Credit: Instagram/Shamea Morton
On season 17 of The Real Housewives of Atlanta, which just finished airing this year, Shamea Morton had drama with a lot of the cast members.
While there were rumors Shamea, 44, may not return for season 18, Bravo head honcho Andy Cohen was quick to shut them down.
Now, a new report about Shamea has been released by The Wall Street Journal, specifically detailing how she spent $1.5 million on a home renovation before she was a full-time cast member on the show so that her house would be ready for the cameras.
According to the outlet, Shamea and her husband, Gerald Mwangi, got designer Jennifer Kole to redo the 20,000-square-foot home that they had purchased for $9 million in 2022.
“When we started, everybody was on this wave of doing modern minimalism, and I was like, ‘That is so not me,’” Shamea shared. “I wanted it to be over-the-top – I need gold and marble – jaw drop!”
While Gerald did like how the house ended up, he was said to be hands-off for the design process.
Jennifer began renovating the rooms that would be most needed for RHOA. She also worked on the primary bedroom suite and the bedrooms of their two daughters.
“In the Midwest, I do beautiful projects, but people’s taste is pretty safe,” Jennifer noted. “In Atlanta, people want fancier design, and Shamea definitely wanted that. My biggest challenge was reminding myself that I could just go for it and that I didn’t have to pull back. And when I thought that I went for it, I needed to go extra.”
“We do have Versace wallpaper as you walk in,” she continued. “It was custom-made, and it is absolutely gorgeous, but an elevated look comes from layering in beautiful materials – not from having an Hermès throw on every surface.”
The renovations clearly worked out in her favor, as Shamea noted the ladies were “in awe” of her home the first time they came over to film.
“They were like, ‘Who the h*ll has Versace on the walls?’” she elaborated.
To date, the official cast for RHOA season 18 has not been confirmed by Bravo, but Shamea has been spotted already filming for season 18.