Go big or go home, in Atlanta, that is. On the Sunday, January 15, episode of The Real Housewives of Atlanta, the ladies were busy prepping for Phaedra Parks‘ charity event to benefit the children in Flint, Michigan. Meanwhile a storm was brewing between Kenya Moore and Marlo Hampton (who seems to appear a few times each season). Kenya’s issues with Marlo were the least of her worries, however, as her (maybe ex) boyfriend, Matt Jordan, had recently lost his temper in a very scary way again.
Marlo Calls Kenya a “Miserable” Phony
Sheree Whitfield was still struggling to decorate Chateau Sheree, which was pretty much a giant empty space. Though she was way over budget, she decided it would be a good idea to enlist Marlo (who isn’t exactly known for her cost-cutting taste) to help her pick out wall coverings. It seemed like “wall coverings” was a fancy word for wallpaper, but that was never verified.
After looking at a few ludicrously expensive “coverings,” Marlo began ragging on Kenya, calling her a “crazy,” “miserable phony.” It turned out Marlo was bent out of shape because Kenya hadn’t invited her to her birthday party or her housewarming — and she had invited Nene Leakes. In Marlo’s mind, she had been a much better friend to Kenya than Nene had, and her lack of an invite was the result of Kenya thinking Nene could help elevate her profile. (To be clear, Nene and Marlo also do not get along.)
Matt Vandalized Kenya’s House (Again)
Kenya came home from Peter Thomas‘ club opening (where she and Matt had exchanged words and he had punched her driver in the face) to discover that he had paid a visit to her home. In addition to breaking a bunch of windows in her garage and the windshield of her car, he had spray-painted over her security cameras to prevent himself from being filmed (because, umm, then no one would know it was him … right).
Kenya called Kandi Burruss, who asked her what her dad would say. “Get a restraining order,” Kenya admitted. She then argued that she didn’t think a restraining order would do anything and went to see Phaedra for advice on how to deal with Matt’s temper.
“I’ve been in a bad relationship and so I feel it with any woman who is going through it with a spouse or a partner,” Phaedra said to the camera. To Kenya, Phaedra admitted that she and ex-husband Apollo Nida had tried counseling, but it didn’t work. “Once you’re married to someone the bad behavior intensifies 100 percent because then they got you,” Phaedra warned Kenya. Phaedra went on to say that she didn’t even know who Apollo was at the end because he had changed so much from the man she’d fallen in love with.
Kenya was touched that Phaedra was being so open with her and admitted that, despite all of this, she still wanted to be with Matt — or at least the version of Matt who didn’t vandalize her property every other day. (Good luck with that.) “At the end of the day, you’ve got to be sure of your safety,” Phaedra said.
Give Until It Hurts
The big day of Phaedra’s charity pop-up shop finally arrived and all of the ladies started setting up. Kenya brought Kenya Moore hair care, Porsha Williams had a booth with her hair extensions, Cynthia Bailey brought her eyewear, Sheree brought clothing from She by Sheree, and Kandi brought her sex toy line. There was some tension at first over just how much of the proceeds they were expected to donate to the cause, but ultimately they all agreed on 50 percent of the net profit (though it was unclear whether that guideline was actually followed).
Before the day even started, Sheree was annoyed that Kenya’s booth had such a giant poster (of Kenya, of course) behind it, but Sheree got over it enough to focus on selling her collection of tops. Kenya slammed Sheree’s booth for being “as empty as her chateau,” but also took a moment to notice that Apollo’s mom and stepdad came to support Phaedra. “I had no idea that Phaedra even had a relationship with Apollo’s parents,” Kenya said to the camera, clearly intrigued by all of the new information she was learning about her friend.
Marlo Calls Kenya a Bitch
That’s when Marlo showed up. Sensing the chill in the room, Kenya didn’t waste any time calling Marlo over so they could have a chat. “I just wanted to tell you face to face that I am so sorry that I did not get a chance to invite you to my housewarming,” Kenya said.
“It still is unacceptable — a friend you don’t do that to,” Marlo said, adding that it wasn’t just the housewarming, but the birthday party too. Kenya said she didn’t “have an excuse” for why she hadn’t invited Marlo and insisted they were still friends. Marlo said that was simply not true.
“I still feel it’s BS and it is,” she said as she stormed off. Then she called Kenya a “bitch.”
Kenya rolled her eyes at the camera and said, “Girl, bye.” As the day ended, they had raised $7500 for Phaedra’s charity — $2500 short of Phaedra’s goal, but at least everyone behaved, for the most part.
Tell Us: Do you think Marlo has a right to be mad at Kenya?
The Real Housewives of Atlanta airs on Bravo Sundays at 8 p.m. ET.
