Investing in her future. While reflecting on her Vanderpump Rules role, Lala Kent revealed how salaries are determined on the hit Bravo series.
“It really depends on what season you’re coming into,” Kent, 31, explained on Dear Media’s “Trading Secrets” podcast on Monday, February 7, noting that she still had other jobs when she joined season 4. “When you’re brand new, you definitely need that hostess job. I still was having to fit model. I still was having to be a hostess. Like, what I was making on the show was not covering much.”
The beauty mogul explained to host Jason Tartick that earning “your place” helps the paychecks increase over the years. Viewers were originally introduced to the Utah native when she appeared on Vanderpump Rules in 2015. After finding herself at odds with several costars, including Katie Maloney, Kristen Doute, Stassi Schroeder and Jax Taylor, Kent was promoted to lead cast member in season 6.
On Monday, the Give Them Lala author got honest about the big lesson she keeps in mind while asking for a pay raise.
“I definitely know my worth when it comes to the show, but when I go into negotiation, I also think about what feeds my other brands,” she added. “Do I feel like I should be making a billion dollars an episode? Absolutely. We should all feel like we deserve a billion dollars.”
The Bravo personality credits Vanderpump Rules as the stepping stone that led to other forms of success, saying, “If I’m on television, my other brands remain relevant. And that to me is also a huge deal and worth a lot. So, my team, when they go into negotiations, they know where my head is at, and we make sure that everybody leaves happy.”
Kent also pointed out that standing out on the series makes a difference when it comes to the bottom line.
“My show rewards me for confrontation and speaking up. I don’t want to say that I like confrontation, but I will say that I’m great at it,” the Row actress said on Monday. “It’s not something where I leave feeling amazing after it happens, but I know what I signed up for and I’m being paid for my thoughts. When cameras aren’t on, I tend to pick my battles a little bit better. But when cameras are on, it’s, like, ‘Well, I have a thought and I’m going to say it.'”
The singer previously made headlines when she said that she wasn’t sure whether she wanted to return for a potential season 10. At the time, Kent claimed that a lack of support from her costars amid her split from Randall Emmett played a role in the decision.
“I’ve been on this show for six years, I’ve changed a lot as a person — no one can tell me otherwise,” Kent said during an episode of her “Give Them Lala” podcast in December 2021. “So, when I think back on my time [on the show], I love it, it’s been the ultimate mirror for me, but after that reunion, I sat back and thought, ‘Is this the space for me anymore or do we need to do some soul searching?'”
She continued: “I’m not saying that this group of my friends are bad people in any way. Just because I’m going through something doesn’t mean the world stops. … But I was visibly upset on the reunion, and for not one of them except for my little Bambi [Raquel Leviss] to reach out and say, ‘I just want to say I’m sorry for what you’re going through,’ was, like I said, eye-opening.”
Earlier this month, Kent apologized for saying her cast members weren’t there for her.
“My group of friends that are on the show — so they’re my cast members and my friends — have been very supportive, beyond, like, extremely,” she explained on her podcast on Wednesday, February 2. “And I feel badly [that] during that moment, doing that podcast after the reunion, that I fixated on, like, just, like, my emotions were running so high, I should’ve taken a step back,” she shared. “I was very emotional.”
