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BB Lane - Interview with Monica Bailey
Peb: Many fans hoped you would be in the Big Brother All-Star house. If you were in the house, who would you have aligned with and why? Monica: Okay first of all, I’ll tell you this: I don’t know who I would have aligned with. Automatically, everyone would have thought it would have been Mike and Will, and it probably would have been - let’s just say Mike and Will. But who’s to say? I really don’t know. Even much later, if I would have aligned with anyone it would have been those two. Yeah, I’ll say Mike and Will. It would have been so obvious, so they would have gotten rid of me quickly if I would have done that, so I don’t know if it would have been logical. It’s just hard to say. Peb: According to imdb.com, you have a part in an upcoming movie. What can you tell us about that? Monica: It is an upcoming feature film called Manhattenites manhattanitesthemovie.com and one of the producers is Roger Newcomb who has the Radio Loger online where he does a lot of shows online. I have been doing a soap opera for him for the last couple of years http://www.rocklandcountysoap.com/episodes.html and I met him when I first did Big Brother and we became friends and he thought I would be perfect for a role. That’s how I got a part in that film. Peb: Is there more acting coming up in your future? Monica: Yes, there is. I have a few projects coming up, but I can’t talk about them now because I don’t want to jinx it. When there is more news available, you guys will know. I’ll post it everywhere. I’ve got people supporting me and I like to keep fans updated on what’s going on in my life. And good things are going on, you know. I’m auditioning and keeping my craft sharp and projects are coming in, but you know how this business is - you don’t get anything overnight. You’ve got to work hard for it. I’ve been working hard. Peb: BB2 is still a fan favorite and is considered one of the funniest seasons. What are some of your favorite memories of BB2? Monica: One of the funniest that sticks out is the Head of Household competition that I won. It was funny because we couldn’t move and we were on that bed and how Will tricked Nicole to take her hand off of that key and how I had to go to the bathroom and I did [big laugh] and the way I played it off. It was funny to me now when I think about it. That was a great season. That was the best season - not to put the others down - because that was the first baby that they rocked and they’re doing it different now. It was a new baby - you’re not sure how you want to raise it, you might make some mistakes, but the next child you have you do much better and that’s how I’ll say it. Season two was the best season ever because we had to do everything from scratch. We had no luxuries. Peb: I loved how real the people seemed in BB2. Do you think people are playing more of a role in the later seasons? Does that bother you at all? Monica: Well, it really kinda goes with the other question. When we first did it, like I said, what you saw is what it was and we played hard. We didn’t know what we were doing. We forgot about a camera. We didn’t even know if people were watching. We didn’t know what was going on on the outside of that house. But now there are so many other reality shows and everything is about ratings. So it has changed, it is not as authentic as it was in 2001 and none of the reality shows are authentic anymore especially the ones that had season 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10. It is not authentic anymore. Am I disappointed? No. Because you have to know that things change and that changed. I’m glad that I did it when I did because it was real. Now everybody is trying to be a star and want to be an actor and trying to do their thing - which is not a bad thing. But when we did it, we didn’t know what was going to happen. Most of the cast were not trying to be stars. I think they wanted to further their acting careers, don’t get me wrong, but they were not hamming it up - trying to be a character or trying to do it like somebody else did it. To me every other Big Brother, everybody tried to be one of us. They were not original. Sorry, that’s just how I feel. They try, but there will never be another Monica because that wasn’t a character. That was a real person and now we have nothing but a lot of characters on the show. Peb: There have been a lot of questions about rigging of the game and producer influence after BBAS. How much do you think producer questions in the Diary Room impact the game? Do you think elements of the game are sometimes set-up to favor certain players? Monica: You know that’s a hard one because we know on a lot of shows, especially Big Brother (because that is what we are talking about), it is called editing. You can slice it and dice it anyway you want to and that’s just the bottom line. I don’t think there was any hanky-panky and it favorites certain people. I just think that if they gave us something to work with, they went with it and that’s just the bottom