Monday, June 29th 2009 // The Rundown // News & Gossip, TV Talk // 27 COMMENTS
BET’s Brand New Original Series “Tiny & Toya” Reveals the Lives of Two Best Friends Defining Themselves Despite the Harsh Glare of the Public Eye
Sometimes it’s hard to be who you are in a world that is determined to tell you who you are. Best friends Tameka “Tiny” Cottle and Antonia “Toya” Carter have seen their lives sliced, diced, and scrutinized by many a gossip blogger and tabloid reporter. Tiny’s life with fiancée T.I. and Toya’s former life with ex-husband Lil Wayne is standard fodder for the gossip mill. Now, for the first time, these two fascinating women get to tell their own stories on their own terms.
“TINY & TOYA” will move beyond the rumors to reveal the everyday lives of two ordinary women, brought together in friendship by their shared experiences surviving the pitfalls of fame alongside superstar significant others. Tiny’s life began as the daughter of the second interracial couple to be legally married in Georgia. She went on to a successful career as a member of the 90s R&B group Xscape. At the height of the group’s success, Tiny met and fell in love with then rising hip hop star T.I. After some time, she left the road and her career with Xscape to raise her family. Now, Tiny is attempting to regain her independence and return to her first love, music, and to explore other new business ventures close to her heart.
For Toya, life began in a rough New Orleans neighborhood where the expectation for most girls in her words was to go from “the pillow to the pole.” With her own family life broken, Toya longed for a sense of home and security. Eventually, she met and fell in love with a local New Orleans rapper, Lil Wayne. When she became pregnant with their daughter, Toya felt she finally had the family she longed for as a child and in 2004, she married Wayne. When superstardom came calling and the trappings of Wayne’s skyrocketing career began to negatively affect their marriage, Toya made the painful decision to leave her first love to start a new life. Now, Toya’s focus is on raising her daughter and sharing her story with young girls to give them the hope and strength to become strong women.
“TINY & TOYA” will follow the ladies on their journey and provide them with the opportunity for people to see that there is much more to them than meets gossip’s eye.
For more about “TINY & TOYA” including biographies, upcoming episodes and exclusive interviews, go to www.bet.com/ontv.betshows
Sunday, June 28th 2009 // The Rundown // On The Carpet, Photo Gallery // 18 COMMENTS
Check out these red carpet arrivals from the 2009 BET Awards in Los Angeles, CA featuring Beyonce, Tyra Banks, Keri Hilson, Ne-Yo, Diddy, Alicia Keys, Taraji P. Henson, Tyrese Gibson and others…
