Photo Credit: Keke Palmer Podcast
In a powerful and candid episode of Baby, This Is Keke Palmer, host Keke Palmer welcomed Chelley Bissainthe and Olandria Carthen, standout voices from Love Island USA Season 7, to confront the culture of racism and double standards Black women face in reality TV and beyond.
Palmer began by acknowledging the backlash Chelley and Olandria have faced since leaving the villa. Among the worst examples was a now-deleted BuzzFeed Tasty post that suggested users serve Chelley a “knuckle sandwich” for breakfast, language Chelley’s team publicly called disturbing and unacceptable.
Reflecting on the intense criticism, Chelley said, “On the inside, we have a whole different life than what is out there… I really don’t understand what made y’all think that we were these mean girls.” She also shared how the comments affected her family, especially her mom, who was distraught over the hate. But seeing public support from Black women, including Palmer, meant a lot: “To see my favorites defending us… speaking and using your voice means a lot.”
Palmer dove into the “mean girl” stereotype often pushed on outspoken Black women. She pointed to the backlash Olandria received after saying “Don’t do that” to fellow Islander Huda, a comment that was quickly twisted to paint her as aggressive. Olandria responded, “It’s very exhausting… me and Chelley had to tone down a lot to not cross over that boundary.” She spoke candidly about the double standards in how affection, mistakes, and even silence are perceived differently depending on who you are. “As soon as [someone] looks the opposite of us… we’re catering to this person. What about us?” she asked.
Chelley added that much of their kindness and support within the villa never made it on air. “We were always giving advice, listening to people, helping them through stuff… but that wasn’t shown.”
Palmer connected this experience to broader microaggressions Black women face in the real world and how passion is often mislabeled as anger. She reminded her guests and listeners that authenticity is not something to be ashamed of.
Olandria admitted nothing could truly prepare someone for how reality TV edits can shape a narrative. Chelley closed the conversation with a clear message: “Just be yourself. No matter how much you try to have a certain narrative… whatever is put out there is out of your hands.”