line. Peb: What are your favorite types of Big Brother players to watch? Who have been some of your favorite houseguests to watch? Monica: Well, to be honest, after my season, I had to watch season three because I had to see what’s next. So, I watched season three. Season four: I started to watch it, but it didn’t interest me too much, but I knew who everybody was. Then five: I watched, and I knew who everybody was, but it was okay, but it wasn’t exciting. I wasn’t blown away by it. Season Six was a season that I watched and I didn’t miss. So my players from the past would be Janelle. It would be Howie. It would be Kaysar. I had Dana (season 4) - Dana was a favorite for me. Offhand that is who I can think about, because I don’t think about these players outside of reality. So certain names don’t come to me really quickly, but oh boy, Chicken George. Of course, I had to pick Chicken George. Some of these players, I know outside of the show and I enjoyed them on All-Stars and outside of All-stars. So that is just a few, who are pretty nice people, but I left out some that are nice guys and I really like. Peb: What is your biggest pet peeve? Monica: My biggest pet peeve would be being judged - people making assumptions. Peb: You are a true New Yorker. What are some of your favorite places around the city? What is considered a great night out for you? Monica: Well, a great night out for me is when I get together with either my girlfriends or my sister. We start out after work and talk about the happenings of the week and have cocktails. Then we do a little bar-hopping. That’s a night out. I love to go out to dinner and after dinner go out to the bar and have some drinks. You start off at the restaurant very light and then you do-the-do when you get to the bar. I still love my Heinekens - have to have a few Heinekens. Then I have to start drinking my Grey Goose - have some nice vodka martinis. That’d be great. You know, a night out - that’s fun. You let your hair down and get rid of the whole week of work and just do you. Peb: Your CBS Revenge of the Houseguests blogs during BBAS were always entertaining. Do you have any plans to do something similar for BB8? Monica: Let me tell you something right now, if they asked me to do it, I would love to do it if the show is as exciting as it was in All-stars and they give me enough to blog about. So if this next cast gives me enough to blog about, I will do it. I would love to be one of the hosts for the revenge of the houseguests. I would like to report back to you and keep it real because I had fun doing the blog, I really did. I didn’t make it too serious. I thought it was fun. I don’t want to be mean and nasty to anyone because that’s just bad energy - you don’t put that out in the universe. It is just a game and you don’t personally attack people. You just tell it like it is and I told it like it was and I had a great, great time. What’s funny is that some of the fans really liked it and you always get some people who are going to be negative. They think they caught me playing games and say they didn’t know that I could write that way or speak that way. I have confidence. I know how to write and I know how to talk. Peb: If you were a producer what changes would you make for BB8? Monica: If I was a producer, I wouldn’t have had a BB8. I thought after the All-stars, that was enough. What can they possibly do to make it different? Yes, I know that Survivor is still going on, but they put in twists and turns and are making it more interesting even though it is the same concept. So, they worked it out. I don’t know, I will hope that BB8 is good, but I don’t know what they will do with it. I thought it should have ended. I didn’t think we should have had an eight. But I know it is about ratings, so they want to bring it back and plus it is summertime and they have a lot of fans who love the show and this is what makes them happy and motivates them to have a good time over the summer, then fine. Other than that, I would have not done BB8. I would have left it alone. Let’s go out with a bang. Let’s do it like Friends. Friends said you know what, we had a good run baby - let’s end it here so when people remember us, it was on a high - not on a medium and not on a low. Peb: Do you have any advice for future Big Brother Houseguests? Monica: The advice I would have for them is be proud of who you are. Do not change for anyone in that house- if they can’t take you that is too bad. People have a tendency of saying - oh, that was just who I was on the show. Be yourself and be proud, so you can come out of the hosue and stand tall that you did the things you did because of who you are, not trying to be somebody else or trying to impress someone else. If you are a minority, (and that can be anyway you want to put it) be who you are and be proud. If you are gay, be gay and be proud. If you are black, be black and be proud. If you are the only Asian, be Asian and be proud. Don’t try to bend your rules for someone else. Be yourself. That is the biggest, biggest thing I would say. Be yourself - whether it be good, bad or indifferent - be yourself. And don’t try to copy past guests. I am tired of seeing that, I want to see something fresh. And that’s why I watched Survivor this season - I watched the previous one because the concept was something new they tried to do. It was different groups of people. I thought it was a great idea. People took it too serious. It didn’t stay long, but the whole idea - people were like what, oh my God - so therefore you turned to channel two and you watched Survivor because you wanted to see how the blacks were going to do, how the whites were going to do, how the Spanish people were going to do, how the Chinese people were going to do. How were they going to mesh as a group? We all work together in different jobs, let’s see how we live together. That would be great. I would love to see BB do something like that for Eight. Oh my God, I would tune in. Peb: Your strength in the house during the time surrounding the 9/11 when your cousin was missing was an inspiration to many who were struggling during the same period. How difficult was it to be isolated in the BB house? How is your family now? Monica: Big Brother was a new thing. We were there. We didn’t know what was going on. It was handled the best way it was. I have no gripes about that. It was just a really hard time. It was just a tragedy. But I had great support there and when I got home, great support there. Five years later the family is doing wonderful and great. I had so much support from friends and family and fans all over. So that was very nice and warm. I still see fans - people still recognize me everyday and I know it was 1) because of how I played the game; and 2) because All-stars brought me back into the light again, and people always seem like they want to ask me about it and they are not sure. I think it is okay to ask and everyone in my family is doing great and thank you so much for asking. We are still healing. We are going to be healing for the rest of our lives. It was a moment that happened and I’m dealing with it and I’m good. I’m good now. Peb: What are you doing these days? What is next for Monica Bailey? Monica: Let’s keep it real, Sista gotta pay bills, so I work a regular day job. I work two jobs. One to pay the bills and the other one to have extra money, but it is fun cause I work for Radio City Music Hall. So therefore, I get to work all the concerts there - The Tony Awards, The Grammys, The MTV Awards - all those exciting events and when concerts and stuff come I work those and that’s my fun job. And then I have my day job and that’s great. I have to pay the bills, but my passion and my love is for the arts. I’m pursuing my acting career like a madwoman. I’m auditioning, networking, doing the headshots, staying online and I’m learning how to do that because times have changed. I’m still doing a lot of mailing, but online more and pictures. I get a lot of auditions, but I’m close but not there yet. So I’m working on my acting career and keeping my craft sharp. I’m been auditioning for theater, for independent films. I really want to be a host. I would even be a co-host. I’m ready to talk with some people and therefore I am pursuing that very hard also. So I’ve got a lot of things in the works - things that I want to do and it’s happening, but very slowly. At one point on my resume is all my work from reality, because Big Brother opens doors, but you have to do the work once you finish those reality shows. You can’t go in there and think because I was on Big Brother you should give me a job, because in this industry reality people are looked down upon. It is like “oh they’re trying to get the easy route” and I don’t want to be considered a reality person. I want to be taken seriously as an actress. That is why I put in all the groundwork. I’m doing all the things I’m supposed to do and I’m paying my dues. The show really opened doors, but once they are opened you have to keep them open. Peb: Any last words for your fans? Monica: I would like to say to my fans: don’t think that I don’t care. As you know, I go online. I go to myspace, but I don’t keep up or do chats and those types of things because I’m so busy with my life but it is not that I don’t care. I want to do it, but I’m so busy. I just want you all to know that I am around when you reach out to me. Cause I went to you guys and ya’ll reached back to me. I want the fans to know that just because they don’t hear from me, doesn’t mean that I gave it up. No, I still love the fact that I did the show and that it was great and that I met some wonderful people in the meantime. Anytime I get a chance, I’ll keep you updated on the things I’m doing. I do a lot of radio interviews for a lot of radio stations. If you go online to Radio Loger radiologer.com, you can hear my work online. So I might not be visible, but I’m around. I don’t feel in any way bad about doing Big Brother and I love the idea of it - I'm so glad I did it. I love my fans - I really do. Post a comment on this interview |
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