tell their story. But you want to jump in to defend them, champion them, big them up,” Arrington shares.
We all know it’s not reality TV without drama, but it doesn’t seem so contrive and many scenarios most people can relate to.
But love, friendship and brotherhood have made for a great season.
From finding themselves to navigating real-life issues, having a “bond” has helped the men make it through another season, says Tyree, who has been involved in a lot of discourse because of his interactions with the ladies of the house.
Being one of the few all-Black casts on reality TV, Martha’s Vineyard has found its groove with moments of vulnerability.
“Navigating is very difficult,” Arrington explains. “But you have to take the good with the bad.” This season, the brand manager’s story has audiences conflicted about how to be on a show like Summer House and be in a relationship.
Most viewers feel a sense of relatability when watching the hit show, allowing the cast to make mistakes, take sides in various feuds and engage in dialogue about each episode, highlighting the ongoing impact Martha’s Vineyard continues to have. It is not lost on the cast the importance of seeing themselves on the screen while being their authentic selves.
“I think I can safely say this for all of us, we hope the audience sees a little bit of their life in us,” Arrington shares. “Our sad points, our high points, our frustrated points. When we’re really angry. When we’re rejected. I know, for me, I wear my emotions on my face a lot.”
From a baby announcement to a cast member opening up about suffering losses in her life, the cast has entered the echelon of friendships many may not share, but the love can be felt.
The cast still has a week left in the house but it has been announced that they will get a reunion, which they didn’t get last season. Mitchum and Arrington are excited for the reunion, while Tyree, on the other hand, isn’t, but he is preparing himself.
“I’m not very much looking forward to it. But at the same time, I am preparing myself for it. I am accepting that this is a great moment for me to be able to bring some truth and some logic and some balance into a lot of the conversations,” Tyree shares.
Check out our exclusive interview where the cast speaks on preparing for reality TV, representation and which lady they wouldn’t mind being stranded on an island with.
Be sure to catch the next episode of Summer House: Martha’s Vineyard this Sunday at 9 PM ET on Bravo.
Photo Credit: Kareem Black/Bravo