Shep Rose Spills the Tea on 'Southern Charm' Season 11, Shark Tooth Necklace Sales at BravoCon, and the Surprising Reason Why He Hasn't Met Madison LeCroy's Baby - lulu

Shep Rose is just as excited as the rest of us to watch Southern Charm Season 11. As one of the only remaining OG cast members—with the exception of Craig Conover, of course—Rose said it’s a “miracle” that, after all these years, there is still plenty of content to document for the hit Bravo series. While promoting his new partnership with UScellular, Rose—the company’s official Pinky Promise Officiant in their efforts to get people to detach from their phones—told Decider what fans can expect from the upcoming 11th season of Southern Charm, what he plans to sell at BravoCon, and more.

It’s been an interesting couple of years for Rose, who turned his life around after getting blackout drunk at BravoCon 2023. With BravoCon 2025 just around the corner, Charleston’s favorite forever bachelor promised his experience “will be different this time around.” Part of that is thanks to Conover, who gave him the idea to sell, along with his second book, shark tooth necklaces at the Las Vegas convention. As we learned in Season 10, Rose has a tendency to gift past girlfriends (namely, Sienna Evans and Taylor Ann Green) shark tooth necklaces.

“There’s the little area where he’ll [sell] pillows and stuff. He was like, ‘Why don’t we just do a Southern Charm section?'” Rose told Decider. “He was like, ‘Do you have anything to sell?’ He was like, ‘You should do shark tooth necklaces.’ I was like, ‘Craig, look at you, you business maven, you.'”

Both Rose and Conover—who have finally “decided to put [their] swords down” and leave their combative tiffs in the past—just wrapped their 11th season on Southern Charm, and according to Rose, everyone on the cast is looking forward to watching the episodes back.

“There are several conversations that I want to know what he or she, or he or he, or she and she said,” Rose dished. “I really want to hear it, because I think it was a very good season. I’m not just saying that. I mean, I think they’re all pretty good, honestly, but for some reason this one, everyone agrees, has a lot of meat on the bone, so to speak.” 

Fresh off of filming Season 11, Rose also spoke about JT Thomas‘ future on the show, why he hasn’t met Madison LeCroy‘s baby yet, and how he felt about Jon Hamm calling him, Conover, and Austen Kroll three “glorious dummies” in a recent interview. Check out our full chat below.

DECIDER: Tell me about this partnership with USCellular and why you decided to become the company’s official Pinky Promise Ring officiant. 

SHEP ROSE: I just like the message, honestly. It’s creative too, because it’s not what you would think a cell phone company would be advocating, is it? I love that “contrarian type against what one would think” campaign. I’m trying to do my best at being more present. After I went to Costa Rica, they asked us to put a picture of when you were a child as your screensaver on your phone, taking you back to an innocent time and a time where there were no cell phones, and we played outside and we did all these things. I mean, yeah, there was Nintendo, I’ll give you that. We played some video games, no doubt, but now it feels like everyone’s plugged in at all times. I don’t know what the consequence of that has been or will be in the future, but I think it’s important to try to focus on each other face-to-face and really listen and hear each other out if they’re going through a problem or a tough time and to be totally willing to listen or to share your difficulties, because that’s really what friendship’s all about. 

Photo: UScellular

Would you say some events from last season, maybe even a certain text you sent, made you feel more inclined to take on this new role? What advice would you give to all the love-struck texters out there? 

If you think things are appearing to fall apart, they’re already gone. There’s nothing you can say, unfortunately, but you know what? Lay it all out man, because I felt like after all that, I said everything I wanted to say and I’m OK with that. I didn’t stay up at night afterwards being like, “Ah, I should have.” I was like, “No I said it, I meant it.” I wish I had edited it a little more, that text, but I couldn’t sleep. We were in the Bahamas and things were falling apart. You know when you open your eyes for the first time in the morning and it’s like 6:30 and you’re like, “Back to bed.” Unless your mind is a complete live wire, it’s going everywhere and you can’t get back to bed. And so I started texting, or basically constructing a text, an extensive text as it were. 

