Venita Aspen is the only Black star on Bravo’s Southern Charm, which has come with a big responsibility as she navigates a string of spiteful social media comments.
“It’s awful. Some of it is just like, ‘I don’t like what you said.’ That’s fine. You’re entitled to that,” Venita, 32, told Elite Daily in an interview published Wednesday, March 11. “But some others are like, ‘You act so white, you should bleach your skin,’ or ‘You want to be the only one, you want to be the token.’ No, I don’t actually.”
Venita joined Southern Charm during 2020’s season 7, returning for the following seasons. Throughout her reality TV tenure, she’s taken a step back from social media. Venita told the outlet that she curates photos and captions, which her team posts on her behalf. The Bravolebrity’s team, however, have strict instructions not to delete hateful or potentially racist comments on any of Venita’s uploads.
“I want other people to see that this is what I have to deal with on a day-to-day basis in this space,” she said. “People are like, ‘Well, you [signed up for the TV show], so I can say whatever I want.’ How does that even make sense?”
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Venita most recently filmed season 11 of the hit reality TV series, which is currently airing.
“I feel the most secure in everything I’ve said this season. I’m not afraid of what’s to come on the other side,” she recalled to the outlet. “It’s nice, but it’s almost like damn, what’s about to happen?”
For the first time, Venita has waded into the Southern Charm drama amid respective tensions with Craig Conover and Salley Carson.
“I knew the majority of the group, but not fully in depth. That made me nervous, because people will use your vulnerability against you most of the time,” Venita said of joining the show in a “friend of” role. “Now I’m like, whatever, use it against me. I’ll get you back.”
Venita is a self-described “peacemaker” who butted heads with BFF Salley, 29, in season 11 over the latter’s romantic interest in Craig, 37. (Venita’s friendship with Craig, meanwhile, strained when she took his ex Paige DeSorbo’s side in their 2024 breakup.)
“I was trying to make sure I was looking out for my best friend, and I don’t think it was reciprocated well,” Venita acknowledged. “There were some moments I could have dialed back a little bit, but I was very disappointed in the fact that my best friend at the time was so willing to date a man who had nothing nice to say about me.”
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Venita is now hopeful that she and Salley can eventually mend fences — on one condition.
“I’ll never give her advice on a man again,” she quipped.
