‘The Real:’ Loni Love Says Tamar Braxton’s Firing “Tarnished” The Show and She Was Forbidden From Speaking About It
Tamar Braxton hasn’t been a co-host of The Real in four years but she remains a hot topic in relation to the show. Her firing caused major speculation about drama behind the scenes and Braxton made it clear that she believes Loni Love was part of her firing. A former friend of Love’s made shocking claims that she had a hand in Braxton’s firing, which Love denies. In her new book, Love finally shares her side of the story, insisting she’s innocent and also explains that she believes Braxton’s firing tarnished the show.
Loni Love was accused of having Tamar Braxton fired from ‘The Real’
Ahead of news breaking that Braxton was fired, the Braxton Family Values star posted a lengthy message to Instagram alleging that she’d been backstabbed by close friends. After Love B. Scott exclusively reported that Braxton was fired, fans assumed that Braxton was referring to Love in her post as she unfollowed the comedian.
A former friend and business partner of Love’s, Cookie Hull, spoke with Comedy Hype and alleged that Love was jealous of Braxton’s popularity on the show and wanted her gone.
Related: Fellow Comedian Says Loni Love Influenced Tamar Braxton’s Firing From ‘The Real’
“She told me that she was going to try to get her [Braxton] off of the show,” Hull said. “She told me that she wanted to be the only ghetto girl on the show and she wanted to get rid of her.”
Hull claimed that Love sent the network emails while Braxton was on medical leave with the intention of proving the show was successful without Braxton. Braxton later posted screenshots of text messages from a mutual friend of her and Hull’s, corroborating Hull’s version of events.
Loni Love says the studio forbid her from speaking about Tamar Braxton’s firing and “tarnished” the show
Love previously explained that she had no knowledge that Braxton would be fired and that she was shocked when the network made the decision. In a new interview with Entertainment Tonight, Love says the backlash against her continued and she was unable to defend herself due to the network not allowing her or her co-hosts to speak about Braxton’s departure.
“I think I got a bad rap, and all the girls got a bad rap. But it was really mostly on me because we weren’t allowed to speak about it and when you’re not allowed to speak about it, that means only one side of the story is out there,” Love said. “Then what happens is perception from that one side becomes reality, and that’s what hurts. It’s so unfair, but people in the industry, they probably know, but outside people don’t and that’s what is totally not fair.”
The only thing she could say in the beginning was that she had no knowledge of what occurred. In turn, she says it backfired and tarnished the show’s reputation, explaining that it took a few seasons for them to get past the debacle.
“You look at other talk show hosts. They get canned and contracts end all the time. … This was the first show that was like, all women of color, and it really tarnished the show, I believe. It left this cloud of suspicion on the show, and it took like a couple of seasons for us to get over that,” Love said. “The show wasn’t meant for that. The show was really meant to uplift and show diversity amongst women.”
Loni Love insists she had nothing to do with Tamar Braxton’s firing from ‘The Real’
Love has always maintained that she nor her co-hosts were part of Braxton’s firing. She’s reached out to Braxton several times since her exit and even invited her on the show but Braxton has declined. Love told ET that she understands Braxton’s resistance.
“Somebody did lose a job. That was embarrassing, it was hurtful, it was confusing for all of us,” she said.
Still, despite Braxton choosing to remain distant, Love wishes her the best. She’s a champion of Braxton from afar and hopes that one day, they can sort things out.
