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The Bachelorette Season 17 might be about Katie Thurston’s quest for love, but many fans are excited to see the new lead’s friendship with co-hosts Kaitlyn Bristowe and Tayshia Adams. So what can fans expect from the trio moving forward? Recently, Kaitlyn opened up about supporting Katie alongside Tayshia on The Bachelorette — here’s what the former lead said.

Kaitlyn Bristowe and Tayshia Adams are co-hosting ‘The Bachelorette’ Season 17 with Katie Thurston

Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe on limo night in ‘The Bachelorette’ Season 17 premiere
Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe in ‘The Bachelorette’ Season 17 | Craig Sjodin/ABC via Getty Images

Long before The Bachelorette Season 17 premiere, Chris Harrison stepped down from the franchise. In February 2019, the host spoke with Rachel Lindsay and defended the past racist behavior of Rachael Kirkconnell from The Bachelor Season 25 with Matt James. Then in March, Warner Horizon and ABC Entertainment confirmed Kaitlyn and Tayshia will support Katie on The Bachelorette. The statement said:

We support Chris in the work that he is committed to doing. In his absence, former Bachelorettes Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe will support the new Bachelorette through next season. As we continue the dialogue around achieving greater equity and inclusion within The Bachelor franchise, we are dedicated to improving the BIPOC representation of our crew, including among the executive producer ranks. These are important steps in effecting fundamental change so that our franchise is a celebration of love that is reflective of our world.

Kaitlyn Bristowe on hosting ‘The Bachelorette’ 2021 with Tayshia Adams

Many Bachelor Nation fans were pleasantly surprised when Kaitlyn and Tayshia joined The Bachelorette team for Katie’s season. So how do the co-hosts feel about their new roles? When speaking on the Bachelor Happy Hour podcast, Kaitlyn said it was written in the stars.

“I did not ever think I would ever be in this position,” she said. “But once it happened and I was there, I was like, ‘I’m supposed to be here. I’m supposed to be doing this.’”

Kaitlyn also noted that she didn’t really know Tayshia before The Bachelorette Season 17. But in the end, they worked together to empower Katie.

“We know each other, of course. But we hadn’t spent much time together,” Kaitlyn said of Tayshia. “At the beginning, we were like, ‘How’s this gonna work?’ It was not about competition. It’s Katie’s journey. We’re there for support.”

She continued, “I think Tayshia and I really found a bond over being there to empower Katie. We got along so well, and we fed off each other really well. It turned into this really fun time that, again, it feels like it was meant to be.”

Tayshia Adams and Katie Thurston  open up about ‘The Bachelorette’ Season 17

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Now, Kaitlyn’s comments about Tayshia and Katie won’t come as a surprise to some Bachelorette fans. In an interview with E! News from May 2021, Tayshia called the trio “the ultimate girl gang.”

“Every time [Katie] needed us we were always kind of right around the corner and ready to help her,” Tayshia said. “But it was so great to be able to be there with her because if there’s ever been a time for a bachelorette to have somebody as a mentor behind the scenes, so this was something that was really special for her, and I hope that we helped her out.”

Then when speaking with Extra, Katie shared how she really felt about Kaitlyn and Tayshia’s time on The Bachelorette. 

“Having advice from them and advice because they lived it themselves, it was everything,” Katie said. “They were there for my lowest lows, my highest highs. We really became sisters and we bonded in a way that no one ever really could.”

ABC drops new episodes of The Bachelorette Season 17 on Monday nights.

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