Nestled on the well-known Massachusetts island that’s become a world-class vacation destination, the largely under-the-radar community of Oak Bluffs is a place where Black members of the ultra-wealthy elite have lived and vacationed for decades. In the dramatic, fictionalized light of Our Kind of People, Oak Bluffs becomes a neighborhood where wealth, connections and status mean everything—and one woman wants to take what belongs to her. Our Kind of People “is a soapy, thrilling exploration of race and class in America and an unapologetic celebration of Black resilience and achievement–all daringly told by a team we’ve been eager to get back in business with,” Michael Thorn, president at FOX Entertainment, said back in March 2021. Helmed by Empire co-creator LeeDaniels, the drama is a classic fish-out-of-water tale that revolves around a single mom who moves her family back to the upper-crust society she left as a child. When she returns, she must deal with her past, family secrets and mean girls—but with a twist. “I don’t think anything like this has been on TV before,” says Yaya DaCosta, the show’s star. Intrigued? Here’s everything you need to know about FOX’s new drama, Our Kind of People.
When will Season 1 of Our Kind of People premiere?
The series premiere of Our Kind of People debuts Tues., Sept. 21 at 9 p.m ET on FOX.
What is Our Kind of People about?
The show centers on Angela (DaCosta), a Black single mom with a haircare business who decides to move to the elite community of Oak Bluffs on the island of Martha’s Vineyard off the coast of mainland Massachusetts. However, according to Deadline, Angela soon “discovers a secret about her past that just might change her position and shake up her life and this influential community forever." One of the show’s stars, Rhyon Nicole Brown, also previously said about the plot, “There’s a thin line between love and hate, and I think these characters are constantly teetering the line back and forth."
Is Our Kind of People based on a book?
The show is inspired by Lawrence Otis Graham’s Our Kind of People: Inside America’s Black Upper Class.The nonfiction book explores the wealthy Black elite who buy million-dollar homes and have built close-knit communities in Martha’s Vineyard and other exclusive neighborhoods. Rumor has it that FOX has been working on spinning the book into a series for years. As far back as 2017, the network reportedly assembled a writer’s room to hammer out a script for Graham’s book, which first came out in 1999 after Graham dedicated six years to interviewing several of the most prominent Black families in the U.S. A group of writers assembled again in 2020, and ultimately FOX sent the show straight to series without a pilot.
Who is in the Our Kind of People cast?
Our Kind of People’s main cast is a mix of familiar faces and new ones—some from favorite TV dramas and some you’ve never seen before. So who’s playing who?
Yaya DaCosta as Angela Vaughn
In Our Kind of People, DaCosta stars as Angela Vaughn, a single mom who moves to the unfamiliar enclave of Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts. She holds a secret about her past that will shock the wealthy DuPont family, her deceased mother’s former employers. Many viewers may still remember fresh-faced DaCosta, 38, as the eventual runner-up of the modeling reality competition show America’s Next Top Model: Cycle 3. However, the Brown University grad soon turned to acting. She’s appeared in Chicago Med and Ugly Betty and starred in the 2015 film Whitney as Whitney Houston.
Morris Chestnut as Raymond Dupont
Morris Chestnut plays the head of the Dupont family, a corporate executive who’s been described as having “Obama swag and presence.” Chestnut came to fame in Boyz N the Hood and has appeared in movies like The Best Man and shows like The Resident; he also previously starred in the FOX series Rosewood.
Nadine Ellis as Leah Franklin-Dupont
Nadine Ellis plays Raymond’s wife, Leah Franklin-Dupont. She’s a confident businesswoman who knows Oak Bluffs’ inner circles all too well—and she doesn’t trust Angela. Ellis has appeared in the TV shows Shameless and NCIS: Los Angeles.
Joe Morton as Teddy Franklin
The character of Teddy Franklin is a pillar of the Oak Bluffs community, and likewise, Joe Morton is a pillar among Hollywood’s most esteemed character actors; he’s perhaps best known for his Emmy-winning role as Eli Pope in the drama Scandal. Morton feels a show like Our Kind of People is long overdue. “This is a look at what it means to be Black in America and holding the American dream in Black hands,” he’s said.
