“The Realness” Season 1, Episode 2

Interview with Mac Slaughter

Pat: Good Evening, I am Pat and Welcome back to “the Realness: Behind the Scenes of Roleplay.” I am absolutely thrilled that you are here to join me. I want to thank everyone for their love and support after the first episode dropped. Shoutout to Kylee for being my first ever guest! Before we get to tonights interview, let’s break down some of the major roleplay news from this week in my special segment I call “Roleplay Breakdown.”

Pat: Ladies of Twitter had their Premiere Episode.. Seems that there is already drama happening. All I can say is I am always team Elle and Kathy.. I also want to shoutout the newbie Erica! I had the pleasure in getting to chat with her. Seems like a real cool chick.. excited to see what she does this season.

Pat: Real Housewives of Beverly Beach is hard at work filming their new season. I have heard there are a few newbies and the drama is already beginning with returnee Imani, sister of Lorelei. So far we have seen posts from three newbies, Mona, Gemma and Jenisa. Very excited to see who will be full time!

Pat: The CT Wives filmed their reunion and I heard it was EXHAUSTING. I also heard they are already filming their new season! Looks like CT Wives is on the move to give us content!

Pat: I want to move on to a new segment where Breakdown some of the hottest pop culture stories of the week! Of course this is titled “Pop Culture Breakdown”

Pat: The Screen Actors Guild announced their Nominees for their 28th Annual SAG Awards. There was a few outrageous snubs including the nominees for

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Jessica Chastain (The Eyes of Tammy Faye)
Olivia Colman (The Lost Daughter)
Lady Gaga (House of Gucci)
Jennifer Hudson (Respect)
Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos)

Where is Kristen Stewart for her portrayal of Diana in Spencer? This was shocking as she was looked at as a shoe in for the Oscars. I was also surprised that Ben Affleck and Bradley Cooper got nominations over the Belfast Boys. Belfast is on track to be a huge contender for Best Picture. I also was upset, Following Michaela Jaé Rodriguez’s historic Golden Globes win for the hit show POSE, she was not nominated for Outstanding Female Actor in a Drama Series.

Pat: Well I am sure more surprises are coming! I'll be tuning in to the SAG Awards February 27, 2022, 8:00 PM EST.

Pat: Tonight, I sit down with Mac Slaughter to break down everything about his life behind the scenes and ask those tough questions about our falling out a few months ago.. Please welcome Mac! Welcome! Should I call you Mac, Frankie, maybe something else? *laughs*

Mac: Ahhhh!! Hey girl *waves* Today, you can call me Mac but Frankie is somewhere in the mix.. always!

Pat: Well welcome and thank you so much for joining me and allowing me to really break down everything with you beyond the characters you play of Twitter. I always like to start light and then we can get into the heavy shit.. ready?

Mac: I am ready! Shoot. *gets comfortable in chair*

Pat: So when did you discover roleplay and what shows have you done?

Mac: Funny story, so I discovered roleplay a little bit after I graduated and I was thrown off by the fact that people were using the housewives names and such and I was like “why?” But the first show I discovered on twitter was RHOT of course *smiles a bit* but that was around season 9/10 maybe even 8. I love cast photos from any housewives shows because I feel cast photos are the gateway to promo. You get excited to see who is on the cast, what your favorite is wearing, what’s the theme of the cast look, is it going to be everyone in one color, etc. So I was always intrigued with the ever evolving cast and the cast photos too. As far as what shows I’ve done, I have done Married to Medicine: Twitter and RHOT. I just signed on to be on their (RHOT) first season of All Stars which is exciting because it’s kind of bringing RHOT back to its roots. You have Brian, Nick, Ian Homes, Myself, Grant, Reed.. there’s these big personalities so it’s going to be fun and interesting to see how we get along for a month *laughs*

Pat: So you have done both M2MTwitter and RHOT.. how have the two experiences been the same or different?

