Homegirls (web series)
Homegirls (originally titled and marketed as Stories: Homegirls) is a comedy-drama web series created, written, and executive produced by Juwan Chambers and Albert Christie, with all episodes directed by Chambers. The series follows the relationships of four college friends: Brooke, Simone, Layla, and Alexis. It marks the first series produced by Switch Up Entertainment. Homegirls premiered on YouTube on Thursday, October 4, 2018, earning 236 views within the first 24 hours, surpassing the record set by Say Our Names. New episodes were released every Thursday at 6:30 pm.
In December 2017, Chambers began collaborating with co-creator Christie on the concept during winter break, completing the scripts by January 12, 2018. CCasting for the male characters began shortly thereafter, with Chambers reaching out to friends with prior acting experience to fill the four lead roles. Production commenced in March 2018 and wrapped in May of the same year.
Homegirls was originally conceived as an anthology series similar to American Horror Story, with each season being a self-contained story with different characters. This format was intended to allow the company to explore ideas they had for non-digital television. However, the anthology format was abandoned in 2019, leading the series to be rebranded Homegirls from Stories: Homegirls.
An extensive marketing campaign was launched for Homegirls, beginning with the teaser trailer premiering in front of the documentary Say Our Names. Each episode was accompanied by an Inside the Episode special, where Chambers and Christie provided insights and dissected the show.
n January 2019, four months after its release, the pilot episode garnered 1,006 views on YouTube. As of January 2025, Homegirls remains the most successful and most-watched production by Switch Up Entertainment, with the season amassing almost 40,000 views. A planned reunion short film during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 was ultimately canceled.