Credit: Charles Sykes/Bravo
Riley Burruss appeared on Wednesday’s episode of Watch What Happens Live, where she addressed her drama and current status with Ariana Biermann.
While also reflecting on her tension with Georgia McCann, 27, sharing mom Kandi Burruss‘ reaction to her behavior during a recent girls’ night on Next Gen NYC, and confirming where she stands with former stepfather Todd Tucker, 53, Riley teased the cast’s first-ever reunion, weighed in on Charlie Zakkour’s apologies, and more.
On the August 5 episode of WWHL, after being asked if she regretted accusing Ariana, 24, of not being there for her amid an argument with Georgia, Riley said, “I do.”
“And I’ve talked to her,” she shared. “This was last year. I’ve talked to her so many times. We’ve hung out a lot, and I really reflected, and I see how she really did try to be there for me. So I really appreciate that.”
While Ariana recently claimed on her own episode of WWHL that she and Riley weren’t speaking, Riley denied that was the case.
“I texted her after that because I was like, ‘What do you mean? I didn’t know we were on bad terms,’ and she clarified that with you and everything, and she let me know that’s not what she meant by that. So we are good. I’ve just been traveling,” Riley explained.
Following her spat with Georgia, during which Riley accused Georgia of using ketamine and claimed she couldn’t afford a Birkin, Riley said she immediately texted Georgia to apologize.
“I was like, ‘I’m so sorry. That’s not okay,’” she shared. “And she was so understanding, and honestly, she took that like a champ.”
According to Riley, Georgia’s handling of the matter actually made her respect her co-star more.
“I do think that she gets a lot of hate and people throw shade at her all the time. I think she does take it on the chin and she laughs about it and she is easy to move on with. It’s so cool,” she stated.
Since their spat, which was sparked by Georgia’s comments about Riley’s drinking, Riley said her friendship with Georgia has gotten better.
“Me and Georgia are surprisingly really good,” she revealed. “I think that was a wake-up call to me, and I think me communicating with her and letting her know what was going on in my life at the time, she really understood and respected that, and she even, like, tried to help me with law school and law internships.”
Looking back at their fight, Riley admitted to feeling “so embarrassed.”
“When I first talked to my friends about it, I was like, okay, it couldn’t have been that bad, and then I watched it, and I was like, ‘That was bad.’ And I was like, ‘I’m so sorry, you guys, I can’t even believe that happened,’” she explained.
Regarding her mom’s reaction, Riley said the Real Housewives of Atlanta alum knew she was “going to beat [herself] up over it.”
“She was like, ‘If you’re gonna act like this, you need to take accountability, and you need to learn from these actions,'” Riley recalled.
As for what she learned, Riley said, “I learned that drinking that much is not for everybody, and you got to watch out for your friends, watch out for yourself, and learn.”
Since then, Riley has changed her drinking habits.
“Especially watching it back now, a year later, I’m like, ‘Girl, that’s not okay.’ I’ve talked to my friend about it. I’ve talked to my family about it. I was like, ‘I didn’t realize that’s what it looked like. Let’s nip that in the bud,’” she shared.
Riley then commented on her relationship with Todd.
“It’s not the same. I will say. But the divorce shifted a lot of things in my life so it’s not only the divorce, it’s also everything else that comes with that,” she explained. “We’re trying to still be a blended family, but there are some things that irk my nerves. Sometimes I look at his social media and I’m like, ‘What is going on here?’ But we’re okay.”
Speaking of the recently taped reunion, Riley said that it “helped all of [their] friendships,” including her relationships with Ariana and Georgia.
When asked if she felt Charlie’s apologies, which include one to Emira D’Spain, 29, for a transphobic comment, were insincere, Riley suggested that Charlie was sincere — but only some of the time.
“I think we need to stop trying to get him to apologize. If he doesn’t mean it, it’s not worth anything. I will say he respects a lot of people, well, specific people, and so when he apologizes to them, it’s because he really cares about the friendship. But if he says he doesn’t care, just let him not care and move on,” she suggested.
Then, during a rapid fire Q&A game in which she named certain cast members, Riley said that the most loyal friend was either her or Ava Dash, 26, and claimed Georgia had the most questionable style.
As for why she didn’t say that Ariana was the most loyal, Riley explained, “My only caveat with that is that she is friends with everyone, so it’s hard for her to be loyal to everyone.”
Next Gen NYC season two airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on Bravo.