Mac: Gezuz Krice ! You’re going to get me in trouble, *chuckles a bit* just kidding! But I liked Married2Med Twitter more than RHOT because I felt like I could more of my authentic self with what was going on in my personal life. At the time it was much easier to navigate through my storylines versus RHOT where I was Mac the photographer and I had to figure my storyline out as the season went on. Any storyline I’ve done for RHOT always had a little bit of a background, like the domestic violence from my sophomore season. I was in a domestic situation with an ex and I feel like we all don’t share who we fully are but everyone uses RolePlay as an escape but I personally used it as therapy. I always want to confront what I am always running from all the time. Married2Med, my first season was CRAZY! To be honest, I was talking to this guy, during filming M2MTwitter, who I liked and I felt like he did like me. Only issues is he would invite guys over, get head from them.. and at this point I left my own place and that’s kinda what I wanted to present though Frankie to everyone. There’s a percentage of people that go through that, I want to show people real life experiences. I have to say though both experiences were good and they came with their pros and cons.

Pat: Let me ask about those authentic storylines on M2MTwitter. One was about you “brother” having cancer.. although made up for the show. You were going through that in your real life with a family member.

Mac: Yeah. I can speak about this now without crying but my grandma had cancer not once but twice. The first time she beat cancer it was July 2019. Then it came back around the same time we all went into Covid Lockdown..It started with a small speck of cancer on her kidney and by the time September 2020 had around she was in stage 3/4. She had to have a brain tumor removed, had to go through physical therapy, she started to lose mobility, losing her voice, her body was swelled up, tubes to feed herself. It was a lot and it left a bad mark because she deserved better. I know there was nothing I could’ve done but to even actually not have her in 2022 is a lot to take in. I wanted to show what it was like dealing with cancer.

Pat: I am sorry about grandma.. think from a production stand point. I appreciated the storyline. I always pushed the cast to “go there” when it came to their storylines. I wanted things to be real even though its roleplay.. I want to talk a little bit more about M2MTwitter. First season 4. The Season with Annika. What was your true feelings about what was going on.. on and off camera

Mac: Where should I begin? It was sad to see Makayla leave because of what was going on. She could have finished the season but with Annika and the rest of the cast, looking at it now, I see things differently. I see both sides and there should have been boundaries, and agreeing and disagreeing, while still having respect amongst us. I mean it makes a GREAT read but then the lines between real and creative become blurred. On camera it was tense not going to lie and off camera was just as intense if not worse *laughs a bit* that is still our best season to date. I felt like until we as a collective can see the perspective of others and understand the perspective we are never going to get anywhere. Angela, Annika and others should have been heard across the board.

Pat: Did you feel any differently knowing Annika was a man of color in real life?

Mac: No. For me, it goes back to the conversation of anti blackness/colorism. That’s just what it is. We can agree to disagree on this topic but I just want to say this. Annika using those remarks to Angela, Myself, Jocelyn, etc. It really bothered me because I believe Angela had said to her we shouldn’t be talking about this because it’s a sensitive topic. Especially since, during that time, the Black Lives Matter movement was happening. Then, the Annika character into it, the beautiful, sexy, privileged Persian woman calling a black person soot face, roach, making references about being “too loud” was a lot. For others to diminish that because we’re playing a “game” for an hour is sad.. If the goal is to get away from reality then why are we bringing that stuff into play? I think that could’ve been cleaned up really quick. There’s a way to communicate your feelings on a topic and maybe we didn’t handle that the best way but Annika is learning and growing like the rest of us. I have nothing against him and I want us to stop trying to invalidate others just because you didn’t mean it that way, if we can’t listen to understand then what are we doing?

Pat: I agree. I think that the conversation could have been more productive but there was a lot of people behind the scenes at work.. What’s interesting is seeing how Angela was on camera and in the off camera chat.. I added her as a producer around season 3, many don’t know that. She was a very different person in the “producers” chat then what she showed off to all of you. I always questioned if her intentions were pure. She was a fabulous roleplayer..

Mac: Really? What made you do that?

