Nene Leakes: Buffoon or (Fame) Genius?

Let's face it. Nene Leakes has become bigger than life. Her persona as the loud, outrageous, in-your-face black woman has made her a household name. If she weren't on The Real Housewives of Atlanta (RHOA), a lot of viewers would go away. Yet, the very thing that has made her well known is also what people hate. The average Joe wants to know is she a buffoon or a person genius working the fame game?

Critics often call Nene a buffoon because she typifies the stereotypical attributes that so many black women have been trying to shed for years. She is impatient, always ready for a fight and loves to tell it like it 'tis'. Whether in private or public, she holds nothing back. Unfortunately, her behavior often causes her to come across as mean, angry or just plain ignorant. Nene is a racist person's dream because he can use her as an example of why black women are inferior to white ones. Despite her designer clothes and big home, Nene still acts ghetto. But - is this what she wants?

Entertainment veterans like the Wayan brothers will often tell you that Hollywood execs loves stereotypes, especially of black people. They believe these types of images sell and in some ways they are right. The masses tend to flock to movies like Big Momma and Madea's Family Reunion. Nene appears to have figured this out. During the first season of RHOA, she was popular because viewers liked her down-to-earth behavior. However, by the end of the second season, she was one of the most talked about stars of RHOA because she acted naughty, like a ghetto fabulous diva. The more she rolled her eyes, the bigger her fan base grew. Now, she's in full effect and sparking Internet clicks because of her appearance on Celebrity Apprentice. Her turn for the worse really helped her get the kind of exposure most young starlets yearn for.

So, is Nene Leakes a buffoon or a woman working the fame game? Probably the latter. Figures vary, but RHOA cast members are said to earn around $30,000 per episode. For a broad who never went to college (or one that has) that's pretty good money. She is using all of her talents to make hard cold cash despite the backlash from a few onlookers. Nene's persona may not do anything for black women, but her overall earnings probably wash away any guilt she feels.

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