Keke Palmer Speaks On ‘Southern Fried Rice’ Backlash
Keke Palmer and screenwriter Nakia Stephens have joined forces to bring a new original series, Southern Fried Riceto Palmer's KeyTV platform, a digital media network dedicated to elevating Black stories and creatives. But since the show's release, social media users have been divided over its unique plot line, which centers on an Asian American character.
Premiere its first two episodes on October 22, Southern Fried Rice follows an Asian American woman, Koko Johnson, played by Page Yang, as she explores her identity and culture while growing up with Southern Black parents. The themes collide when Koko attends Wright University, a prestigious fictional HBCU in Atlanta, and her late father's alma mater. There, she faces questions of belonging and self-discovery, accordingly Complex. The cast also includes Kordell Beckham, Choyce Brown, Ashley India, Jada Lewis, and Shaun Rose.
Palmer described the project as embodying her network's mission — a story that “celebrates different realities while still being full of humor, love and heart.” However, not everyone online agreed with the actress' ethos.
Reactions to Southern Fried Rice are mixed.
After the trailer and the first two episodes dropped, some social media users expressed frustration. On X, one user wrote that the show's lead should have been a black actress, given the HBCU setting and KeyTV's mission to center Black stories.
“Black women are not a monolith; they could have easily made it about the transformation you go through by experiencing an HBCU. Esp if said BW went to a PWI. This just seems like a sloppy attempt to force diversity on a show when black people have to beg for one supp role elsewhere,” the user wrote.
Other added:
“I think the obvious issue is, there is literally no need for the principal at an HBCU to be Asian???”
Some users said that the show drew influence from the real life story of Cindy Wilson.
Some users also pointed out similarities between Stephens' show and the real-life story of writer Cindy Wilson, a Korean-born woman adopted by a Black family in Mississippi. Wilson, who detailing their journey in her 2018 memoir Too much soulwrote about growing up in Jackson, Mississippi, after adopting from Seoul, South Korea. “See how she fights and loves her way through life as she searches for her identity and discovers her place in the world despite the strongholds society tries to place around her,” read the book's description.
Various people accused online Stephens of failing to give Wilson proper credit.
Still, other viewers embraced the series' unconventional storyline. One person on X wrote:
“I know a lot of non-POCs who went to HBCUs who got scholarships for being a minority, so I'm interested to see how this turns out.”
Another viewer appreciated the show's approach to cultural representation, saying:
“Am I the only one open to the idea of this? I saw the trailer and the main character is tastefully written (w/o Blaccent) and there are plenty of black women and men in the show.”
Keke Palmer and Nakia Stephens joined the discussion.
As the controversy spread, both Palmer and Stephens addressed the conversation directly. In a video shared on October 23, Palmer spoke out to clarify the intentions behind it Southern Fried Rice and to spotlight the black creatives involved in the project, including Stephens, in whom she has invested nearly half a million dollars over the years for previous shows on KeyTV.
“I wanted to cut to the chase very quickly about this series called 'Southern Fried Rice' that's premiering on KeyTV, which is getting some controversial feedback. Well, Southern Fried Rice was created by Nakia Stephens. While I can't speak to her inspiration for the show, I can speak to her dedication as a creative,” Palmer said in a video. “Nakia has written, directed and produced four shows alongside her Damn Write Originals team with KeyTV, and KeyTV has proudly invested over half a million dollars in her creations. And I say that because it's not easy to get that kind of investment.”
She continued:
“[At] KeyTV, that is the ethos of the company. It's a network, not just because it has stars and shows or has talent, but because it's about the people who make the shows and connect them.”
Keke Palmer went on to name other Black creatives that KeyTV has supported, including Antwan Lawshe, Eric & Rosero McCoy, and Chelsea Sanders, adding:
“Look, what you like is subjective, but the support of black creatives is not, and it is a task that KeyTV takes on with pride. Because if you want to be a creative, you have to be able to create, and that costs money, and it is the mission of KeyTV to find the funds for you to be in practice, for you to experience trial and error, and to take your projects into action and do more than one. all or some or none, I say, give these creators a chance to grow as we continue to grow in supporting them.
Stephens also spoke out, posting a message on Instagram the same day.
“I welcome conversation. I welcome curiosity,” she shared. “Our ultimate goal was to spark conversation about culture, to attract belonging and identity, and that's what I think I've done.”
She added that the show was a decade in the making and deeply personal:
“Southern Fried Rice is 10-plus years in the making, and it was inspired by my own HBCU experience and observations as a student at Savannah State University, the first public HBCU in Georgia,” she explained. “I had friends at Savannah State University. And people in my job who were non-Black and had to navigate a historically Black space, and I saw how difficult and challenging and fun and beautiful it was for them to do that, and that sparked my curiosity and honestly planted the seed for Southern Fried Rice.”
Have you seen Southern Fried Rice yet? Tell us your thoughts on the show in the comments section.
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