Kandi Burruss is leaving the Real Housewives of Atlanta after more than a decade grinding it out… and Andy Cohen is in his feels over it!
On Sunday night, the talented songwriter popped up at the Grammys, as expected. But during a pre-show red carpet interview, she abruptly revealed to the world that she is leaving RHOA after 14 seasons!! Oh, no! And not only is the reveal totally unexpected from fans’ points of view, but her decision to bare all on the red carpet came COMPLETELY off the cuff!
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Speaking to PRIDE while walking the carpet, Kandi made the candid reveal. When asked what went into the big decision, she explained that, for starters, she’s already spoken to Andy about it:
“Andy called me, and he was like, ‘what the f**k?’ I don’t know how I feel about it, either. But I was like, ‘it’s time,’ you know what I mean? It’s just time. … I’ve been doing it for 14 years, so it’s almost like that weird thing of ‘why wouldn’t I do it?’”
We get it! Interestingly, she explained how a show hiatus changed everything. Because the cast had such a long break after filming their most recent season, she had time to think about what else she wants to do in life — and time to put other projects on her plate! The star explained:
“But during this break, I had more time to be with my kids, and more time to get in the studio, and more time to do this and that. So, Andy was like, ‘I’m sad about it,’ and I was sad, too. But he was like, ‘you know you can always come back, and we are always your Bravo family.’ And there are other things that I am going to be doing with the Bravo family, so, I’m OK! I’m good. I’m good with my decision.”
And guess what?! Andy may have known about Kandi’s decision before she dropped the dime on the Grammys red carpet, but NONE of her other castmates knew!! So, uh, surprise, ladies?! Watch Burruss explain her decision in full (below):
So sad! Truly the end of an era. Kandi is both a Housewives legend and a crazy-talented musical mind with some serious career achievements on her resumé. That’ll be a very big RHOA loss for Bravo!!
Speaking of Bravo, early on Monday morning, Cohen popped up on SiriusXM‘s Andy Cohen Live with his emotional reaction to the now-public news of Kandi’s departure. Calling it “unbelievable,” he told co-host John Hill:
“She was always very true to herself. She wanted to be the best. She has been one of my favorite people to work with in my whole time. … I didn’t know when she was gonna share her news, so I was surprised last night. I was like, ‘oh my God, it’s out.’”
And with that, Andy was off to the races. He spent the next nine minutes openly and emotionally praising Kandi for all of her achievements both on RHOA and in the rest of her entertainment career. At one point, he reminisced about how she was never afraid to call the WWHL host and his fellow executives at Bravo and inquire about strategic decisions:
“I love how competitive she is. I love how thoughtful and smart she is. She is so strategic. She would call me anytime she had a thought about either the way the show was being marketed or not marketed or about the way that it was being scheduled or she had a lot of really smart opinions and thoughts and she always wanted to, she was always wanting to know more. … It was always a great dialogue, and then sometimes at the end of the conversation, she would say, ‘you know what? I’m glad I called. I totally get it now.’”
And during some of those phone calls, she wasn’t afraid to call them out on s**t, either:
“Sometimes she would say, ‘y’all are wrong,’ and you know, and a lot of times, by the way, she was right, so you know, there’s that. She always brought her authentic self to whatever she was doing and I’m excited also because she just came into the show with her own, obviously her own name and her career. I mean, she’s got a huge thing.”
That’s the thing — she does have her own name and her own career. This is the woman who wrote Bills, Bills, Bills. Hell, she wrote No Scrubs! She’s worked in the studio with Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, and more. And as Andy himself mentioned, Kandi is literally name-dropped in Carey’s autobiography! ICON!
Related: Andy Has ‘Texted With’ Kim Zolciak About A Possible RHOA Return — But THIS May Ruin It!
Kandi’s behind-the-scenes impact at Bravo will continue to be felt for a long time, too. Recalling the tumultuous summer of 2020, Cohen praised Burruss for helping the network get through a difficult period of social upheaval with patience, grace, and understanding:
“During the summer of 2020, which was a reckoning for all of us on many levels, she wrote such a thoughtful letter to all of us at Bravo and truly original with some really valid and true thoughts about the way that we could be conducting business differently that might be just more inclusive, more positive, more meaningful and it led to a great conversation between she and the network, and I believe the network then, you know, took it seriously enough that they basically made them all action items and said, ‘well, we need to do all of this now.’ … She impacted not only the show, but she impacted the way that we do business behind the scenes and that is powerful, so I just, I think both of us were kind of crying a little bit at the end of the call the other day.”
Such high praise! And it’s wild to hear Andy is crying over her departure — but it also makes sense, TBH. She’s been around for so long and has shepherded that show through a lot of tough times!
When news of her departure first came to Andy’s desk last week before it was revealed to the world on the red carpet, Cohen recalled how he spoke by phone with Kandi and her husband Todd Tucker:
“I know that she’s going to continue being a success in everything she does. We had a long talk the other day. She and I and Todd on the phone. I appreciate her saying, ‘you know what? I think this is just time,’ and she knows the show is at a crossroads right now and I don’t even want to talk about where we’re going with it. Maybe tomorrow I’ll talk a little bit more about that, but I don’t think this is about where we’re going. I think it’s just about celebrating her right now.”
Amen to that! And aside from celebrating, everybody is already thinking about a possible comeback!! Not only does Kandi have lots on her plate, but Todd’s movie The Pass was streamed via Peacock to such significant success that Bravo is already trying to entice the couple to do more! And according to Andy, that might just happen:
“I know that Bravo will be in business with her for a long time. They’ve got other things in development, so she is a talent that they’re not gonna want to let go. You know, might I mention that the movie that Todd directed, it did really well on Peacock. They wound up buying the movie. You can see that on Peacock, and so there you go. She is one of the greats. She is one of the greats and I want everybody to know it, so thank you Kandi for your service. I did tell her, I was like, ‘you know, Kandi, you could drop back in in a year or two.’”
Comeback watch!!
You can hear Andy’s full take on Kandi’s departure from RHOA and her legacy at Bravo via the SiriusXM app, or on YouTube (below):
All good things must come to an end, we suppose. Still, it’s going to be tough to replace Kandi! She is SUCH a reality TV icon, and she was truly a perfect fit for that show in so many ways, and for so many years. Who are they going to replace her with?! How can you even replace her?? Andy did tease very briefly that he’s got some plans for future RHOA casts and seasons, so we’re sure Bravo has something up their sleeve…
Regardless, we’re just so heartened she and Andy are on great terms and both already open to possible future projects together. Who knows what is in store ahead! Reactions, Perezcious readers?? Will U miss seeing Kandi on your television screens?! Let us know your thoughts and takes on her abrupt departure down in the comments (below)!
[Image via Club Shay Shay/YouTube/WWHL/YouTube]
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