Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Young, Famous & African’ Season 2 on Netflix, Another Reality Show About Rich People Behaving Badly

Netflix’s bread and butter these days are reality shows—especially the variety that center on wealthy groups of friends throwing lavish parties and picking petty arguments. The second season of the Africa-based reality show returned recently, so let’s check in with the dysfunctional friend group.

YOUNG, FAMOUS, AND AFRICAN — SEASON 2: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: Views from a private jet introduce the glamorous lives of the cast, who are organizing an extravagant party in South Africa.

The Gist: Young African socialites who have all made their mark as models, actors, musicians and more, reunite after a year in South Africa. But the drama between certain parties—namely Diamond and Andile, and Swanky and Annie—come to a head at the party and threaten the foundation of the friend group. New cast members Bonang Matheba, an on-air personality, and Fantana, a Ghanaian dancehall musician, arrive at the party and shake things up.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? The show is very similar to other Netflix reality series about rich and famous people; Bling Empire and Dubai Bling are ones that immediately spring to mind.

Our Take: There is no shortage of shows that portray rich people behaving badly: the Kardashians, the Housewives franchise, and most reality series follow affluent subjects and their petty drama. It’s a genre that becomes tired in today’s climate where wealth inequalities aren’t as agreeable as they were before.

Young, Famous, & African’s greatest strength, then, is that wealth isn’t overtly flaunted like it is on shows like Dubai Bling, where the number of houses and luxury brands people are wearing are stated out loud like a competition. Sure, the cast of Young, Famous, & African have a significant amount of wealth—the series opens with a private jet and images of Ferraris; the designer outfits and extravagant looks scream money—but the conversations aren’t centered around it, and it makes the series more palatable.

It helps that the drama is relatable: the crux of most arguments is relationship-based and fueled by jealousy, a common human emotion. While the characters need a little more time to develop and gain clarity on motivations, those are things that build with time and Young, Famous, & African has the bones to develop into a bingeable obsession.

Sex and Skin: There is a lot of talk about hook-ups and baby mama drama, but nothing explicit is shown in the second season’s first hour.

Parting Shot: Swanky, who has caused a fair share of drama, dramatically exits the party after refusing to reveal why he’s been so cold to Annie.

Sleeper Star: Khanyi is the show’s de facto lead, playing the mediator and sniffing out disruption before a fight fully breaks loose.

Most Pilot-y Line: “They didn’t tell me we were coming to a themed party, but everyone is wearing a mask,” Khanyi shares her disappointment in the trajectory of the reunion party.

Our Call: STREAM IT if these shows are your type of thing. The reality series thrives on actual friendship drama instead of flaunting exorbitant wealth.

Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Vulture, Teen Vogue, Paste Magazine, and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.