AspireTV has released the official trailer for New State of Mind, the network’s first-ever original scripted comedy series, confirming a January 7, 2027 premiere at 8 p.m. ET. The series was previously announced under the working title Savannah State of Mind, set at a campus called Oakwood Heights; the show is now set at a renamed fictional HBCU, Oakley University.
Created and executive produced by Bentley Kyle Evans through his Harvest Studios banner, the multi-camera sitcom follows seven first-year students navigating college life, growth, and relationships. The core student cast includes Charles Grant DeBose, Kiarra Raine, Kylee Evans, Quan, Destiny Ashlynne, Bentley Evans Jr., and Nathaniel Sudenga, playing a mix of character archetypes introduced in promotional teasers: Taylor the Scholar, Malik the MVP and football player, Marcus the Artist, Darius and JJ, and a group of students bringing their own distinct campus personalities to the ensemble.
The faculty roster brings in recognizable names from classic Black sitcoms, with Vincent M. Ward playing Coach TC, alongside Dorien Wilson, known for The Parkers, and Chico Benymon, known for Half & Half. That pairing of newer, largely unestablished actors in the lead student roles with veteran sitcom performers in the faculty roles reflects a deliberate structural choice: giving emerging talent the spotlight while leaning on familiar faces to anchor the show’s tone and credibility for longtime fans of the genre.
AspireTV general manager Angela Cannon greenlit the project after being drawn to Evans’ track record in Black storytelling, which includes serving as showrunner on Martin, The Jamie Foxx Show, Love That Girl!, and Family Time. The series arrives as part of a broader resurgence of HBCU-centered scripted content, joining the previously announced A Different World sequel and Oprah and H.E.R.’s HBCU dance drama Major, at a moment when HBCUs themselves are navigating funding cuts, the rollback of identity-based grants, and threats to historically significant degree programs.
With a title change, a renamed campus, and a full cast now revealed, New State of Mind arrives as AspireTV’s most significant programming investment to date, positioned at a moment when HBCU storytelling is drawing serious renewed attention across the industry.