Roxanne 
Riley Burruss is getting candid about the darker side of reality TV backlash.
While appearing on Gia Giudice’s podcast, Casual Chaos, the Next Gen NYC star opened up about the criticism she has received since the season aired — and revealed that some of the hate went far beyond viewers simply reacting to her behavior on the show.
Riley admitted that she understands why some viewers did not like how she came across on TV. However, she made it clear that there is a major difference between fans calling her out for her actions and people sending racist messages directly to her phone.
“I think for me, I got a lot of hate,” Riley said. “I know, and I’ve even spoken to Ariana about this, but when she said on Watch What Happens Live about how I didn’t reach out after the episode aired, it was genuinely because my number somehow got leaked or something, and I got racist texts, and so I had to literally turn off my phone for a week.”
Riley said she and Ariana Biermann have since spoken, but explained that the reason she did not immediately reach out had nothing to do with ignoring the situation.
According to Riley, she was dealing with disturbing messages after her phone number was allegedly leaked.
The Next Gen NYC star then made it clear that she can accept criticism when it is about what viewers saw on the show.
“Honestly, personally, I know we spoke about this a week ago, but for me, I feel like it’s okay to call me certain things,” Riley said.
She even acknowledged that she did not love how she appeared in certain moments.
“I get it. The way I showed up on TV was really not okay, and I get some of the comments,” she said.
Riley added that if people want to call her spoiled based on what aired, she understands why they would feel that way.
“But if you want to call me a spoiled brat, honestly, I did look like a spoiled brat,” Riley admitted. “I’m not going to lie. I agree.”
But Riley said the racist attacks are where she draws the line.
“When it comes to like race, like all of those things, like the microaggressions, that’s not okay,” Riley said. “And I don’t appreciate that.”
She continued, “I don’t appreciate the texts about me being a Black B-word or the N-word. Like that’s not cool.”
Gia responded with support and told Riley she was sorry she had to experience that.
“So, you know, I’m sorry you had to go through that,” Gia said. “And I hope going forward, everyone online just really takes a step back.”
Gia then pointed out that many people feel comfortable saying cruel things online because they are hiding behind a screen.
“I think this is the biggest thing and you know, that our parents have always taught us to, the biggest cowards are the ones behind the screen,” Gia added.
Riley’s comments come after a tense season of Next Gen NYC, where her fallout with Ariana became one of the biggest storylines.
Their drama escalated after Riley felt Ariana did not defend her quickly enough during a heated situation with Georgia. Riley later said she felt Ariana only stepped in when Riley already looked “crazy,” while Ariana maintained that she was trying not to make the situation worse.
The tension later carried over to Watch What Happens Live, where Ariana revealed Riley had not reached out after the episode aired. Now, Riley says there was more going on behind the scenes than viewers realized.
