Kandi Burruss isn’t buying Tamar Braxton’s “we’re cool” narrative—not after that Essence Fest moment and sure as hell not now.
Just weeks after their awkward exchange during Essence Fest’s Black Women in Music ceremony on July 5, 2026, where Tamar appeared to reach across Monica and take Kandi’s hand to greet her but Kandi did not seem too eager to play along, Tamar went on The Morning Hustle radio show claiming there’s zero tension between them. She called the photobomb “cordial” and “home-training.” And Kandi? She’s over the performative peace.
In a comment under The Jasmine Brand’s post, Kandi allegedly wrote that Tamar was “calling me a bitch as she walked past me at a party last Saturday” and dropped a harsh truth: “I can’t do the fake sh*t.” She followed up by reposting a video of Hollywood Unlocked founder Jason Lee discussing his own soured relationship with Braxton, with a caption that cut deep: “Interesting… but I’m supposed to be the mean girl. yeah right 😒.”
This isn’t some random flare-up. The tension between Tamar and Kandi stretches back to 2017, when they worked together on The Great Xscape Tour. But things got nuclear in late 2022 when Tamar confirmed she was referring to Burruss and Todd Tucker in a December 2022 Instagram post alleging a RHOA star had “threatened” her. The beef? Tamar claimed “yo HUSBAND stepped to me!”
What’s wild is how the narrative has shifted. For months, Tamar’s fiancé Jeremy “JR” Robinson, one of the finalists on the Peacock dating show Queens Court, was publicly backing her account. JR Robinson confirmed that Todd apologized for the situation. But then Tamar pivots to “we have no beef,” and Kandi’s response is basically: nah, I watched you call me out of my name in person. That’s not “cordial.” That’s being fake, and Kandi says she’s done with the performance.
What makes this moment important is the vibe shift in R&B/hip-hop culture around how women handle conflict on camera versus off. Tamar’s trying to play diplomat (protecting her peace, her brand, her mental health), but Kandi’s calling out the disconnect—the smile for the cameras, the venom backstage. It’s a microcosm of a bigger cultural conversation: when do we stop pretending everyone’s friends just because they shared a moment at the Essence Icon Awards?
The 16BARS take: Kandi refusing to fold on the truth—that Tamar called her out of her name and then went on radio claiming peace—is the realest move she could make. Can’t build culture on fake reconciliations.
