DC ExtraTime: Before They Were MTV Stars - The Choice

BY DC CUEVA                     

> @DC408Dxtr / @DC408DxNow

As we reach single digits in the countdown to Season 4 of Are You The One? - and with a press event that took place last Thursday in MTV's New York headquarters, there's a simple reason why I have this thing called the MTV Trifecta... Three reality TV shows airing on a relatively young cable channel with the same formula of big time drama and dynamic, relatable personalities. Simone was part of a renowned original cast of the newcomer of the bunch two years ago and gave us something to believe in when it comes to love. The whole cast really connected with all of us and it's the success of that first season that has them on these Challenges and why there's Season 4 in more than a week.
   There have been occasions in the course of the past 25 years of this ecosystem of AYTO, The Real World, and The Challenge, where castmates are having a second exposure on our national airwarves after they were on a previous TV series, not counting commercial or music video work. For the newest Real World mom, Jonna appeared on Discovery Hub's Endurance as a kid and won a trip to the Amazon before she went to Cancun. We first saw Real World Hollywood's Briana on season 5 of American Idol before we saw her document her evolving musical career. And for AYTO 4, we saw Francesca and Asaf on previous FOX reality shows which we'll look at during this coming season. Speaking of that network...

For two members of both the first season of AYTO, and one from Real World Portland, their MTV debuts weren't the first time they were on a nationally shown reality TV show. That came all the way back in 2012 when the FOX network aired a summer dating show called The Choice. So You Think You Can Dance's Cat Deeley hosted the show that took the idea of spinning chairs and blind auditions from NBC's The Voice, and instead of music, it put in four celebrities sitting in those chairs like Adam, Blake, Gwen and co., and contestants making pitches to the single celebs with the hope that they would land the person of their choice for a date.

Those who were featured in that lone season included Jersey Shore's Mike the Situation and DJ Pauly D, Singled Out alum Carmen Electra, DNCE's Joe Jonas, and Rob Kardashian, who we showed you hanging out with Prosper from AYTO 4 a few weeks back and is now an engaged man. Also trying their luck in primetime were Tyson Beckford, American Idol's Taylor Hicks, Miss USA Rima Fakih, NFL Hall of Famer Warren Sapp and frequent rule-breaker Ndamukong Nuh, and Olympians Steven Lopez and Seth Wescott... quite a star-studded list.

Before we saw them go for love on that original AYTO season in Hawaii two years ago, we saw Brittany and Chris Scali try their luck on The Choice. For Brittany, the luck of being from New England saw her be in the same episode as the new cover athlete for the Madden NFL series: Rob Gronkowski. For one of the other contestants that pleaded to Gronk, she told him that she was a virgin, but unfortunately Brittany didn't get chosen by the Patriot.

For Scali before he got close with Paige and then as part of the love triangle with Jacy and JJ that ultimately decided their $1 million payday, he was on the all-girls episode that featured Electra, Fakih, Australian model Sophie Monk and Playboy’s Hope Dworaczyk. Chris went to all four ladies to plead about what he had to offer to the lady who took over for Jenny McCarthy on Singled Out.
   It went all the way down to the last round for Chris, and when faced with picking him or another guy, Carmen chose Chris and he scored the date with her. On their date, and she had what they call "a manny paddy" and he even told her that he would even move to L.A. for Carmen. That didn't materialize, but of the two AYTO originals, we have only the episode featuring the Brooklynite.



And before she let loose on Real World Portland and then on her two Challenges - and being featured in a poignant ExtraTime recently, Nia came to The Choice looking for love. On the same premiere episode as Jersey Shore's DJ Pauly D, Nia was paired up with soap opera actor turned film producer Jason Cook. Go to the 40:00 min mark for her part in the episode, and - you guessed it - Nia also wins her way to him. So began the rise of the girl we call Hurricane Nia.



I would always tell people that even if they don't like the quality of play during the NFL offseason, there is always people who would watch those meaningless games because somewhere down there, there could be a draft steal somewhere on the sidelines - ask Tom Brady. If you're a reality TV fan who watches competition shows a lot and sees all of those contestants looking for love or money --- keep an eye out for them. They may pop up on your screens again, perhaps even to that trio I call the MTV Trifecta. It's happened to Nia, to Scali, and to Brittany.

- I AM DC