The Comeback Kids

 
It seems damn near everyone is launching a comeback these days, and somehow it’s always tied into a reality show. In fact, we could make our own reality show about all the former-big-names-turned-small-names going onto reality shows to try and become a big name again. Though surely VH1 did something like that already…
 
First up is Monica. Her BET reality show, Still Standing, will help launch her album of the same name due March 23. Current single, the slow jam “Everything to Me” is an R&B winner, and fans have commended Monica for ditching the tomfoolery that pervades most reality shows—instead showcasing the ins and outs of the music business and Monica’s determination to make her new album a hit.
 
Meanwhile, Brandy—not to be outdone by Monica, her “That Boy Is Mine” duet partner and former chart rival—is also planning a comeback with her own reality show debuting on VH1 on April 11 with brother Ray J and parents Sonja and Willie Norwood. While the premise doesn’t excite us (and Brandy already had a reality show in 2002 on MTV, revolving around her giving birth), we’ll admit to enjoying some of Brandy’s YouTube outings of her singing in her bathroom. Girl can sang! That may very well be more entertaining than the new show!
 
Also on VH1 is the 2004 American Idol season 3 champion Fantasia Barrino with her new reality show, Fantasia for Real, following her major drama taking care of the financial needs of six people (!), and oh yeah, getting her new music done. “Even Angels”—produced by the Stereotypes of Danity Kane’s “Damaged” fame—is the first single off the new album due in March.
 
Finally, we have Toni Braxton. A former contestant on the hit show Dancing with the Stars, Braxton tried to use the show as a springboard for Darkchild-produced song “Get Loose” with the tagline “Baby I brought my dancing shoes, and get it on the floor.” But it didn’t really get the dance-shoe-loving folks on the floor. Braxton is back with two new simultaneous singles, ballad “Hands Tied” and up-tempo “Make My Heart.” Both singles are on her new album, Pulse, on Atlantic Records, scheduled for a May 4 release. And wouldn’t you know it, Braxton’s new reality show, Braxton Family Values, debuts on Bravo this fall.    N