Tamar Braxton and Kandi Burruss are back at odds, with a tense July 2026 exchange adding another chapter to a complicated relationship that has stretched across more than three decades. As July comes to a close, it’s evident that this matter has not exactly died down.
The latest round started on July 5, 2026, at Essence Fest’s Black Women In Music ceremony in New Orleans, where Braxton, Burruss, Monica, Brandy, Missy Elliott, and several others were honored on stage together. In a clip that quickly went viral, Braxton reached across Monica to greet Burruss during the group photo, and the moment read as noticeably awkward, with Burruss seemingly unbothered and Monica avoiding eye contact entirely. Burruss later posted about giving “side-eye” while staying classy, which fans took as a subtle nod to the moment. Braxton addressed the clip during a TikTok Live on July 9, saying fans were “dragging” a simple hello and that she only meant to say congratulations.The story picked back up in late July when Braxton sat down with Lore’l on “The Morning Hustle” and was asked directly about the Essence Fest moment and rumors of ongoing tension with Burruss. Braxton maintained she has “no beef with anyone,” said congratulating Burruss on stage was simply good home training, and suggested whoever filmed and shared the exchange online was looking for attention. Burruss did not let that stand. Responding directly in the comments under The Jasmine Brand’s post recapping Braxton’s interview, Burruss wrote, “No beef?.. but she was just calling me a b***h as she walked pass me at a party last Saturday. I can’t do the fake s**t.”
The moment was only the latest development in a relationship that has repeatedly shifted between cordial, tense, reconciled, and openly hostile.
Braxton and Burruss came up in the industry around the same time in the nineties, with Braxton singing alongside her sisters as part of The Braxtons and Burruss rising as a member of the girl group Xscape. The two were never close friends, but the entertainment world is small, and they crossed paths often enough over the years to build a complicated history that keeps resurfacing in public.
By 2012, things looked cordial enough. Braxton and Burruss appeared together on the cover of Vibe magazine, each promoting their own reality shows, Braxton for “Braxton Family Values” and Burruss for “The Real Housewives Of Atlanta.” During the joint interview, Burruss complimented Braxton’s show, and Braxton returned the favor, saying she wished she could be more like Burruss. In 2016, the two even vacationed together in the Bahamas for a trip celebrating their mutual friend Tiny Harris’ birthday, suggesting whatever tension existed had not yet boiled over.
That changed in 2017, when Braxton and Monica joined Xscape on The Great Xscape Tour. During a New Year’s Eve stop, Braxton reportedly invited Khia and TS Madison on stage as guests, both of whom had previously said negative things about members of Xscape. The move got the pair pulled from the concert and, according to Burruss, planted the seed of real tension between her and Braxton for the rest of the run.
The fallout stayed private until January 2019, when Braxton and Burruss were both cast on “Celebrity Big Brother.” On the show, Braxton called the 2017 tour “horrible” for her personally and accused Burruss of talking negatively about her behind her back, telling her directly it was “totally, utterly disrespectful and unprofessional.” Burruss pushed back in a confessional, denying that Xscape ever tried to sabotage Braxton’s performances. The two ultimately squashed things on camera, and Burruss even invited Braxton to join her burlesque show, Kandi’s Welcome To The Dungeon, for a second round of tour dates later that year, seemingly proving the reconciliation was real.
It did not last. In December 2022, Braxton posted a cryptic message on Instagram claiming she had been “threatened by a peach and her man,” using peach emoji shorthand for a “Real Housewives Of Atlanta” cast member. She did not name names at the time, but fans speculated heavily.
In March 2023, Braxton confirmed on “Watch What Happens Live” that she was talking about Burruss and her husband, Todd Tucker. Braxton claimed the tension stemmed from her publicly defending podcaster Carlos King after he clashed with Burruss and other Xscape members over the rights to their group story, and that the fallout escalated to the point where Tucker confronted her and her now fiancé, JR Robinson, stepped in. Burruss and Tucker disputed her version of events, with Tucker saying he was speaking to his wife in the moment, not threatening Braxton.
Things simmered for about two years before flaring again in February 2025, when an old clip resurfaced of Braxton appearing to shade Burruss’ restaurant, Old Lady Gang. Braxton addressed it publicly and downplayed the beef, saying the video was three years old and that she wished Burruss well. The following month, Burruss shut down a reporter who tried to bring Braxton up during an unrelated interview about her own restaurant, making clear she had no interest in discussing her.
That history makes Burruss’ latest response to Braxton’s “no beef” claim even harder to dismiss as another internet misunderstanding.
Her comment leaves Braxton’s “no beef” claim looking shaky at best, and it puts the two right back where they have been for years, publicly denying tension one moment and calling each other out the next. Given how many times this cycle has repeated since 2017, from a tour dispute to a “Big Brother” blowup to threat accusations to a viral photo op, it is hard to imagine this is the last time Braxton and Burruss end up back in headlines together. If history is any indication, whatever peace either woman claims right now is likely temporary.
