NeNe Leakes: ‘I am black-white, I know how to be black and can be very white’

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Whoever said being a reality TV star can only buy you five minutes of fame was mistaken. Five years after first appearing as the most sassy and outspoken cast member of The Real Housewives of Atlanta, NeNe Leakes is proving all her naysayers wrong.

Leakes has been able to parlay her notoriety as a reality star into a serious acting career, earning herself a gig on two scripted TV comedies, a spot as a contestant on The Celebrity Apprentice, and now her own reality show spinoff, I Dream of NeNe: The Wedding.

The show proves that the second time around is a charm and features the nuptials of former spouses NeNe and Gregg Leakes. Each episode follows NeNe as she plans the wedding of a lifetime and puts her team of experts to the test in executing her dream vision. Alongside NeNe is her bridal party, including Cynthia Bailey, Marlo Hampton, Jennifer Williams and Laura Govan, who bring a fair share of drama and fabulousness to the classy affair.

I Dream of NeNe: The Wedding is the reality star’s first creation under NeNe Leakes Productions for Bravo.

“You can expect this to be definitely a lot of drama… You’ll get a chance to meet Greg’s five children who no one has met on Real Housewives of Atlanta,” NeNe said in an interview with theGrio. “There were viewers that thought that I had gone Hollywood and I decided to break up with my husband and just break my family apart. So they will get to see that’s not true.”

The mother of two also weighed in on some of the popular misconceptions about her in the media.

“They think I go out. I don’t go anywhere. I’m like a homebody. All I want to do is work and go home. It not like I’m a girl that hangs out.”

“I used to hear early on, ‘oh she’s ghetto.’ And I’m like ‘where did they get that from? I’m not ghetto. I am black-white honey,’” NeNe said. “I know how to be black, and I can be very white if needed to be.”

“I think that you have to know how to operate with different personalities. If you’re going to go into then boardroom then you have to put on your boardroom hat. If you need to get street with somebody you have to know how to put the street hat on.”

This week RadarOnline reported that NeNe has undergone several cosmetic procedures over past few years including an eyebrow lift, liposuction of her chin, two nose jobs, and Botox injections.

NeNe set the record straight and said reports of her having recent work done are false.

“I had surgery and I did it on-camera on Housewives. So if I was going to do something I would be very vocal about it. I’ve had my boobs done a couple of times. I sat right on-camera and did those things,” NeNe said. “First of all I don’t think I need a face-lift, so I would never. I don’t use Botox… my forehead is very wrinkled. I do believe that you should ‘tune up.’ If you feel like you need a ‘tune up’ then you get a ‘tune up.’ I am a black woman with good genes. It’s not like I need to be pulled and tucked every five minutes.”

I Dream of NeNe: The Wedding airs Tuesday at 9/8c on Bravo.

Follow Chris Witherspoon on Twitter at @WitherspoonC