Every good reality show needs an antagonist, the straw that stirs the drink.
Based on the first episode, Atlanta realtor Robin Andrade appears to be the one to watch on the new OWN reality show “Ladies Who List: Atlanta.” The show focuses on six Black women in the real estate world and debuts Friday, Jan. 7 at 9 p.m. It can be streamed the next day on Discovery+.
Robin is the most senior of the group in terms of experience in the real estate world. She clearly sees herself as a leader of sorts. Early in the first episode, she comes up with an idea to bring all six of the women together to create a power Black female realty company.
While her friend and real estate attorney Cristyl Kimbrough likes the general concept, she tells Robin, “You don’t play in the sandbox well” with other ladies. It’s a comment, she noted, that Robin herself has said in the past. Nonetheless, Robin gets immediately defensive, her hackles up.
She is holding a drink and tells Cristyl: “Don’t make me throw this on you.”
“Rob, I love you,” Cristyl says.
Robin: “Don’t patronize me.”
She starts raising her voice. “Why are you picking on me?” she whines. “You think every other [expletive] is Miss Congeniality?”
Cristyl remains calm and tells her spot on: “You’re triggered right now.”
Robin: “I’m about to trigger that champagne in your face”
Another woman on the show, real estate broker Quiana Watson later says she is not a fan of Robin because when she needed a favor from Robin to help her out, Robin tried to charge her for the privilege. When asked by Cristyl, Quiana initially refuses to consider the idea of working with Robin but says she plans to meet her just to tell her no.
Later, Robin and Cristyl meet at Piedmont Park to clear the air. Both women want apologies for the previous interaction. So naturally, it gets tense. Cristyl’s nervous laughter is misconstrued by Robin as Cristyl not taking her seriously. Then when Cristyl characterizes her behavior as “crazy,” Robin feels insulted yet again, saying Cristyl just called her “mentally unstable.”
The two friends get over the tiff and move on. But in a preview of the rest of the season, the word “triggered” gets used ― a lot.
And whether Robin keeps dominating the series is unclear.
In an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Tiffany Hawes, a real estate attorney on the show, calls it a “democracy. Everyone has their own way of doing things. Everyone throws their own events. Everyone is at the top of their game. I wouldn’t say any one person is carrying the torch.”
Robin herself said this show is a way to fight against the image of the real estate business as a “good ol’ boys club. Some of us experience remnants of that when doing transactions. Our people for years have been held back from home ownership. We are here to change that.”
Here is a thumbnail of each woman on the cast, gleaned from Zoom interviews with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and their social media platforms:
Credit: PUBLIC FACEBOOK PROFILE PHOTO
Credit: PUBLIC FACEBOOK PROFILE PHOTO
Quiana Watson, Real Estate Broker
Watson has been in the real estate world since 2007, according to her LinkedIn page. She has an undergraduate degree from Fayetteville State University and an MBA from Strayer University.
“I decided to do this show for the exposure of it all,” Quiana said. “I’m honored to be on a show with these ladies.” She said she is not only a real estate broker but she also has an online training academy and an investment podcast.
“I’m more of a serial entrepreneur,” she said. “I want to show other women that you aren’t defined by one thing.”
Credit: FACEBOOK PUBLIC PROFILE PHOTO
Credit: FACEBOOK PUBLIC PROFILE PHOTO
Robin Andrade, Real Estate Broker
Robin has run her own boutique real estate firm Sell Atlanta for 15 years.
She said this show “has been percolating a long time. No one was interested in watching Black women do what we do. We waited a few years from the day we were first interviewed with the idea until we got the green light... I’m just happy to be part of this.”
A Massachusetts native, she said she was a teen mom who worked her way out of the projects to be successful in real estate, moving to Atlanta in 2007. She focused her real estate brokerage business on downtown Atlanta long before that became trendy.
Credit: FACEBOOK PUBLIC PROFILE PHOTO
Credit: FACEBOOK PUBLIC PROFILE PHOTO
Cristyl Kimbrough, Real Estate Attorney
She has run Kimbrough Law for nine years and now has 10 full-time employees and three contract attorneys.
“This presents me a huge platform to be able to give more people an opportunity to break into real estate,” said Cristyl, who graduated Albany State University in 2005. “In my position, I can shape and mold people.”
Credit: PUBLIC FACEB
Credit: PUBLIC FACEB
Tiffani Hawes, Real Estate Attorney
Her firm focuses on real estate closings and has 13 employees.
“We have fun at our closings,” she said. “We have wine. We have things catered at the property address. I’ve had DJs come. The road to getting to a closing can be very rough. People are sad. People are happy. It’s a bi-polar experience. Once you get to the end of the experience, it’s time to celebrate.”
She is a 2013 graduate of John Marshall Law School. She is married and has two boys and a girl.
“I decided this show was a good look,” Tiffani said. “Real estate in Atlanta is definitely popping. I am a mom, an entrepreneur and a wife. It’s a tough balance. Sometimes, things are impossible. I just want to show that moms juggling a lot of things can accomplish their goals.”
Credit: FACEBOOK PUBLIC PROFILE PHOTO
Credit: FACEBOOK PUBLIC PROFILE PHOTO
Tiana Harrison, Real Estate Agent
Tiana, who has been in construction and real estate in some way for more than 15 years, said she was reluctant to join the show at first because “Black women on reality shows get a bad rap. I decided to do it but decided to do it cognizant I’d be able to do it with these women.”
Tiana hopes to portray herself as a “cool hands-on mom, a competent professional and a good wife.” And among the women, “viewers will see how we go about our every day lives and how we can have conflict but come back together.”
Credit: FACEBOOK PUBLIC PROFILE PHOTO
Credit: FACEBOOK PUBLIC PROFILE PHOTO
Kira Oliver, Real Estate Agent
Oliver is the youngest of the group at age 28 with four years experience in the business.
“I didn’t come from a background as privileged as some people,” she said. “I want to show people you can be young and successful but overcome breakups and fights with family and whatever and still come out on top.”
The top of the show has Quiana mentoring her and supporting her for showing herself in a bikini on Instagram.
“We all work in a field dominated by white men,” Kira said. “We want to showcase our successes as Black females. We’re killing it as much as any other people.”
WHERE TO WATCH
“Ladies Who List: Atlanta,” 9 p.m. Fridays on OWN starting Jan. 7 with episodes available the next day on Discovery+
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