Scheana Shay stopped following James Kennedy shortly after he apologized for posting a photo with Andrew and Tristan Tate — but that isn’t why she made the social media change.
“I did not unfollow James recently because of him posting with the Tate brothers,” Shay, 39, revealed on the Friday, March 21, episode of her “Scheananigans” podcast. “It was actually coincidental timing.”
Shay pointed out that she originally unfollowed Kennedy, 33, on Instagram from her 3-year-old daughter Summer’s account — but not her own — after his December 2024 domestic violence arrest.
“At the time, [his now-ex-girlfriend] Ally [Lewber] was not ready to unfollow him, and so I just followed suit. I didn’t want to do anything where we all start unfollowing him. I knew everything that happened the night of his arrest. She told me the whole story,” Shay noted on Friday. “Just to keep the peace, I will continue following him. He is on mute. I’m not liking his s—. I’m not commenting on his s—. I don’t want to see any of it.”
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Shay only clicked the unfollow button from her own account recently after Lewber, 29, was ready to do the same, adding, “She was like, ‘OK, I think it’s time. I think I need to unfollow him.’ And I was like, ‘If you’re doing it, I’m doing it. I don’t want to follow him anymore because the following looks like I’m supporting him.’”
She continued: “I just don’t support him anymore. I wish him well. I wish him the best. I hope he’s continuing on a sobriety journey. Same as Jax [Taylor]. You can love him from afar and just wish them well. I just don’t need you in my inner circle anymore and I don’t need to follow you anymore. So Ally and I unfollowed him.”
Days after Shay and Lewber publicly cut ties, Kennedy shared a photo via Instagram of him and the controversial Tate siblings. He walked back the post after receiving major backlash due to the multiple accusations of sexual assault and human trafficking charges against Andrew and Tristan, which they have denied.
“I regret posting a photo with the Tate brothers at an event last night,” Kennedy wrote via Instagram Stories on March 8. “I was unfamiliar with their content and the allegations against them. I only knew them as podcasters [who] had posted a viral clip about Vanderpump. I have since educated myself and condemn their beliefs. I am sorry to all that I offended.”
The Valley‘s Zack Wickham subsequently threw shade at several Vanderpump Rules alums unfollowing Kennedy after the Tate brothers incident despite earlier controversies, including his arrest and tumultuous relationships with exes Kristen Doute and Rachel “Raquel” Leviss.
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“I find it s—ty that the final straw for you all to unfollow him was when he posted a picture with problematic horrible people, not when he was a problematic horrible person to your friend,” Wickham, 31, wrote via X on March 13. “And the answer is yes to everyone you think this is about.”
Before Wickham’s post, Bravo fans pointed out that Shay, Katie Maloney and Ariana Madix were no longer following Kennedy.
“That was a coincidence. And that’s what I messaged Zach. I commented and I said, ‘Well, if this is about me, that’s actually not why I unfollowed him,’” Shay added before confirming she didn’t receive a response from Wickham. “I love how people think they know the full story without getting it. Then he just left me on seen. I’m like, ‘Bitch, come on. It was a bitch move. And also because your best friend Brittany [Cartwright] was [still] just following him too.”
Shay stood by the timing of her own unfollow, saying, “I don’t follow Jax. I don’t follow [Tom] Sandoval. I don’t follow James. I don’t follow people who I don’t support.”
