Leva Bonaparte Responds to Trolls Calling Southern Hospitality Fake

Southern Hospitality premiered January 2 and the show feels fresh and entertaining within the Bravo lineup. It’s a Southern Charm spin-off and follows the staff at Leva Bonaparte’s Charleston, South Carolina establishment Republic Garden & Lounge.

Leva revealed her winning formula and why she thinks the show appeals on all fronts. The bar owner also teased Season 3 and what she thinks about the people who work for her.

Leva Bonaparte denied “anything contrived or fake” with Southern Hospitality

The Southern Hospitality star exclusively told Parade that she was “so excited” for this particular season.

“I was so excited to get the third year but my brain was like, ‘You really gotta bring it!'” Leva said. “I was like, ‘Listen, I have some new staff! Do y’all want to up the ante?'”

One claim to fame for the cast of Southern Hospitality is that of diversity. Leva described how her team is a youthful representation of an all-inclusive society. And they are living their own authentic lives.

“This generation, they don’t have to pick a lane, they don’t have to live in a box,” the bar owner said of her crew.

“They’re so uninhibited,” Leva continued. “They don’t care. It’s not even that they’re green or naive, there’s no box you have to live in now if you are working and filming a reality TV show.”

It’s certainly a winning formula for the genre. The cast walks a fine line between pushing the envelope at work and living “uninhibited” in their personal lives. For her part, Leva sometimes has to have a heavy hand when rules are broken. But she does it out of love.

“I really do love my staff,” she explained. “I really do love my group, and I love what hospitality does for people. It’s one of the few industries where people from so many different worlds meet and I think there’s not a lot of that. That makes for a beautiful show.”

Leva is “really proud” of the show

As with many successful reality TV shows, the best casts are those who are friends outside of work and filming.

“There’s not an ounce of anything contrived or fake,” Leva said of the group dynamic. “I remember I got so much smoke for that like, ‘Leva hired models.’ No, I didn’t! The models are in New York and LA!”

The restaurant owner is a fan of the network. An avid watcher of all things Bravo, Leva believes that Southern Hospitality brings something fresh.

“I’m such a Bravo fan and I love all the housewives and everything,” she said. “I felt like it was needed because it was another pocket of people that are fun to watch. I’m really proud of the show.”

Catch Southern Hospitality Thursdays at 9/8c on Bravo.

TELL US – WHAT DO YOU THINK OF SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY? DO YOU HAVE ANY REACTION TO LEVA’S COMMENTS? ARE YOU INTERESTED IN THE NEW SEASON AND CAST?