Pat: I wanted another perspective. I felt like Angela had a voice with the rest of you so we could talk and get down to what needed to be changed. I always asked her for advice. I was beat down at points. Was my character doing too much? Should I be on the show? I don’t think people get how difficult it is to be on a roleplay show and produce it.. People think you are out to get them and your character matters over everyone else. I always recognized everyones talent. I always tried to make the right decisions.

Mac: I really like Angela and we have had our talks. I feel like if our communication skills were better, we all could’ve simply come to a point of understanding. We question what we don’t understand. But that’s just me, in the beginning, I thought Angela was full of herself but I ended up getting to know her and she was great on and off camera. I felt like Angela did Angela and you were either going to love her or hate her. She was different and I respected the fact that she always spoke her mind

Pat: Angela wanted people fired. Storylines changed.. but never made her intentions known to those in question. She wanted me to do the dirty work, which I rarely did. I didn’t fire a soul and I never changed anyones storylines

Mac: I know one in particular she wanted fired but honestly we never talked about anyone else being fired truthfully. I’m surprised at how she always wanted you to do the dirty, due to the fact how her personality was. I just wanna if Tanya Love was let go or did she walk?

Pat: She walked. I think she knew it was time. Plus she was getting busy in her personal life. Let’s switch gears to something more deep..

Mac: Oh lord. Alright, I’m ready.

Pat: Ahead of Season 6. You and me were having a bit of a back and forth that kind of exploded to some very harsh tweets including you calling me Anti Black. I want to start at the beginning because I think it’s important for us to talk about this.. What kind of mind space were you in when we started filming season 6?

Mac: I wanted to do season 6, in the beginning, but after the reshoot and then people not showing up for filming, I was tired. I stuck around because I wanted to give people good content but I just couldn’t do it. Pat sometimes your tone isn’t the most flattering. When you said “lay off the drugs” in a scene..I was tired and I already had these coworkers who didn’t understand me at work and then I gotta come home and deal with your tone. Yes, in retrospect, it was over a message but I am very sensitive and I just felt like it was uncalled for. Around that time, I lost my bestfriend because people are so hateful. I was depressed, I was searching/looking for help. The way you went hard for looking for Emil, which I know is hard for you because of what happened, but that same energy was not reciprocated my way. I was fighting for my life in a way I never experienced and no one is equipped to deal with the aftermath of a death of a loved one. The anti blackness comment was said because when you said “maybe you and Courtney can go try Basketball Wives Twitter” I felt like you were calling us low black trash, ghetto, the bottom of the barrel, and I associated with anti blackness. I felt you were dehumanizing me even though it was sarcasm. It didn’t have to get nasty the way it did but I don’t have a problem with you. When I walked away from Married2Med I needed to get away from the same thing I was trying to get away in my personal life. Drama, bullshit, lack of acknowledgment, lack of being accountable, misunderstanding, miscommunication.

Pat: I think that collectively people go through things quietly that no one knows about.. and when we see other getting some sort of treatment, we react to why wasn’t that me? It’s a human reaction. Of course, if I knew or anyone knew what was happening with you personally, we would have been there for you. I think that calling someone Anti black is probably the worst thing you could label someone. You, taking roleplay out of it, said that I would do anything to keep blackness out. Which is the opposite of who I am in roleplay and in real life. When I started M2MTwitter with Jackson, I prided myself on being different. Making it real and diverse. You know the majority of the roleplay community is apart of the LGBT community yet.. no trans representation.. people of color were played by white cis men.. I put an end to that immediately. So I understand why me coming at you could be seen as me not appreciating you.. but anti black? not so much. That was a huge huge character assassination for someone that celebrates all people. I will not apologize for doing what I did for Emil. Even though it had a tragic end. Know I would do the same for anyone. Including you.

Mac: My whole thing is when you explain yourself, it’s like I have to understand where you are coming from but in return there’s nothing being given back to me. One person on the cast for Married2Med season 6 some who wanted to play a black woman is not black.

Pat: That was a situation that was dealt with. I can show you the messages about what we stand for and the person promised NOT to stereotype a woman of color but rather celebrate her. I was okay with that.

