Meet The Family Starring In OWN’s “Checked Inn”

“Checked Inn” Premieres Nov. 21 On OWN

The black innkeepers behind a string of successful bed and breakfasts are taking the personal touch that they bring to their guests to the boob tube.

Former Essence Magazine editor-in-chief Monique Greenwood, her husband Glenn Pogue, and their daughter, Glynn, own and run “Akwaaba,” a collection of Africana-themed bed and breakfast inns across the northeast.

The family will star in a new docs-series, “Checked Inn,” about running their properties – in Brooklyn, Washington, DC, Cape May, NJ and The Poconos – as well as their often famous guests.

“What I love about this show is that it is truly unscripted,” Greenwood said at a media lunch this week. “And it is the reality of our lives, it really is…Nobody told us to do anything.”

Photo by Bernard Smalls

On the show, Greenwood said she not only provides a great stay, but tries to help people – and especially couples – reconnect.

Pogue said that in part is because of their strong relationship, and he said he loves to watch his wife shine.

“I would tell guys to never be intimidated by a powerful woman,” Pogue said. “That’s not the way. You won’t be able to achieve anything that way. You’re lucky. That guy is lucky. I mean, I think I’m smarter than her!”

Photo by Bernard Smalls

Greenwood said the family’s approach to inn keeping has attracted reality show producers before, but she but she balked because she was concerned about accurate representation.

“Five years ago, reality shows were a little more ratchet than they are now. And even back then, I was getting asked questions like, so where do you like to shop? And I’d say, ‘Home Depot.’ So that didn’t work.”

Take a sneak peek of the show in the video above.