Wendy Raquel Robinson had a front-row seat to performances by some of the hottest acts in hip-hop and R&B while filming The Varnell Hill Show.
Each episode of the Paramount+ comedy features a musical guest, bringing an old-school, late-night vibe to the series.
The actress recently chatted with Urban Hollywood 411 and shared which artists stood out.
“Kirk Franklin, he turned it up. He went all the way in,” Robinson said. “October London was just yummy, yummy, yummy. Omarion was fresh and fiery, and all of that.”
Related: Wendy Raquel Robinson Talks Code-Switching and Calling the Shots on ‘Varnell Hill’
Robinson co-stars on the series as Rachel Perkins, the no-nonsense executive producer brought in to save Varnell Hill’s struggling late-night talk show from cancellation.
She praised the casting team for booking popular musical acts.
“I think as a whole, all of the musical guests were very specific,” Robinson said. “And wow, the casting choices that they had for the musical guests was wonderful.”
The actress compared the performances to standout musical moments from back in the day on The Arsenio Hall Show.
“You have all of these Arsenio Hall pullbacks, with the bomb musical guest, and it’s not just one specific band,” she explained. “Each week, it was somebody who came in and they put it down. So I love it. I was happy. It was like a free concert.”
Doug E. Fresh appears throughout the series as Varnell’s bandleader and hype man, but Robinson said the show makes room for a variety of performers.
“Doug E. Fresh did his thing, but he’s not the main one all the way through,” she said. “You know, they kept it fresh, they kept it relevant, ‘Who is the hottest thing right now?’”
It seems singer-songwriter October London really stood out.
“And I was surprised. I was like, October London?” Robinson recalled. “He came in and he killed it, and it’s a real band, so they’re singing live.”
The show centers on Varnell, played by Tommy Davidson, a late-night host trying to revive his fading career. The workplace comedy also stars Kym Whitley and reunites Davidson with Martin Lawrence, who co-executive produces the series.
The half-hour comedy is a spinoff of Martin, which aired in the 1990s. Bentley Kyle Evans serves as showrunner, writer, director and executive producer of the new series.
Robinson previously told Urban Hollywood 411 playing Rachel allowed her to draw from her own experiences navigating workplace politics and code-switching in professional settings.
“So many times, the roles that we play in certain environments reminded me of this character,” she said.
The Varnell Hill Show is produced by BET Studios. New episodes drop Tuesdays on Paramount+.
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