Former Destiny's Child singer gives viewers an unfiltered look at her life in 'Leave It to LeToya'
She’s an original member of the iconic R&B all-woman group Destiny’s Child. She’s a two-time Grammy-winning singer and songwriter. She’s a successful TV and movie actress. But LeToya Luckett wants everyone to see her as a proud mom.
“I’m a woman of strength. I’m a woman of integrity. I’m a mom that doesn’t get it right all the time. And I’m OK with that,” she said. “I am OK with me. I want to teach that to my kids. And that’s what I want everyone to see.”
Luckett teamed up with the entertainment company Kin to launch a new digital show, “Leave it to LeToya,” which premiered Tuesday on Facebook Watch, Instagram and YouTube, where viewers get an unfiltered look into different parts of her life.
While there's plenty of talk about the negative aspects of social media, Luckett said it can also offer viewers a rare front-row seat into an artist’s life.
“Before, you needed the big machine of a record company for publicity and now you can have a page of your own to promote that says, ‘Here’s a first look at what I have going on,’” she said. “It also helps you control your narrative because they know it’s coming from you.”
Luckett said her show is “as real as it gets,” and a space where she will openly share stories about life challenges and lessons, including the difficult path she took to succeed in entertainment after Destiny’s Child.
“I had a business in Houston at the time and a home. But it was a lot of financial responsibility to have another home in L.A. and pursue a career,” she said. “But I did, even if it meant me sleeping in a car. Even if it meant me sleeping in hotels. Even if it meant all the challenges that I would have to face. I still did it because I still believed in myself and believed that I had purpose in L.A.”
And this determination to keep going, Luckett says, is a powerful message that she wants to deliver to young Black girls.
“As a kid, thank God, I had an amazing tribe of women around me that my mother placed in my life that would tell me words of encouragement,” she said. “That helped me to get through a lot of the life.”
Another aspect that the show will touch upon will be Luckett’s professional life. She says that Black entrepreneurs often have a hard time getting loans for their businesses. And as a Black businesswoman who owned a clothing boutique in Houston, and as a single mom who is working hard to continue advancing her career, she doesn’t take anything for granted.
“It is harder for us. And with me, it makes me have to think smarter and be a smart saver. Especially being a single mom of two kids,” she said. “You never know what can happen. And you need to know that the door isn’t going to be swung open for you.”
For reference, according to a study from the think tank Brookings, while Black people made up roughly 14% of the U.S. population in 2019, only 2.3% of businesses with more than one employee were Black-owned that year.
Luckett said that even though she is determined to keep moving, she does have human moments when things can be overwhelming. And during those vulnerable times, she turns to music for inspiration.
“There’s this Stevie Wonder song called ‘Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing,’ that anytime I’m going through it or I feel overwhelmed it’s just a reminder that everything is going to work out the way it’s supposed to. That’s on repeat,” she said.
And she wants to share this uplifting message with viewers.
“Keep going. Keep going. Everything will work out the way it’s supposed to,” she said echoing the lyrics from Stevie Wonder’s song. “And continue to pray that it will work out for your good.”
