Amara La Negra has been a staple on Love & Hip Hop: Miami since season 1. Known for her glowing chocolate brown skin and her curly afro, the singer gained a following for her pizzazz and talent. Despite being a newcomer when the show first started airing, La Negra has been a cast standout. Now in its fourth season, she is happy to show off more of what she can do outside of music and dating, as well as the drama that comes with reality television. 

Along with being an entertainer, she’s a proud activist. With her Dominican roots, La Negra has been fiercely outspoken about colorism she’s faced within the Afro-Latino community, as well as in the entertainment industry.

She was one of the first to speak on the issues on reality television, specifically the LHH franchise. Her outspokenness sparked more to share their experiences, including OG of Basketball Wives who spent Season 10 trying to explain her story to her co-stars after being criticized for her skin color and features.

“I think that we have a lot more work to do and I think that this is just the beginning,” she said in a recent chat with Shadow and Act. “I was born and raised in Miami with a melting pot of cultures but at the same time, I grew up very much into the Latino environment and there’s a lot of skin tones. I was always the Black girl and I was always trying to fit in. When I went over to the African American side, it was like, ‘Oh you’re Hispanic or you’re Latin and you’re not one of us’ – and being on the Latin side was like ‘Well you’re too Black, you need to go over there with them.’ I felt like I had to create my own lane…When I first started talking about the Afro-Latino community, there was so many ignorant people who didn’t even know we existed.”

La Negra said the issue extended beyond, explaining that the cards are also stacked against darker-skinned people in the success of their music. She also added that sexism plays a role as well. When speaking of how well her music has performed commercially from some of her male peers making similar music, including Power star Rotimi, La Negra said women simply have it harder.

“It’s very few women who actually make it in the industry and if you pay attention to the majority of them, we are overly sexualized,” she explains. “If you see me out on the street, you’ll never see me in booty shorts – this is like the social media fantasy world and my job on stage…I don’t necessarily just do it for the fans, I do it because I’m confident within my skin within my body and if I want to showcase my body, it is what it is. But I do understand that if you don’t show some sex appeal, if you don’t show some skin and booty cheeks, it can get a little tough out here in this industry. Sex sells.”

With all of this in mind, it’s La Negra’s mission to build an empire outside of music and entertainment to create generational wealth for her family. She said she grew up poor and understands the effects of being disadvantaged has on one’s future.

To combat that, she has a real estate investment deal in her mother’s hometown of the Dominican Republic. Starting there versus in the U.S. is her way of giving back to her community. But, she does plan to expand upon such. 

“It creates job opportunities and also brings tourism to my country, which is another way of helping,” she said of the project, which is appropriately called “Amara Residences.” The building offers two and three-bedroom apartments, as well as four-bedroom penthouses on the island. Interested residents have two years to pay the 30% deposit on the home, as the property won’t be available for move-in for another two years. La Negra said they can finance the rest through a bank loan. 

La Negra also has a children’s book series aimed to promote a healthy message of self-esteem. Check out the full interview with La Negra below where she talks more about reality television, her plan for her family, why she chose real estate and more. 

Love & Hip Hop: Miami airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on VH1.