After 14 seasons, Kandi Burruss, the longest-running featured cast member of The Real Housewives of Atlanta (and reportedly, the highest-paid Bravolebrity), has announced her exit…or what she calls “a break.”
Burruss made her debut on the show in its second season, legitimizing the Housewives franchise as the first celebrity to appear and have a name outside of the show. She’s since monopolized the platform more than any other housewife in history, expanding her entertainment and entrepreneurial empire to include an adult toy line, restaurants, cosmetics, and clothing, and she’s now acting and producing Broadway productions. The news comes amid a major cast shakeup for the show.
Burruss made the announcement while on the red carpet for the 2024 Grammy Awards. Speaking to Variety, she exclusively confirmed her departure. “I’m not really keeping up right now,” she said, when asked what’s happening with the show “I’m not keeping up. I already said it, so I’ll tell you. I decided I’m not coming back this year. It’s been 14 seasons, and they allowed us to sit around for a little too long, but during that time I had started working on a lot of other things, and I got some nice big projects coming soon, so I’m super excited about those things.”
She added, “But it’s not just that. It’s just like, after you really have time to think, and a friend of mine was like, ‘Why do you keep doing it?’ And I was like, ‘Well, I think because I’ve just been doing it for so long, it feels weird to think not to do it?’ So I was just like, ‘You know what? I’m going to take a break, I’m going to take a moment… I’m not coming back this year.’”
Burruss previously revealed on her Instagram Live that she grew frustrated with waiting for casting decisions to be made. She won’t skip a beat with the varying projects she is part of.
Burruss’ former friend and producer, Carlos King, revealed on his Reality With the King podcast that her exit was her decision. He noted he learned from sources close to production that she was asked back, but wouldn’t confirm in what capacity as a full-time cast member or friend of the show. Burruss was reportedly paid over $2 million a season for her work on the show.