You will be personally officiating a few lucky fans’ vows to use their phone less and be more present. Have you been working on your speeches? How’s that going? 

Yeah, it’s really as simple as treating each other with the requisite respect that we should. We catch ourselves at dinners, staring at our phones or really anytime. Even watching TV, you end up looking at your phone. You’re trying to enjoy a movie together and you’re scrolling on your phone. I just think this has become something to really think about hard. It’s not difficult to conjure up some motivational tactics to put your phone down. 

I’d love to get into some Southern Charm stuff. You guys just wrapped Season 11. You are one of the very few remaining OGs. Did you ever expect the show to go this far? And how does it feel knowing it has? 

No, I didn’t expect anything. I think part of the reason the show was successful in those first several years was none of us knew what the hell we were doing. Like, the Vanderpump [Rules] crew – they were trying to be actors in L.A. They probably had a vision that was more clear than ours. But I think that’s why it works so well for us, is because you could tell we were green, so to speak. I loved those early years because of that, frankly. 

I’ve tried to remain somewhat the same in my approach to the show because authenticity wins the day all the time. So that’s what I try to do. But 11 seasons is a testament to the people that are no longer on the show and the ones that come along and join. Something always happens. I call it happy accidents or sad accidents, as it were. But there’s always something. It’s like some miracle. For some reason, I guess we’re just interesting. I guess we’re so flawed that it’s interesting, and people like to see the ebbs and flows and ups and downs, and I hear ya. This new season, I’m really excited to watch it. There are several conversations that I want to know what he or she, or he or he, or she and she said. I really want to hear it, because I think it was a very good season. I’m not just saying that. I mean, I think they’re all pretty good, honestly, but for some reason this one, everyone agrees, has a lot of meat on the bone, so to speak. 

Photo: Getty Images

Last season, you had a bit of a love interest, which unfortunately didn’t work out. Will anyone else be getting a shark tooth necklace this season?

Not on camera, but at BravoCon, I’m thinking about selling some shark tooth necklaces. I think the fans would love that, don’t you? Kudos to Craig and his team. There’s the little area where he’ll have pillows and stuff. He was like, “Why don’t we just do a Southern Charm section?” It isn’t that groundbreaking. He called me and I was like, “Yeah.” He’s like, “Do you have anything to sell?” He was like, “You should do shark tooth necklaces.” I was like, “Craig, look at you, you business maven you.” And then I was like, “Oh yeah, I could sell my new book, too.” So I’m excited about that. Pre-sell it I suppose. So yeah, BravoCon, I swear it will be different this time around. I’m going to have fun, but be way more cognizant of having too much fun. 

You said you have a book coming out? That’s so exciting.

Yeah, I do. It starts with BravoCon two years ago, and some behaviors that I was not all that pleased with. Then I went to Costa Rica, and that was super interesting and funny and impactful and all these things. And the aftermath of how I readjusted and stumbled and fell a couple times, stuff like that, it’s all there. I was journaling while I was there in Costa Rica and sending some of it to my friends and family. They were like, “You got to keep going. This is hysterical and interesting.” So here I am, going to write another book. I already wrote it, honestly. 

I can’t wait to read it! Kathryn Dennis recently posted some Instagram stories, seemingly accusing Salley Carson of copying her. What did you think about that? And does that mean there’s a chance Kathryn could be coming back into the mix at some point in the future?

I was told about it. I watched it. I didn’t like what I saw. It looked like she wasn’t in a good state of mind. I can’t speak to that, though. I wasn’t there. I’m not quite sure I followed her line of thinking, but I did detect Salley was implicated. I don’t understand the connection all that much. I don’t know if Salley even really knows Kathryn, or how Kathryn knows anything about Salley. It’s news to me. But man, I wish her the best. It’s so sad sometimes–I’m sure it is, I can’t speak from experience–when you’re in a custody situation. I just can’t imagine the anguish that occurs. So I feel for her. 

Your friend Craig recently went through a breakup himself. How has your dynamic been with him? Has he been hanging out with the guys a bit more than he did in Season 10?

Yeah. Craig is awesome. We’ve sort of just decided to put our swords down. We’re never going to see eye to eye on anything, but there are certain things that we really enjoy about each other. Let’s just focus on those things. I try to be someone that he can talk to and confide in, and we do a little bit of that. But yeah, Craig is from another galaxy than I am. So we understand that and we just live with it, and try to celebrate the fun times we have. But Craig’s phenomenal this season.

Photo: Getty Images

Madison had her baby a couple of weeks ago. Have you gotten to meet little Teddi yet?

I have not met the baby. I’m scared around newborns. I’m like, “Ah! Someone’s gonna drop it or something like that.” I don’t know what to do. I’m gonna give it time to get a little meat on its bones. 

Both Taylor and Leva announced that they were leaving the show ahead of Season 11. What was your reaction to that news?

I think that that was probably the right move. Leva has the Southern Hospitality show, and a husband and a child and it’s just a little different of a life, which is totally cool. And Taylor has her relationship and her set of friends. I don’t know. That’s a little more difficult to verbalize, but I wish her all the best. If she needs anything, I doubt she’ll reach out, but hopefully one day we can look back and smile at the times we’ve had. 

JT Thomas had a rough go of it last season. How is your friendship with him today?

JT likes me, and I’m happy that that’s the case. We were actually filming downtown, and JT walked by and I made eye contact with him. I was like, “Oh shit, it’s JT.” He had a big smile on his face. I play golf with him every now and then, and he can be incredibly funny and self-deprecating. That’s my favorite version of him. 

So he’s definitely gone from the show? 

Yeah.

I have to ask. Todd Chrisley recently announced that he’d be moving to Charleston, and Ms. Patricia shaded him a bit over it. What’s your reaction to his announcement?

My first reaction is, who’s Todd Chrisley? I don’t know anything about reality [TV]. I don’t know anything. It’s just not a sandbox I choose to play in, you know what I mean? I’ve got other interests. So, who is he? 

He’s from Chrisley Knows Best. He and his wife just got out of prison because Trump pardoned them. They said they’re going to move to Charleston and maybe have a new reality show of them opening a hotel there. Miss Patricia was like, “Well, there goes the neighborhood.” 

Oh, I heard about that. Well, the neighborhood’s already gone anyway, let’s be honest. I’m serious. Come to Charleston, by all means, but boy, it’s a zoo. It’s all our fault, unfortunately. It’s very crowded, especially in the summers. I wish anybody success, and I don’t think she was being mean-spirited. I really believe that. Whatever it turned into was the product of outside voices maybe, and the reason we should put our phones down. An innocuous comment can become something ridiculous, and look like World War III. This is a bad direction to go in general, I would say. 

Photo: Getty Images

Jon Hamm recently said Southern Charm was his favorite reality show because it’s about these “three glorious dummies” who are “bumbling their way through their lives.” He said that with love, of course. What’s your reaction to hearing that? 

I love hearing that. That’s exactly how I would talk about people that I enjoyed watching on TV. I mean, we are dummies. There’s no doubt about it. I thought it was really funny, and I think he’s a really cool guy. I love Mad Men. I’ve never rooted for a guy who was so despicable, but I rooted for him. If he got cheated on, I was like, “That’s bullshit.” Meanwhile in your head you’re like, “He is cheating all over town.” So I just thought it was a great character, great show, Matt Weiner wrote it. It’s the kind of show you can pick up any season, any episode, it doesn’t matter. That’s hard to do. It was that good, I thought. I think he’s probably a pretty cool guy. So maybe one day we can break bread.