Kandi Burruss' new spin-off Kandi & The Gang features her staff members at her OLG restaurant, but it's not the same as Lisa Vanderpump's spin-off. Out of all of the housewives across franchises. Kandi has starred in the most spin-off specials. However, her new spin-off is the first time a Black housewife has had a show that follows her business, much like Lisa Vanderpump's hit spin-off, Vanderpump Rules. With all of the similarities between the two shows, viewers are noting what makes Kandi's OLG eatery very different from LVP's SUR.
In addition to appearing on The Real Housewives of Atlanta, Kandi is also a successful singer/songwriter, entrepreneur, and business owner. Along with her husband Todd Tucker, RHOA star Kandi owns multiple eateries throughout the Atlanta region. Her new spin-off follows her OLG restaurant employees, and it's also centered on Kandi's mother Mama Joyce, and her two sisters, Aunt Nora and Aunt Bertha. The show is a direct spin-off of Kandi's RHOA storyline, much like Lisa's spin-off that came as a result of her appearance on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
However, despite the similarities, there are a lot of reasons why Kandi & The Gang is significantly different from Vanderpump Rules. For one, Kandi takes pride in the number of LGBTQIA+ staff members that she employs. “It is so funny because it wasn’t even intentional,” Kandi told Page Six about her diverse staff. “It just so happened that they’re really cool people and then cameras came,” she explained. “You just get to see what we already have going on. Our restaurant has always been inclusive.” While RHOBH icon Lisa's spin-off did include their former SURver Billy Lee, who shared her journey as a transgender woman, there weren't many openly gay employees cast on the show. SUR is located in the inclusive community of West Hollywood, which serves as the headquarters for the annual Pride parade.
VPR would always include the Pride parade on the show, as well as their themed parties for the LGBTQIA+ community. Adding to the diversity, Kandi's new spin-off has an all-Black cast that puts more Black men at the forefront than other shows on Bravo. It's something Kandi applauds, as per Page Six. “We all exist, right? But we’re not necessarily all represented when it comes to television. So come on to ‘Kandi & The Gang.’ We’re going to make everybody feel right at home," she said. Kandi described the different types of men on her show, saying that they will help to make more people from diverse backgrounds feel represented. “You have a lot of black men [on our show]. You have some straight, some that are gay and then some that are masculine-gay and then some that are not as masculine, which is cool because I think so many people will feel represented, who haven’t really been represented before,” Kandi explained.
The cities that the shows are filmed in make for entirely different cast dynamics. The location of OLG is also in a much different neighborhood than SUR. In the premiere episode of Kandi & The Gang, Kandi and Todd explained how their OLG eatery sometimes loses power. The absence of a generator produces issues for the team and customers. That's not something that was ever seen on VPR, due to SUR being located in the buzzing West Hollywood district. However, the issues between the SURvers surpassed any issues that Lisa might've been having with running her restaurant. As fans wonder what the future holds for Lisa's spin-off, Kandi's OLG staff members are stepping up to the plate. With a diverse cast aiming to make others feel represented, the new show has the perfect recipe for success.
Source: Page Six