Mac: I feel like we are nobody in the world, so saying “anti-black” is not sticking to you and making you lose deals, getting dropped from brands, etc. I hear you and your feelings are valid but I didn’t keep hounding you for days. I said what I said and chose to stop responding. I didn’t want you to apologize because you don’t have to. I was fighting for my life because I did not want to live anymore. Not because of you and the show.. but of what I was dealing with in my life. The amount of energy and time you spent looking for Emil, I’m just saying it would’ve been nice to get that in return. If we can’t admit our own faults and weaknesses, then how do we grow. I said some shit I shouldn’t have and reacted off of pettiness and high emotions because I am tired of drama Pat. I really am.

Pat: I think your missing what I am saying but first let me say this I hear you, I validate your feelings 10000%. I think wether famous or not is irrelevant. I pride myself on being open and loving all people no matter what and to be called anti black over twitter drama seemed overkill. I understand the contexts of it.. but the delivery was very upsetting. Especially since I didn’t understand what you were going though. You never took the time and maybe I should have taken the time to ask what was wrong. I felt, not just with you, everytime I would ask, I wouldn’t get a response. Emil spoke to me daily. I did everything I could to find him. Lysette gave us a scare and I didn’t know her at all.. still did what I could to search for her.. it was deja vu all over again. All I want is to move in a positive direction, and I think we have. But for my conscience I need to know that you don’t think I’m against or anti anyone that’s a different race than I am.

Mac: I didn’t respond to anyone, people would call, text and I just would be disconnected because again, I was in my own little bubble and the minute I started talking about my situation I just fall into this heavy, depressive state. I had to handle myself with care because I was unsure of what to do or who to talk to about this. In the spirit of positivity, I do not think you are anti black or racist. I just felt that in that moment you were but to even have this conversation is pretty nice because we are listening and understanding where the other person is coming from. Shit happens, we’re all human. Just have to move forward with respect and boundaries.

Pat: Listen. I love you. You are my friend no matter what. You can always come to me if you are struggling. I’m always here

Mac: I’ve always considered you a friend but we both do need to be more understanding each and really building a strong foundation ya know? We should be able to talk through anything as adults, like we have done here tonight. I don’t want to beef or fight with anyone and blast their business on Twitter so I apologize because that was uncalled for.

Pat: Well I appricate that. That is why I am doing this show. It is about having a better understanding of who is behind these accounts. People with real feeling.. Let’s end this on a positive shall we? Can you give us one positive thing you’ve gotten out of roleplay and if giving them chance would you return to married to medicine? You were always a fan favorite!

Mac: Meeting different gay men from different parts of the United States & Overseas is amazing. It’s always a great when you join a RolePlay family you never know who you’re going to connect with and acutally become friends with. Would I return to Married To Medicine Twitter? Hmm….. I have thought about this long and hard because I was going to message you the week of New Years because it was such a great show and the vibe was great, and thinking it over……. I would definitely return. I feel like between CT Wives and Married2Med Twitter, we would be the trailblazers right now for RolePlay. I love my Beverly Beach girls, don’t hate me, I still need to catch up because my new thing is tweet about the premiere because premiere epeisodes in the RolePlay community is amazing! The creativity that is put into each scene feels like vintage housewives not this new shit era of housewives. Oh, yeah. I almost forgot about my LoT ladies too. I love y’all so much but honestly it’s a mistake for production to let Kathy & Elle walk.. it is insane to me but hey *shrugs* everyone’s a genius. But this was a great conversation and I appreciate the message to do this. Congratulations on your new show and let’s just continue to build and be more aware of what the other situation may or may not be.

Pat: Mac. Thank you. We will be right back with my final thoughts..

Pat: Well we have reached the end of the episode! I want to thank Mac for being here and opening up. That truly was a raw and real emotional episode. Like I said last week, the purpose of this show is not to hurt anyone. Its all about the experiences we all have while participating in Twitter roleplay. It seems some feel differently but that what makes the world go round! Next time.. Ren from Real Housewives of Beverly Beach..

Till then. Love Love Love.