Kandi Burruss and Tamar Braxton have never been shy about their history, and now Kandi is laying it all out. During Friday’s episode of her “Speak On It” podcast with co-host DJ A1, the Real Housewives of Atlanta alum addressed the viral moment from ESSENCE Festival head-on, making it clear she wasn’t interested in pretending everything was fine.
“Now, we gonna tiptoe around this or we gonna get straight to it? Talking about Tamar Braxton,” Kandi said before diving in. She didn’t hold back, admitting she genuinely dislikes Braxton and felt blindsided when the singer approached her at the festival’s Black Women in Hollywood event, where Kandi was being honored. Kandi said she was sitting there watching Braxton act as though the two were on friendly terms, despite what she described as ongoing shade from Braxton online.
Kandi also pushed back on claims that she snubbed Braxton by leaving her out of photos from the event, explaining that only award winners and presenters were included in that particular round of pictures, and Braxton was neither. That, she says, is why she was confused about why Braxton was even on stage to begin with.
To add insult to injury, Kandi claims that Tamar reached out to her, accusing her now ex-husband of being in the LGBTQ+ community. She also suggested to the singer that she begin taking PrEP, which is a medication that prevents the transmission of HIV.
Kandi And Tamar’s Tension Didn’t Stop At ESSENCE
According to TheJasmineBrand, Kandi has said Braxton approached her at the festival “knowing we don’t f**k with each other,” and Kandi expanded on that sentiment during the podcast, saying she felt Braxton was performing for the cameras rather than being genuine. She also described a second incident about three weeks later at a party in Atlanta, where she claims Braxton walked past her and muttered an insult under her breath before continuing on.
Kandi said security ended up hovering nearby after Braxton’s date sat down next to her, and she suspects Braxton was trying to provoke a reaction she could later use to paint Kandi as the aggressor. Kandi feels this isn’t a one-time thing either. She referenced a prior red carpet exchange from 2025 where a similar dynamic played out, along with alleged messages she says she never responded to.
As BOSSIP previously reported, Braxton has publicly insisted she has “no beef” with Kandi, telling The Morning Hustle she doesn’t regret congratulating her and that she’s simply choosing peace. But Kandi’s version of events tells a different story, and she made clear during the podcast that she has no plans to extend any warmth toward Braxton going forward, saying she intends to keep her distance regardless of how many more run-ins happen.
Kandi’s co-host and friends on the podcast largely backed her up, with several noting that she tends to give people more grace than she probably should, which made this level of frustration stand out. Kandi maintained throughout the conversation that she isn’t interested in being labeled a “mean girl,” arguing that she’s simply tired of being cast as the villain in a narrative she feels Braxton is actively shaping online.
Whether this is truly the end of the road for Kandi and Tamar’s public tension remains to be seen, especially with Kandi hinting she may have more to say, and possibly receipts to back it up, if the back-and-forth continues.
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