Spartanburg contestant Kian Lewis says HBO's FBoy Island not as 'fake as you may assume'

A Spartanburg man used his "Southern charm" to steal hearts during the second season of HBO Max's newest reality show "FBoy Island."

Kian Lewis was one of 24 men who went out on dates with three women who had to determine which men were womanizers ("FBoys") or nice guys. The men were labeled FBoys and nice guys but it was up to the women to determine whom they liked best.

Lewis is originally from Spartanburg and attended both Spartanburg Methodist College and St. Peter's University in New Jersey where he played basketball.

It's not every day that people wake up and decide to apply for a dating reality show. Lewis was no exception and said he received a flyer from his agent, who suggested he audition.

"They liked my personality and said I had a good, Southern tone," Lewis said. "The big boss loved my personality and I was on my way."

The show's next episode starts streaming on Thursday, Aug. 4.

Lewis's Southern charm is exactly what dazzled the three women and saved him from being the center of the drama.

"If you watch through the episodes, none of them really talked junk about me too much," Lewis said. "I always showed good spirits and good vibes. I may have been around it (drama) but I was never in it. I catered to them as if they were my own girlfriend. I'd pull out the chairs for her and open doors. It's the little things that people don't realize."

During a recent episode, Lewis and two other guys went out on a date with one of the women. The three men were trying to fly kites with the woman. The date could have been a disaster for Lewis because he couldn't make his kite fly, but he laughed it off and moved on to something else.

Before Lewis appeared on the show, he moved back home and worked at Spartanburg County as a senior accountant for six years. He left the job last year.

Lewis gives readers backstage pass

Lewis discussed how contestants were given the opportunity to choose their role as an FBoy or a nice guy. He decided it would be best to enter as an FBoy in order to not be too vulnerable.

"When I first interviewed, I interviewed as an FBoy," Lewis said. "I wanted to protect myself. If I see the girls kiss on the other guys, that's when I would put my walls up. If I went in as a nice guy, my walls would have been torn down much more easily."

Reality dating shows come with a lot of tears and heartbreak for the contestants. When contestants are eliminated from the show, the remaining guys would give them big hugs. Some had to fight back tears.

"A lot of people put their feelings into it," Lewis said. "I've seen a lot of grown men cry. They offered therapy after the show, and I wasn't surprised because a lot of people seemed messed up. But a lot of the men would cry hard."

They may have issues and conflicts on the show, but that's all smoke and mirrors. Lewis said the men make strong bonds with each other men on the show. He referred to their bond as strong as brothers.

"We all became better friends after the show and they became my brothers. We tried not to talk junk about each other, but when we did it was for fun and games," Lewis said. "The competition brought the best out in everyone."

Reality TV shows aren't as fake as you may assume them to be. All you need is a good personality and the rest is on-camera direction, he said.

"It's about 67% real," Lewis said. "It has to stay interesting and nobody can be boring. Whoever brings the best attention to the show."

Lewis discussed how he felt as if he were a movie star on the show. Producers jumped through hoops to please the contestants with whatever they wanted or needed.

"When I said we had four different chefs, they cooked anything you wanted. Lamb, steak, lobster, fried chicken, or whatever else you wanted. They cooked to your specialty," Lewis said. "I felt like a star. Anything we needed, they were on it."

Here's how to win the girl if you ever compete

Lewis gave some strong advice as to how to impress someone, on or off camera.

"Most of the guys don't know how to talk to women," Lewis said when discussing his on-camera strategy. "They talked about themselves and overcrowded the conversation. Me, I wanted to get to know the women. Make sure you both are having fun."

Lewis said you should not worry about looks and simply make your date happy. People know how they want to be treated and listening allows you to learn.

Is Kian really an FBoy?

Lewis's strategy on the show allowed him to make friends, and connections and pass as a nice guy with his Southern hospitality.

In reality, connections mean more than on-screen love to Lewis. Mia Jones, one of the three women on the show, played a big role in Lewis's competition on the show.

"When we first met the women, I went straight for Mia," Lewis said. "I'm in a fraternity, Omega Psi Phi, and she is in Alpha Kappa Alpha. My mom was in the same sorority, but she's my homie. We all just got back from partying in Miami."

Jones said she enjoyed getting to know Lewis and that her experience with him was nothing but great.

"My experience on the show was great. It was really hard because I didn’t know who was a nice guy and who’s an FY [FBoy] because they were also sweet, especially Kian," Jones said. "Although it didn’t look like it on TV, Kian and I had a great relationship. Even though Kian's status is FBoy, I still see him as a nice guy and I want him to find the woman that he’s always dreamed of. But she has to make it through me first."

Lewis claimed that even though he didn't find true love on the show, it's not going to stop him. The real world is much easier when it comes to the dating pool than reality TV, and Lewis does not plan to return to the dating side of reality TV.

"I'm trying to get away from the dating shows because everything is magnified," Lewis said. "I want to get into the actual television shows and I've been auditioning for them."

This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Spartanburg's Kian Lewis competes on HBO reality show FBoy Island