In the movie Something New, actress Sanaa Lathan plays Kenya, a gorgeous, high-strung executive who hates dogs and the outdoors. Simon Baker, one of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in 2002, plays Brian, a laid-back landscape architect who loves dogs and hiking. When Kenya and Brian are set up on a blind date, they discover another big difference...she's black and he's white.
Kenya and Brian may seem like an unlikely match, but they have one important thing in common—they're madly in love...with each other!
When the movie was first released, the Washington Post reported it was all the buzz in Internet chat rooms. Something New has also sparked discussions about black women who choose to date outside their race. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, interracial marriages have more than doubled over the past decade. Sanaa, a Tony-nominated actress who attended the Yale School of Drama, says the movie has a universal message that applies to all types of relationships.
"We're saying you should follow your heart. ... [The movie] is really just about trying not to care so much about what others think and following your heart," Sanaa says.
Not only is Something New making audiences cheer, it's also making history. Sanaa tells Oprah that this is the first studio film to be directed by a black woman (Sanaa Hamri), produced by a black woman (Stephanie Allain), starred in by a black woman (Sanaa Lathan) and written by a black woman (Kriss Turner).
Simon, an Australian actor, admits that he knew very little about African-American women and culture when he first arrived on the set. During filming, he says he asked his co-stars to "fill him in" on important cultural differences. Simon says these lessons taught him that his on-screen relationship was not simply a "biracial" romance...it was "bicultural."
Both Sanaa and Oprah say they have dated white men in the past and that they took it upon themselves to "school" their boyfriends about African-American women. Lesson number one? Hair.
When Karen, an African-American woman, started dating Randy, a white man, she says he had "some learning to do." Like Oprah and Sanaa, the first lesson Karen taught Randy was that it's normal for black women to spend long hours in the beauty salon. "He says, 'All you've got to do is wash it and go,'" Karen remembers. "No," she told him, "It is not wash-and-go hair, baby. This is a process."
Once husbands understand the "hair process," couples move on to more personal topics...like sex, family gatherings and dancing in public! Though cultural differences sometimes cause confusion, the one thing these couples know for sure is that love conquers all!
"The world is a great, big, wide place where there's possibilities to love lots of different people," Oprah says. "But that's why [Something New] is so great—because it's a full-circle moment in opening your heart to the possibilities."
British singing sensation James Blunt is all the buzz! Tommy Mottola, the head of Sony Music Entertainment, is one of many fans singing his praises. "I'm not even representing him," he told Oprah, "but you need to hear him!"
James, whose song "You're Beautiful" rocketed to number one on the Billboard chart, has been singing and songwriting since he picked up a guitar at age 14. A former soldier and guard to the queen, James has already conquered England as Britain's most popular male singer. He's toured with Elton John and was even asked to sing at his wedding! Now that James's soulful sound has crossed the pond, American audiences can't get enough.
James says he never dreamed he would have so much success. "There was a time when my ambition was to make an album that I really felt strongly about and really enjoyed. I thought, 'Maybe a few people will connect with it,'" he says. "If they did [connect with it], then that would be great because then the record label would maybe let me make a second album."
Oprah wants to know—what's the story behind "You're Beautiful"?
"It's kind of miserable," James says with a grin. "It was about seeing my ex-girlfriend on the Underground in London with her new man who I didn't know existed. She and I caught eyes and lived a lifetime in that moment, but didn't do anything about it and haven't seen each other since."
"Wait till she hears this song," Oprah jokes. "She might be calling you up!"
James sings his hit song "You're Beautiful" and—grab your tissues—the heartbreaking ballad "Goodbye My Lover" from his debut CD Back to Bedlam.
