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He left Hollywood because his wife died, and he wanted to raise his kids.
To gain more insight on this topic from a couple of pop culture experts, we reached out to Jazz Steele and Jess Gomez, hosts of the Sis, Let Me Tell You podcast. "We are twin sisters who have an awful lot to say about a whole lot of things. We focus on black celebrity gossip/news and personal stories with a sibling spin," the hosts explained. "It’s meant to feel like catching up with old friends about the latest and greatest."
The sisters provided us with a list of examples of celebrities who have left the public eye. "Geoffrey Owens played Elvin Tibideaux on The Cosby Show. He teaches acting classes and was seen working at a Trader Joe’s," they shared. "Stanley Burrell AKA MC Hammer. He struggled with some legal and financial issues, but has since bounced back and seems happy."
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"Albert Greene AKA Al Green. He is a preacher in the Memphis area," Jazz and Jess continued. "Karyn Parsons played Hilary Banks on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. She’s the founder of the Sweet Blackberry Foundation, which produces animated films and books starring unsung black heroes."
"Mason Betha AKA Mase. He has turned his life over to God and speaks to crowds to invite others to do the same," the hosts noted. "Kim Coles played Synclaire James-Jones on Living Single. She is a coach, speaker and teacher for her own academy where she shares her wealth of knowledge and building her 'Kim-pire.'"
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As far as why celebrities choose to do this, Jazz and Jess noted that being in the spotlight is a lot of pressure. "Some people manage to handle it well, while others are consumed by it," they explained. "Prioritizing your mental health is the number one priority."
"Other times, it takes you experiencing something such as acting or music professionally to realize it’s not for you. Or you accomplished your goal, now what?" the hosts continued. "Whatever the reason, we only want people at their best. If they are unable to guarantee that then it wasn’t meant to be."
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We also asked the hosts what some of the pros of leaving the industry might be. "It allows people the insight of it being okay to take a risk, try something new and that it’s okay to fail. We took a risk by starting our podcast," Jazz and Jess told Bored Panda. "We had no experience, no equipment before committing to trying it, and we knew there was a possibility we could fail. Knowing there was no real harm nor foul helped to take that leap."
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On the other hand, there can also be downsides to deciding to leave fame behind. "Let’s take Geoffrey Owens for example," Jazz and Jess shared. "He settled back into normal life, and we hadn’t heard much from him in decades. A few years ago, he was spotted working in a New Jersey Trader Joe’s, which started a debate of how work is valued and job shaming."
"Some people responded extremely negatively to the photo that was captured, while others defended his choice of employment. Geoffrey had to quit his Trader Joe’s gig due to the attention," the hosts explained. "He had an interview with Good Morning America where he stated, 'There’s no job better than another…every job is worthwhile.' People can make you feel like a failure or a quitter or less than when they see you have taken a step back from fame."
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We also asked Jazz and Jess if there were any celebrities who have stepped away from the public eye that they would like to hear from again. "Keri Hilson. She was an incredible singer and songwriter between 2002 and the 2010s," they shared.
"Her career was full steam ahead until an alleged feud between her and Beyonce caused her to be blacklisted from the industry. Over the years, she has tried to reenter the scene as her and Beyonce seem to be on better terms now, but as of today she has yet to release new music. We would love to see a Keri Hilson reemergence."
If you'd like to hear more of Jazz and Jess' thoughts on black pop culture, be sure to check out Sis, Let Me Tell You. "We offer video podcast episodes on Spotify, YouTube and we just started a Patreon," they told Bored Panda. "New episodes every Tuesday morning. Check us out!"
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