If you missed last night’s Live Chat with former Xscape member, Grammy award winning singer/songwriter, and now tv personality Kandi Burruss, here are the highlights.
We asked Kandi if the drama on Real Housewives of Atlanta was tweaked by the directors.
“You can’t make up some of that mess we do and say,” she laughed. For example, Kandi mentioned a fight with cast member Kim Zolciak, which occurred off-camera before the production team had a chance to set up. Kandi said the directors asked her and Kim to talk about the fight while the cameras were rolling.
“They put you in the best position for drama to happen. But it’s not forced or fake,” said Kandi.
She also discussed DeShawn Snow, the first RHOA cast member to be booted from the show last season. Kandi suggested that DeSahwn’s stoicism and no-nonsense personality may have done her in.
” They picked the right people for the show. I feel like maybe that’s why DeShawn got kicked off because she never gave them the vibe that they could push her buttons. For reality tv to work, you have to be yourself and not be afraid of criticism.
If you’re too guarded, it’s boring. It’s going to look like your guarded. People like Kim [Zolciak] who have a crazy personality are better suited for reality tv. She’s hilarious! Just being around her [and] the stuff she says, it’s just hilarious.”
We asked Kandi about the show’s protrayal of black men in Atlanta as feminine, purse carrying trannies, and lazy men who live primarily off their bread-winning wives.
Kandi was quick to defend Lisa Wu Hartwell’s deadbeat husband, former NFL star Ed Hartwell. “Give him a chance,” she said. “He just left his job with the NFL. He’s working on some things right now. He’s doing his thing.”
As for the purse carrying trannies who give Atlanta a bad name, Kandi said:
I went to Tri Cities [high school] with Lawrence. [Hairdresser] Derek J is actually like family to me. He’s really one part of the reason I’m on the show. He was the first [cast member] to tell the producer to call me. [The producer] actually told me that she wanted to reach out to me last year.
Women don’t have a lot of straight men that they hang out with, especially if they’re married. Your husband isn’t going to be intimidated by a gay guy.
Kandi answered the burning question that everyone is wondering: if Kim Zolciak is bald:
She has blond hair that’s shoulder length. It’s a short bob. She wears wigs because she wants to.
And Kandi’s take on the micro-blogging phenomenon Twitter.com, an online social network of people who seemingly can’t function without tweeting every aspect of their mundane lives.
[Laughing] It can take over your life sometimes. I almost got addicted. I appreciated having all those followers but how can you make people feel appreciated if you can’t answer them all? I hate for people to feel like I’m overlooking them.
Kandi denied rumors that Sheree Whitfield will not be returning last year, “I haven’t heard that,” she told me. “In fact, they’re talking about adding a new cast member for next season.”
We appreciate Kandi Burruss taking the time to chat live with my readers. Although she preferred the Ustream video format to the Twitter-style comments, my readers enjoy the comments because not everyone can view videos on their computers or hand held devices.
Don’t forget tomorrow night’s Live Chat participants are Tiny & Toya! And Toya will give away two passes to her star-studded birthday bash during the chat!
Photography: Allen Cooley for Kontrol Magazine
