Tokyo Parker has no regrets.
“We are the best cast.
We are thinkers, and I just love that about us.”
Tokyo (f.k.a. David) on ‘The Real World Homecoming: New Orleans’.Paramount +
Here’s another adjective to describe theNew Orleanscast: watchable.
Enjoy, won’t you?
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How did you emotionally prepare to go back to the show?
Tokyo tends to a very drunk Julie on ‘The Real World Homecoming: New Orleans’.Paramount +
I can forget about anything in a second, right?
It really doesn’t take me anything to prepare because I’m an introvert.
I stay to myself, in my mind palace, and no one can come there.
Did you watch any of your original season before shootingHomecoming?
I never watched my old previous season.
I don’t watch now.
Wait, so you’ve never seen it?
I’ve never seen it.
I’ve never seen an episode, and I don’t watch now.
I’ve lived it, I’ve gone through it.
So I just say, “Amazing, blessed, gratitude.
I love the experience.
I will never regret it.”
And then it’s gone in my mind.
The first time [our season aired] 22 years ago, we didn’t have social media.
Now it’s different.
For me, it’s very simple.
I take those six castmates, and that’s it.
I don’t talk about the show.
I’m appreciative, and God bless every single opportunity I’ve had.
Did you know Paramount+ was going to use your iconic song in the trailer?
They did let me know, because they have to license it and all that good stuff.
I’m not all this do-rag stuff.
Can we talk?"
“Come on Be My Baby Tonight” took on a life of its own.
But it was just for my roommates [originally].
And I’m glad that they’re part of it now.
You seem a lot happier as a person this time around.
How would you describe the changes you’ve gone through over the last 20-plus years?
Well,The Real Worldis actually it’s a fire starter.
Not only that, I wanted to bring the rough edges with me.
Um, and the rough edges.
But that’s the you that you think other people are going to accept.
So [over time] I just learned to understand my flaws and to work with them.
I’m not going to solve them I’m going to work with them and make them a positive.
To answer your question, I would never recommend going to find yourself on a reality show.
That makes no sense.
Were you making a conscious effort to change that dynamic when you filmedHomecoming?
Well, I made a conscious effort to accept them.
Remember how I said I can just forget things?
Like, poof, gone?
Well, I did that before and I missed out on six amazing kindred spirits.
So now what I’m going to do is I’m going to take them with me.
What was it like getting to know her again?
Julie is very, very unique.
You have to speak the language of people so that learn them.
So this was not the proper time [for us] to hash things out properly.
Let me talk about this because you oughta change."
That seems like a healthy attitude to have while filming a reality show.
Here’s the thing, though: That’s not what a reality show is looking for.
They don’t want you to talk about it later.
“No, we want that on camera.”
Like, “Why can’t you talk about this?
Why won’t you talk about this?”
What happens is your mood becomes irritated.
So when you say it’s a very healthy way of thinking, it’s a constant fight.
It’s a constant fight, and sometimes I am not nice.
I allow myself to not be nice.
You and Jamie and Melissa all make a run at get her to leave, but she won’t.
Eventually you pick her up and give a shot to carry her to the door.
It’s, “I’m not asking you, I’m telling you.
Give me your keys.”
Julie had gotten very belligerent, slapping water [out of our hands].
I needed her to drink water.
You have kids, you have a family."
I’m trying to yell at her like, “Listen, you oughta drink water.
This is not what you want.
You do not want this episode.
You do not.”
And she didn’t like being picked up, and I understand that.
However, there are times where a friend has to be a friend.
you’ve got the option to’t."
I do apologize for how it made her feel.
I would do it again because that’s my friend.
I will swipe your keys.
I will take them from you with absolute force.
Can you give us a tease of how that plays out next week?
I talked to your husband at 3 o’clock in the morning to let him know that everything was okay.
If you really listen to it, it’s like three notes.
Let’s really be real about it, right?
Girl, it’s not even a song it’s not even the S letter of “song.”
But isn’t that how it happens?
No one feels it.
It becomes something, you know?
I let it be, I let the universe deal with it.
It’s a trip.
It got so much pushback in the beginning.
Matter of fact, it’s just literally going to be “Squee dah boo.”
I don’t mind that.
I don’t mind that at all.
What else are you working on now?
I tell you, I have so many ideas.
When the pandemic hit, I was a ghostwriter for a couple of people on adult websites.
Adult movies need plots too.
So I would ghostwrite for a lot of adult websites and production companies, to give them scripts.
I have to say [the lines] out loud to confirm they work!
Adult movies, they’re getting sophisticated.
They’re really sophisticated now.
But no, [these movies] have, like, deep conversations and stuff.
And then hopefully that creativity takes off [in future projects].
New episodes ofThe Real World Homecoming: New Orleansdrop Wednesdays on Paramount+.
