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Melissa Beck

Melissa Beck is a writer, comedian, podcaster and television personality who shot to fame in the year 2000 as one of the seven strangers on The Real World: New Orleans, the ninth season of the legendary MTV reality series.

Born to a Filipino mother and a Black father, Melissa’s quick wit and lively personality helped her become a standout on her season from the jump — making it one of the most acclaimed in the history of the franchise and her, one of television’s most recognizable faces (clock her spot on Maxim’s"Hot 100 Women of 2004" as proof). She continued working with MTV following its conclusion, appearing in a number of projects including the first season of The Challenge: Battles of the Sexes before heading to Bravo, where she made up the cast of Battle of the Network Reality Stars, an early Andy Cohen production. Melissa’s hilarious one-liners landed her a job alongside Chelsea Handler on Oxygen’s Girls Behaving Badly, the syndicated prank series that ran for five seasons. Other television projects included voiceover work and roles on The Jamie Foxx Show and The New Tom Green Show. She also once auditioned for Talk Stoop but the job went to Colin Kaepernick’s girlfriend (she met Patti LaBelle and Dr. Ruth, so the audition was worth it).

Amid her on-camera projects, Melissa began a prolific career in writing. She ran a wildly popular blog from 2000-2009, pioneering the genre, and also developed a number of scripts of television and film. In May 2020, Melissa launched a podcast called Imperfect Strangers, in which she and co-host Amanda Strong get to know one another over the phone. And in a full-circle moment, Melissa returned to the Big Easy in 2022, reuniting with her former roommates for Paramount+’s The Real World Homecoming: New Orleans. Melissa lives in Long Island, with her husband — Justin Beck, of influential hardcore band Glassjaw — and their three beautiful daughters.