Credit: Charles Sykes/Bravo
Lala Kent wasn’t making a whole lot when she first joined the cast of Vanderpump Rules in 2015 for season four. But since then, the reality star has enlisted the help of an entire team, who negotiates her salary from season to season.
During a podcast appearance this week, Lala opened up about her season four salary before explaining what goes into her salary negotiations today and revealing what she’s paid to do on the long-running Real Housewives of Beverly Hills spinoff.
“It really depends on what season you’re coming into,” Lala said of her Bravo salary, via Us Weekly, on the February 7 episode of Dear Media’s Trading Secrets. “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.”
In the years since she earned “[her] place” on Pump Rules and was upgraded to a full-time position, Lala has learned an important lesson when it comes to requesting pay increases.
“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 explained. “Do I feel like I should be making a billion dollars an episode? Absolutely. We should all feel like we deserve a billion dollars.”
Although Lala would love to be getting massive raises ahead of each new season, she realizes that just being on the show gives her an advantage in other areas of her life.
“If I’m on television, my other brands remain relevant. And that to me is also a huge deal and worth a lot,” she admitted. “So, my team, when they go into negotiations, they know where my head is at, and we make sure that everybody leaves happy.”
With the help of her team, Lala does her best to get what she feels she deserves as she continues to ensure she stays at the forefront of the series.
As for how she does so, Lala knows that drama equals money.
“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,” she shared. “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.’”
While a 10th season of Vanderpump Rules has yet to be confirmed, Lala hinted during a December 2021 episode of her podcast, Give Them Lala, that she wasn’t sold on a return.
“After that reunion, I sat back and thought, ‘Is this the space for me anymore or do we need to do some soul-searching?’” Lala admitted. “Let’s just say tomorrow they call and they say, ‘We’ve been picked up.’ I would take a big pause because I don’t know if that’s the space for me anymore.”
