By Brigette Flood and Sandy M. Tyler
Damn the snow. When Phaedra started talking about her upcoming “Sip & See” to show off baby Ayden, the potential for dangerous Atlanta roads meant we had to do a spit take with non-alcoholic beverages, rather than serving up some Bellinis of our own. The Southern Belle act never fails to amuse us, especially since Phaedra’s ideas always seem to come from another time or planet. If anyone out there has actually been to a Sip & See, we want to hear from you.
The Sip & See, we can’t stop saying or writing it, was cohosted by Dwight and made complete with parking valets, customized Ayden peach preserve party favors and Kim Zolciak in a low-cut black dress. Phaedra decided it was time to clear the air between them, so she invited Kim out on the back porch for a smoke. (The irony is not lost.) It’s the second time this season that we’ve seen a member of the Real Housewives of Atlanta cast pull out a folded piece of paper as proof of their credentials, but in this case, Kim actually does have a medical degree. True to their Southern Belle roots, Kim and Phaedra make nice while trading insults masked by polite smiles. At least the peach cocktails looked delicious.
NeNe prepares for her Jermaine Dupri interview by taping promos at Channel 11 instead of researching or carefully thinking through the questions she’s going to ask. NeNe visits the diminutive star in his studio, and initially, Dupri’s curt, one-word answers amplify NeNe’s journalistic shortcomings. Know your subject, NeNe. He didn’t get his start as a concert promoter, didn’t have a radio show and didn’t play an instrument. But Dupri shouldn’t have been the one to tell you that. You can keep it real, but keep it real prepared.
In the end, NeNe and son Brentt get a personal studio tour, which seems to make the experience worthwhile. Bummer that Dupri’s publicist nixed any questions about Janet Jackson. That would have been a big win for NeNe and way more interesting than watching them shoot hoops in his So So Def private gym.
Back intown, Peter and Cynthia decide some pre-marital counseling is an important part of their wedding planning, and invite Hill Harper, who is both an actor (hmmmm) and a relationship expert, over to help them get the discussion started. As with many other couples these days, money is a hot topic. Cynthia resents having to invest so much of her earnings in Peter’s failing restaurant. Not helping matters is Peter’s insistence that “me” becomes “we” after marriage. This pressure is starting to chafe with independent and marriage-averse Cynthia.
This is some of the toughest interaction we’ve seen between a couple to-date, possibly because most of the Atlanta Housewives are single. The guided conversation quickly becomes heated and uncomfortable to watch. After Cynthia and Peter stop arguing, Harper asks them to state what they love about each other. We’re not counselors (nor actors), but it doesn’t take a lot of experience to know that dramatically changing the tone so quickly isn’t easy. Did Harper write that book or is he just using it as a prop? Peter ticks off a quick list of love, but Cynthia tables the conversation and requests another counseling session. We’re not sure Harper knew what he was getting into, but we do credit him with the understatement of the show, when he says: you guys communicate differently.
Kandi and Kim soon head out on their 7-day music “tour”, and not since Ken Kesey and his Merry Pranksters went on the road has there been such a trip. Kim finalizes her preparations for the tour by getting B-12 injections from faithful assistant Sweetie and then makes smoking and drinking part of her pre-stage ritual. Kim continues to prepare as if she was doing karaoke at the local dive bar, rather a promotional stage tour.
Kim’s daughter Brielle is upset to spend the week without her Mom or Sweetie, and Kim sympathizes, explaining that it’s hard that she doesn’t have a regular 9 to 6 job, but that she needs to do this tour to earn a living. Yeah. Those 7-day work years ARE hard on the whole family.
Kim and Kandi fly to Charlotte, North Carolina to begin promoting their tour on the radio and to meet up with their tour bus, but first they have to meet with their tour manager Don Juan and go over their schedule. It’s all too much for Kim who can’t believe the tour involves actual work with schedules and responsibilities. Kim’s complaints start immediately, and given Don Juan’s comments about Big Poppa later in the episode, it’s probably a good thing that the two of them won’t have to spend too much time together. For a delicate flower like Kim, the tour bus also leaves a lot to be desired – no queen-sized bed, no smoking lounge and a bathroom she needs Sweetie’s help to use. At least Kroy Biermann managed to get flowers delivered to the bus. That florist must have a great delivery person.
Club Tempo is the first tour stop, and it’s incredibly cool to see Kandi’s family show up to support her. As the opening act, Kim is responsible for warming up the audience before Kandi gets on stage. Club Tempo is certainly not Kim’s typical crowd, and we have to give her props for getting up there. Luckily, Kim has her Auto-Tune to help her out, and despite dropping the choreography we saw her rehearse in earlier episodes, she does seem to have improved her performance such as it is.
Kim’s also smart enough to give Kandi, who is the real star of the tour, the kudos she deserves. We had to question Kandi’s judgment when she invited Kim out on tour, but as usual, her promotional instincts never seem to fail her. And despite our best efforts to think about ANYTHING else, we have to admit to drifting off to sleep with The Ring Didn’t Mean a Thing echoing over and over again in our heads – unfortunately in the key of Kim.
I have in fact been to a couple of “Sip & See” parties – fun way to get together w the new mom & see the baby! Phedra is a pure whack job but a “Sip & See” is real! On another note I sure hope Cynthia wakes up & dumps that controlling self-centered jack a**!
By the way I used to love Dwight but really Phedra royalty? He needs to go back from the salon from whince he came!
Thanks, Katiekat. Good to know that Phaedra can sometimes be found on our own Southern planet.
I felt that Don Juan should have checked Kim for calling him “Nappy”, but he didn’t say a word about her comment.
How old is Kim medical degree, when the last time she work in anybody hospital or medical clinic. Last time I check you still need to go back to school to stay up-to-date on diseases and illness.
Sip and See, or some derivations have always been common among Southerners who did not want to have to tell you not to handle their new baby. Simple as that. Many Southern parents don’t cotton to strangers kissing the newborn. The belief is that baby has not had time to develop immune defences. While Phaedra may have given the visit her special name the practice is a very old custom among the cultured classes. No cats nor dogs nor gerbils nor hampsters, or the like allowed. It’s only etiquette.