Eboni K. Williams Teases Her RHONY Debut: 'I Don't Have the Option to Be a Shrinking Violet'

She'll be joining returning Housewives Luann de Lesseps, Ramona Singer, Leah McSweeney and Sonja Morgan

Eboni K. Williams isn't just representing herself as the newest member of The Real Housewives of New York City, but she's also representing her "entire culture."

Williams made an appearance on People (the TV Show!) this week, opening up about being the show's first Black Housewife and why she takes the "responsibility very seriously."

"This is not the first time I've been the first Black woman in a space. I was the first Black woman at my law firm coming out of law school," she said. "When you are privileged to be the first, you represent your entire culture. I'm not just on this show as Eboni K. Williams, in many ways, I'm on this show representing Black womanhood. I take that responsibility very seriously. I don't have the option to be a shrinking violet."

She’ll be joining returning Housewives Luann de Lesseps, Ramona Singer, Leah McSweeney and Sonja Morgan.

Paras Griffin/Getty

The lawyer and TV host, 37, said she is excited to share her cultural background and point of view as a Black woman with her fellow castmates.

"This isn't a lecture hall, nobody's doing any classroom instruction, but it is an authentic revealing of some really essential dope parts of New York," she said. "I don't know how you have this show for 13 years and you don't reveal and revere those aspects of Black culture as they so deeply correlate with the New York City experience."

"We're going to have all the race discussions," she added. "I'm not somebody to bite my tongue and I don't hold back. And that's not for the sake of confrontation, that's only for the sake of growth."

Leah McSweeney and Eboni K. Williams. Leah McSweeney/ instagram

And since her casting news was announced, Williams has already begun getting acquainted with the other women. Earlier this month, she spent time with McSweeney.

"Leah and I have just have a lot of organic things in common," she said. "As with Luann, we have some similar things in our background that are really fun interesting. I'm still very much getting to know Sonja and Ramona."

"Nobody's holding back," she added. "I can tell you that much."

Along with preparing for her debut season on RHONY, Williams has also started a new podcast, Holding Court with Eboni. K Williams, which examines news-making cases and how to navigate the rigged justice system.

"There’s no way around it, the legal cases we hear about in the news are shaping social justice and popular culture. We need to dissect them from a Black perspective in a way that doesn’t hold back. Dustin and I will give you the facts straight and our takes will be highly unfiltered," she said.

Catch People (the TV Show!) Monday through Friday. Check your local listings for exact times or stream the show every day at 7 p.m. ET/ 4 p.m. PT at People.com and PeopleTV.com.