Debbi Morgan as Patricia Williams
Debbi Morgan will play Patricia Williams, who is also known by the more colorful name “Aunt Piggy.” Morgan is no stranger to television; she’s appeared on a number of soap operas, including her long stint on All My Children. She’s been popping up a lot lately; she’s a guest star on the new Fantasy Island and is appearing in the shows Bigger and Power Book II: Ghost.
Kyle Bary as Quincy DuPont
Kyle Bary was recently seen on Netflix’s Ginny & Georgia and will play Quincy, Raymond’s son, who wants to play in the NBA but is shut down by his parents.
Rhyon Nicole Brown as Lauren DuPont
Brown plays Lauren Dupont, a member of the wealthy Dupont family. Brown is perhaps best known for her role in the ABC Family show Lincoln Heights, but has also starred in the TV film Surviving Compton: Dre, Suge & Michel’le and has appeared in other shows like That’s So Raven.
Lance Gross as Tyrique Freeman
Lance Gross is playing Tyrique, a man who wasn’t born into wealth, but made a ton of money in construction and is respected in the community. By the looks of it, he’ll make quite a handsome fella for Angela to get to know better. Gross is known for being in television shows like House of Payne and Sleepy Hollow.
Alana Bright as Nikki Vaughn
Alana Bright plays 17-year-old Nikki, the only child of Angela Vaughn. She is a fish out of water around the elite cliques in Oak Bluffs, but she comes into her own. This is Bright’s first professional acting job, so it will be fun to see how she develops on the show. She was also a featured performer in the HBO show Hometown Musical.
Is there a trailer for Our Kind of People?
Yep; here it is!
Who is running the show behind the scenes?
Daniels, the mastermind behind Empire, is Our Kind of People’s executive producer. He’s matched in the role by Karin Gist, who he worked with on Star. Gist has also worked on ABC’s Mixed-ish. “There are no better storytellers than Karin Gist and Lee Daniels to bring Lawrence Otis Graham’s seminal work to life,” Michael Thorn, president at FOX Entertainment, said earlier this year about the team. Tasha Smith, known for her acting roles on Power and Why Did I Get Married?, directed the first two episodes.“Magic is something you create, and showrunner Karin Gist has given new life to the special story that is Our Kind of People,” Smith has said about the project. “I am honored and thrilled to bring her work to life alongside executive producer Lee Daniels, who is a wonderful producer and mentor to me.”
Is the town of Oak Bluffs real?
Yes! For decades, the town of Oak Bluffs has been known as the “Black Martha’s Vineyard.” The real place has a cute downtown, colorful gingerbread-style houses and a popular marina. While the town is only 3.3 percent Black, the town’s population swells in the summer—especially with Black vacationers. Some year-round residents call that time of year “Black August.” There’s a reason for that. Historically, the town was one of a few that allowed Black people to find lodging and do the tourist thing. “When I was growing up, there were only three places where Black people could summer on the beach.There was Martha’s Vineyard, there was Sag Harbor, and there was a place on the Chesapeake,” famous genealogist Henry Louis Gates, Jr. has said. Oak Bluffs became an enclave for notable and wealthy Black Americans; Martin Luther King Jr., Maya Angelou and Barack and Michelle Obama are just a few of the Black celebs who have stayed there.Remember those shots of the youngest Obama working the register for a summer job? That’s right, Sasha Obama’s Nancy Restaurantjob was located in Oak Bluffs.
Do the Obamas live in Oak Bluffs?
Like many former presidents, Obama has vacationed on Martha’s Vineyard for years. In 2020, he became the first president to actually buy a house on the island. The Obama home is in Edgartown, not Oak Bluffs, but Obama has a membership in Oak Bluffs’ semi-private Farm Neck Golf Club.
Was Our Kind of People filmed in Oak Bluffs?
Not really. The bulk of the show’s first season was filmed in the Cape Fear region of North Carolina.
Where can you watch and stream Our Kind of People?
Our Kind of People will debut on Tues., Sept. 21 at 9 p.m. ET, with subsequent episodes airing at the same time on FOX Tuesday nights. The episodes will then be available for viewing on FOX.com and the FOX app, as well as Hulu the next day. Next, From Porgy and Bess To Queen & Slim, These Are the 26 Best Black Romance Movies of All Time
