Amanda Seales is revisiting a career moment she says still stings. During a Christmas Eve livestream, the actress and comedian claimed a misunderstood comment about Erykah Badu led to her being dropped from a television writing job.
“Erykah got me fired from a job,” Seales said in the clip below. “Erykah Badu got me fired from a writing gig.” According to Seales, the show was run by Badu’s then-boyfriend, whom she did not name, but fans speculate that it could be Carl Jones, former producer of The Boondocks and creator of Black Dynamite.
Seales said the issue stemmed from a private conversation about how difficult it could be for agents to manage Badu. “These agents don’t understand crazy,” Seales recalled saying. “They don’t understand that we’re not your regular degular.” She insisted the remark was not meant as an insult, but said it was taken as disrespect.
Not long after, Seales said she was quietly removed from the project. The situation later led to what she described as a strange exchange with Badu herself. “Out of the blue, I got a text from her saying, ‘Oh, I didn’t know you were a comedy writer,’” Seales said. “I was like, ‘Surprise.’”