Mike Hill Talks BNC Shut Down, Cynthia Bailey, And Why Versatility Is Important

Mike Hill has become one of the most renowned commentators of our time. With credits on ESPN, Fox Sports, Fox Soul, and most recently the Black News Channel. In his early beginnings, the sportscaster worked at WKRN-TV in Nashville, Tennessee — in which his work earned him two Emmy Awards.

The host is not only enjoying the fruits of his labor, but he's also enjoying married life with former supermodel and Real Housewives Of Atlanta alum Cynthia Bailey.

The Blast was able to catch-up with the commentator in an interview with our correspondent, Ty Cole, to chat about the Black News Channel abrupt shutdown, how marriage life with Bailey is, and how being versatile has kept him in the spotlight.

Living a single life has a lot of benefits to it. For one, the only person you answer to is yourself and you set your own rules. However, once you tie the knot with your significant other, there's a thing called 'compromising' and 'adapting' that comes into play.

Hill shares how his morning routine shifted once he became married.

"It's very different and depends on how you look at it because when I was a single man, my day wouldn't start until noon since I was out in those streets," he shares.

"Being married, I hear Cynthia get up in the morning and sleep late at night as she's one of the hardest working people I know. I have to get up sometimes as I feel like i'm missing out or slacking off because she's up early in the morning. I'll usually sleep in around 9 because I need my rest. If I have a busy day or do a show, I'll get up early in the morning. If not, I'll see my schedule and plan my day around that.

He also discusses the viral clip that hit the social airwaves when Cynthia revealed when asked about one thing she doesn't like to do for the journalist — to which she responded with reverse cowgirl.

Yep, she went there.

The Emmy-award-winning host shares the BNC team loved the clip and became one of their "best moments" during the network's short time.

"I knew I was interviewing her, but I didn't share the questions in advance," he shared.

"I had no idea she was going to say something like that (laughs). There was a delay in my mic so when I heard it, my reaction just came out in real-time. As far as the network, they loved it. It was one of the best clips they had during the one year we were on air. It got a lot of notoriety and publicity. During the break, I went downstairs and said "oh, so you don't like reverse cowgirl?" (laughs).  You scream as you like it and ask if you want to do it (laughs). I guess I'll just get it for my birthday and Christmas now."

While couples may not love everything their partner is into, there are other cool things that we love about our significant others.

Hill shares how he loves how "nurturing" the reality star is.

"Cynthia is sweet man — and so nurturing," he expressed.

"When it comes to people that she does love and care about — people who show her that love, she gives it back to them. She has a side to her like we all do, but she's real nurturing. When she's at her sweetest, there's nobody who is sweeter. I love that she can be really sweet when she wants to be."

The former ESPN reporter also reveals while he kept a limit on how much he wanted to share of his personal life when making appearances on Real Housewives, he feels as a public figure you must share with a purpose.

"When I was on that show with [Cynthia], there was only so much of my life I was willing to show them because it's not my show," he began.

"I understand there are certain parts of our relationship we had to show — but I also told her there were certain parts of our relationship I refuse to show because it's nobody's business. If I give it to you, I'm doing it for a purpose. I'm very open about my battles with mental health and going to therapy on Instagram. As a public figure, it's very important to be open because there are people who see you in high regard and they need to see the ups as well as the downs so they don't feel alone."

In Entertainment, it's very easy to fall in the trap of being typecasted if you remain within the same lane for a while. Celebrities make it their business to try to switch things up — sometimes it works in their favor, other times it doesn't.

For Hill, exploring different realms of reporting has not only kept him booked and busy but also shows he can flourish in any space you put him in.

When asked about the importance of versatility, the former Black News Channel anchor shares it has "elevated" him throughout his career.

"Versatility has kept me in this business for 27 years," the broadcaster shares.

"Versatility and being a good person has sustained me and helped me to elevate in this business. You can't be a one-trick pony as this industry is constantly changing. You can be hot today and three years later, nobody knows your name. If you're trying to stay in one lane, what happens when you hit a roadblock? I've always viewed it as I have a one-man highway with all of these off-ramps that I take and they all go in the same direction. I've always been curious to learn everyone's job and do everything. When I was at ESPN, I didn't want to just do Sportscenter — I wanted to do every show in the building and I was able to do so. I also didn't want to just be a sportscaster so I pivoted into entertainment, news, and lifestyle."

Black News Channel folding was such a hit for many Black media professionals as the shut down was very abrupt — with many people losing their jobs and sharing how they, unfortunately, were not paid "for weeks" due to the company filing for bankruptcy

Only shy of a year, the network was a place for Black journalists to report the news their way and was vastly growing a loyal, dedicated fan base.

When asked about what he felt happened, the broadcaster shares while he doesn't know the sole reason for the networking ceasing, he does feel it is "embarrassing," "shameful," and feels when you have a network, you have investors who are "invested" in the product.

"BNC was necessary for me as it gave me an opportunity to be on a morning show and to show a different side of what I can do and achieve," he expresses.

"There were times where I had a lot of fun doing it, and then there were times where I didn't have a lot of fun doing it. We're talking about a lot of trauma that happens in our community with Black folks. It was having an effect on me, but it was necessary and needed. What happened at BNC is embarrassing, it's shameful, and it's sad. I don't know exactly who is at fault as you hear a lot of things and situations. I can't speak on that as I was doing my show from home. I do know it wasn't the best environment from what a lot of my coworkers who work in the office in Tallahassee were saying as it apparently was a toxic work environment and that's sad because it's a Black network. I think when you have a network, you have to have investors who are invested in that network. If you have an investor who is invested in Black folks, they have to be invested in Black folks and Black news, not just making money off of them."

He continues, telling us in order to see a network grow, you have to "nurture" it.

"What network do you know came out the gate and took off and made a lot of money," he said.

"As lucrative as it is now, OWN had their issues. CNN, ESPN, and Fox Sports had their issues in the beginning and it took time, money, patience, and resources for it to work out and unfortunately we didn't have none of those things when it came to BNC."

You can watch this in-depth interview below: