Lala Kent is one of the blunter TV personalities on the Bravo network. She says whatever she’s thinking or feeling in the moment on Vanderpump Rules, even if it doesn’t appear that it'll age too well. And it seems that remains even when the cameras aren't rolling. Whether she’s shading her ex with vibrator ads on Insta or dismissing her co-stars’ poor ideas of friendship in the press, Kent continues to shock spectators with her frankness. Lately, the reality star has gotten very real about salary negotiations and how the show in fact “rewards” her.
A few months ago – following cheating allegations that led her to breakup with Hollywood producer/fiancé Randall Emmett – Lala Kent was candid that she was able to leave her ex easily because her mom taught her financial independence from a young age. But the 31-year-old discussed her finances further on the Trading Secrets podcast, specifically about how it works on Vanderpump Rules with the salary hierarchy. She said:
When you’re brand new, you definitely need that hostess job. I still was having to fit model. I still was having to be a hostess. Like, what I was making on the show was not covering much. You earn your place, and then obviously, your pay goes up.
The star went on to say that it’s all contingent on how long a castmate has been on the show. She added that she knows her worth, though, and goes into salary negotiations with the mindset that she’s “absolutely” deserving of “a billion dollars per episode” – no matter how unlikely that budget is for Bravo. She also shared that she negotiates now to make sure her Give Them Lala brand is “relevant” on the show (i.e. screentime). In exchange, she has to essentially be the driver of the drama with castmates, saying,
My show rewards me for confrontation and speaking up. I don’t want to say that I like confrontation, but I will say that I’m great at it. It’s not something where I leave feeling amazing after it happens, but I know what I signed up for. My opinions. I’m being paid for my thoughts.
After the tense Season 9 reunion for Vanderpump Rules, however, Lala Kent initially suggested that she might not return for another season of pot-stirring. Yet she said on Trading Secrets that this is usually what happens when she and her co-stars are feeling “drained” and “exhausted” after months of filming with the same group of people. But Kent is apparently still contemplating an exit, adding that she would need to do some “soul-searching” when it comes to whether the show is a “healthy environment” for her and her infant daughter.
It would seem, then, that the businesswoman is moving on in all possible ways: she’s headlining her own Give Them Lala speaking tour and is back in the dating game after her split. Whether it’s the end of her time on VR remains to be seen, although the powers-that-be might not exactly favor the alum laying bare that the drama is essentially created for pay increases.
Still, Lala Kent knows very well the privilege of being paid to argue. She said, “I’m sure an accountant in Ohio can’t just cause conflict and [their boss] be like, ‘You know what, Bob, you really stood your own. We’re going to give you a promotion.’”
