‘The Bachelorette’: Rachel Lindsay Officially Steps Away From ‘Bachelor Happy Hour’ Podcast
Rachel Lindsay‘s podcast, Bachelor Happy Hour has been a large part of her career lately, but Lindsay has had a complicated history within the Bachelor franchise. On one hand, the franchise gave her her platform and made Lindsay the first Black Bachelorette. On the other hand, Lindsay has never hesitated to call the franchise out on the racial issues that exist within it. After her notorious interview with host Chris Harrison where he defended the racist actions of contestant Rachael Kirkconnell, Lindsay struggled with being connected to the franchise. Now, she is stepping away from the Bachelor Happy Hour podcast.
Rachel and Chris Harrison
Lindsay has always pushed for more diversity within the Bachelor franchise and has been the one to move conversations about race forward. Recently, when photos of Kirkconnell at an old south party surfaced, Lindsay asked host Chris Harrison how he felt about the situation.
When Harrison defended Kirkconnell’s actions by saying that they were OK because the party was back in 2018, Lindsay was visibly shocked. Later, Harrison apologized to both the public and to Lindsay.
“I do accept the apology, Billy, and I think it’s important for me to say that because I haven’t really talked about, you know, Chris and the statement because I’m not trying to make this a Chris-versus-Rachel,” she said in an interview with Extra. “But the fact that, once again, you know — this isn’t the first time he’s apologized to me — he apologized again on GMA today and I do accept that and I think it’s important for me to say that because we need to move forward.”
Rachel Lindsay leaves the podcast
Since her interview with Harrison, Lindsay has been bombarded by racists who blame her for Harrison’s hiatus. The harassment got so bad that Lindsay took a break from social media.
At the end of the 99th episode of her podcast, the former Bachelorette announced her exit.
“I’m going to make this short and sweet: All good things must come to an end and I feel like certain things run their course and for me I have run my course when it comes to the podcast,” she said.
Lindsay talked about how much she loved the podcast before revealing why she was leaving.
“And it’s been really, really hard for me lately and a lot of the things that we talk about on this podcast are also about taking care of yourself and finding your peace and protecting that peace and protecting your mental health,” she said. “And so for me, I just feel like I’ve come to the end of doing the podcast and I’m glad that I’m leaving on a high note where it’s the 100th episode, it’s such a big milestone.”
Will Rachel Lindsay return to the podcast?
Though Lindsay is officially leaving as co-host, she didn’t rule out a possible return as a guest.
“For me it’s like you can walk away now, I can walk away. I’m doing some other things, I’m sure I’ll pop in from time to time to say hello,” she said.
Co-host Becca Kufrin commended Lindsay for doing what was best for her, but said that she would miss her co-host turned friend.
“I’m gonna miss you too,” Lindsay responded. “I’m not gonna throw away the key but I’m sure as hell gonna lose it for a while — I need a change of scenery.”
