Written by | Ray Cornelius

The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) continues to add more dimension to its popular unscripted programming with its newest offering—To Have and To Hold: Charlotte. The one-hour series airs Saturday evenings at 10 p.m. following the award-winning Iyanla: Fix My Life.

To Have and To Hold: Charlotte follows five unique African-American marriages in the burgeoning metropolis of Charlotte, NC. Like a few of the network’s other “love and relationship” shows (Ready to Love, Family or Fiancé, Love and Marriage: Huntsville), this series also focuses on couples who don’t always see eye-to-eye and others who are more than meets the eye. Viewers will also see them juggle everything from faith to finances to friendships and what it really looks like when vows are put to the test.

I had the pleasure of meeting a few members of the cast: Alane + Yandrick (The Socialites), Christine + Darhyl (The Dinks) and Ursula + Clinton (The Empty Nesters) during a recent media brunch and talked exclusively with them about the “pressure to perform” for reality television, being unsolicited ambassadors of “black love” and much more.

Click here to see the first episode and check out my conversation below:

Photo Credit: RayCornelius.com

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