Funky Dineva & Al Reynolds Talk ‘Tea G-I-F’ New Season, LGBTQ Representation and More

Fox Soul’s Tea G-I-F is back for an all-new season and hosts Funky Dineva and Al Reynolds appeared on Hip Hop & Enterprise to dish on what fans can expect from the show.

Since their 2020 inception, the Tea G-I-F hosts have become credible culture contributors who many look to for responses on the day’s most talked-about topics. Season 2 saw viral moments like Funky’s on-air showdown with Coach Stormy and reads on Nick Cannon’s constantly growing number of children.

When it comes to season 3, Funky and Al say viewers can expect that same energy and more now that they’ve perfected their chemistry.

“I’m feeling really good about season three,” Funky Dineva told BLACK ENTERPRISE.

“I mean, we’ve got some new segments this season. Of course, you know, we fine-tune our chemistry, me, and Claudia, even more.”

Funky and Al explained why shows like Tea G-I-F are important for the culture, especially as we head into the next presidential election.

“The pop culture landscape has gotten even crazier in this moment,” Funky said. “And now we’re about to enter political season. So I’m super excited about season 3.”

As two proud members of the LGBTQ+ community, Funky Dineva and Reynolds touched on the importance of representation in media and speaking for a community that is too often overlooked.

“We are an LGBTQ plus-centric show,” Funky explained. “You know, two-thirds of the show are part of the rainbow community.”

“I think we have a mission and it is important for us to break down those intricacies and nuances of being transgender, being gay, being bisexual being, intersex because in the Black community, we tend to be steeped in tradition steeped in the church, steeped in, what we believe, and relatively ignorant to a lot of this stuff. Which is kind of coming to the forefront recently, especially in the Trans community.”

While the talk show hosts aren’t looking to “change their religion,” they are hoping to show viewers that “these people exist, this is how they exist, this is why they exist. And this is why they deserve to be respected, loved, and treated equally.”

Press play below for the full insightful discussion and be sure to catch Tea G-I-F on Fox Soul Monday – Thursday at 8:00 pm PST / 11:00 pm EST.