When we think of iconic sister duos, twin stars Tia and Tamera are often the first that come to mind. However, it seems their once inseparable bond may have drifted apart over the years.
During a sneak peek of her all-new docuseries on We TV, Tia Mowry: My Next Act, the Sister, Sister actress spoke openly about her new life following her divorce from ex-husband Cory Hardrict.
"I came into this world with a twin, and right after that, I went into a 22-year relationship," Tia shared, referring to her 14-year-long marriage with Hardrict. In the clip, she also added how challenging it’s been to cope with online chatter concerning her public separation. "People are wanting to know what happened and why it happened so much that they are trying to create narratives and stories in their own head and then putting it out there," she says.
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Tia reveals that after signing her divorce papers, she had to immediately return to work, making it difficult for her to fully process the situation without support. "I wasn't really able to fully process what really was going on," she shared. "I knew what was going on, I knew what I was doing, but I didn't have time to just stop and really process what had just happened."
"Being alone has been the most challenging part of my divorce,” Tia added. “It's times like this when I feel and wish that my sister and I were still close and I could pick up the phone and call her, but that's just not where we are right now."
However, signs of a riff in their relationship have been present for some time.
In May, Tamera spoke with ET's Denny Directo at the 49th annual Gracie Awards and shared that she didn’t plan on playing Cupid for her sister Tia, following her divorce.
“See, this is the thing, Tia is living her life right now and Tia is doing Tia,” she told the reporter. “I feel like she doesn’t want any of our input right now, and I can only respect that.”
"I think she is doing her,” Tamera added.
When Tia's reality show was first announced in April, Tamera told ET that the news came as a surprise to her, as she only found out after it was made public.
"I didn't know until I found out with the rest of the world," she said. When asked if she would appear on Tia’s new series, Tamera responded candidly, "She didn't ask me. She didn't, so I take that as no."
In the past, Tia and Tamera have alluded to communication breakdowns, most apparently in their reality TV show, Tia & Tamera. On the show, the two discussed preferring to resolve issues through email rather than phone calls to avoid potential disagreements. In one episode, Tamera candidly admitted, "We really don’t have any" communication skills.
“I think we get defensive; it escalates to something more than what the argument was really about,” Tamera told her sister at the time. “We end up yelling at each other.”
“That’s not a good way of communicating. My way isn’t a good way of communicating and your way isn’t a good way of communicating,” Tia added. “And we need to find better ways of communicating.”
Now Tia embarking on a new journey with her show, Tia Mowry: My Next Act, premiering on Friday, October 4 at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT on We TV. The eight-episode reality series follows Tia as she “navigates her newly single status, a new phase of motherhood, as well as building businesses and juggling her ever-evolving career,” while reclaiming the narrative around her life and relationship post-divorce.
"I mean, I'm all about being authentic,” Tia told PEOPLE about the show in July. "[The show will] basically dive in and show the world who I am as a person. And I really wanted to do this to share my story.
She continued. "I feel like a lot of people were creating narratives without knowing a story and understanding me and understanding my feelings. And this is my opportunity to use that platform to share my truth."
Having always been part of a duo — first as a twin sister and later as a wife — Tia is now ready to embrace her independence. And we’re here for the journey.
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Featured image by Arnold Turner/Getty Images for ESSENCE
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Shaina, who has held roles at companies including ESPN and the NBA and has taught strategic sports marketing at esteemed institutions like Georgetown University, officially launched the network as a business in 2019. Since then, it’s hosted high-impact events like the Toast to Black Sports luncheon during Super Bowl weekend and built student chapters at both HBCUs and PWIs to pipeline underrepresented talent into the industry.
She shared with xoNecole more on the early days of launch, the turning point that made her realize she had a platform with real influence, and what keeps her going. With 17 years of experience across agencies, teams, and networks, Shaina is proof that grassroots efforts can turn into transformative change—especially when backed by passion, vision, and community.
xoNecole: How did the Minorities In Sports Business Network come to life?
Shaina Wiel: So, I just started the group chat and added a few of my friends who work in the industry as well. We were all kind of in New York at the same time working in the sports space… Very quickly over the next few years, the chat grew to over 800 individuals within the chat. Then, we had over 1000 individuals.
xoN: What was your ‘aha’ moment to expand?
SW: I noticed a bunch of employees from the Big Four leagues— NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB— within my group chat had all started posting roles. And when I asked, 'What is going on? Why are there so many posting jobs within the group chat?' I was told that HR had sent a note to their Black Employee Resource Group and had told them they had heard about this group chat.
That's when I realized, ‘Okay, this is more than, you know, my little friend group chat. Let's see if we can turn this into an actual business. And then in summer, 2019 I decided to do this full time.
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xoN: What was the transition like growing the group chat into a full platform offering membership perks like access to job listings, networking opportunities and more?
SW: I was working at an agency, and the agency had lost their account. It was the account that I was working on. So they were like, you know, we can try to find another or we can separate. I decided to leave. And then, as we know, COVID happened, which actually was a blessing in disguise.
I was able to really focus on building the vision with this group chat and turning it into an actual company, seeing what works, seeing things from an events and a relationship standpoint, in terms of like, how we were interacting with different partners from different companies, and actually turning that into something substantial that could last.
xoN: Speaking of events, talk more about what inspired the Toast to Black Sports event you held earlier this year during the Super Bowl. Why is it important?
SW: This was the second year. There are so many dope people of color, specifically Black people, who work in this industry who are just doing the work behind the scenes. They’re not getting their flowers. I took it upon myself to say, I want to celebrate you. We’ve honored Kimberly Fields, Esq. of the NFL, Kevin Warren, CEO of the Chicago Bears, sports executive Jason Wright, sports and entertainment vet Carmen Green-Wilson, and NFL coach Jennifer King—all of whom have made major contributions to the industry.
xoN: What do you enjoy most about your role today?
SW: I think the work that I enjoy the most, honestly, is with our college students. We have 12 chapters across different colleges and universities. We help eliminate some of the barriers a lot of us had coming out of college. What I love seeing is that we have students who are now looking at roles they never even thought of.
xoN: What’s a bit of career advice for women breaking into the sports industry?
SW: I would say, build relationships. That’s really it: Build authentic relationships. Make sure it's a give and take and that you're supporting other people because once you're building those relationships, then it's a lot easier to either get into a space or to have those conversations when you want to do something.
And always be willing and ready to do the work.
Featured image by Hosea Johnson