Smart Guy’s Essence Atkins Dishes on Destiny’s Child’s ‘First TV Appearance Ever’ on Her Disney Channel Series (Exclusive)

Essence Atkins had the honor of being a part of Destiny’s Child’s very first acting gig. 

Speaking to PEOPLE to discuss her upcoming BET+ film, Queens of Christmas, the Poppa’s House actress, now 52, fondly remembered her Disney Channel days when the then-budding girl group guest starred on Smart Guy. 

“Beyoncé [Knowles], Kelly [Rowland], Latoya [Luckett] and Latavia [Roberson],” Atkins tells PEOPLE, naming the original lineup. “That was their first television appearance ever.”

The group — known for being one of the best-selling female musical acts of all time — formed in 1990 in Houston. After a few personnel changes, ultimately adding Michelle Williams, they remained active until the women pursued solo careers in 2006. 

Knowles, Rowland, Luckett and Roberson appeared as themselves on an episode of Smart Guy entitled “A Date with Destiny.” 

On the ep, the “Bills, Bills, Bills” singers cause a temporary rift between T.J. Henderson (Tahj Mowry) and his big sister Yvette Henderson (Atkins) when Destiny’s Child hires him to be their backup dancer instead of her.

“Man, we were watching from behind the mirror, and that was tight,” Luckett says in a scene after the girl group crashes the dance auditions.

As T.J.’s older brother Marcus Henderson (Jason Weaver) and his best friend Morris “Mo” Tibbs (Omar Gooding), who also auditioned, step forward to acknowledge the compliment, Roberson and Knowles clarify that they’re actually talking about the kid, who is “so cute.”

“We could just eat him for dessert,” Rowland says, to which Mowry quips, “Grab a spoon, girls.”

Roberson then suggests that Destiny’s Child scrap their initial plan, and redo their music video centered around T.J. — which doesn’t sit well with Yvette, who had practiced hard for the job. 

The music video’s director interjects to say that he loves the idea, but Yvette disagrees, adding, “I don’t! I’m a keeper!” 

“Things change. You’re gone,” the director barks.

Mowry later got to tap dance with the stars in a special music video for their hit “No, No, No Pt. 2,” a remix featured on Destiny’s Child’s 1999 album, The Writing’s On the Wall. 

In her interview with PEOPLE, Atkins called her sitcom “groundbreaking.”

For the actress, “the idea of being a part of a Black family, where the son [Mowry] was a 10-year-old genius, and what that was like to navigate the world of high school with his older siblings” was special, she said.

She added that the siblings figuring out their paths while having their TV father, Floyd Henderson (John Marshall Jones), as “a single dad that was also as the primary caretaker” because he was a widower, was “a very progressive storyline” at that time. 

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Smart Guy ran for three seasons on the Disney Channel between 1997 and 1998. The sitcom can be streamed in its entirety on Disney+.

Queens of Christmas, directed by Kenny Young, stars Atkins, along with Terri J. Vaughn and Vanessa Bell Calloway. The holiday film arrives on BET+ on Dec. 19.