Raquel Leviss Defends Relationship With James Kennedy After Explosive ‘Vanderpump Rules’ Reunion

Raquel Leviss is firing back at haters who don’t understand her relationship with her longtime boyfriend James Kennedy. The Vanderpump Rules beauty— who was featured prominently on the seventh season of the Bravo reality show and will likely be a regular cast member next season due to her recent hiring at SUR— scored a coveted invite to the cast’s reunion taping. And not only did Raquel make a splash onstage with her $2,495 Walter Collection dress, but she went toe-to-toe with her arguing co-stars and set the record straight on her relationship with the controversial DJ.

After the Vanderpump Rules reunion aired, Raquel Leviss took to Instagram to acknowledge that not everyone “gets” her and James. But the former pageant queen also made it clear that James Kennedy understands her better than anyone else does.

In a second Instagram post, Raquel admitted she “felt like a boss” as she walked into her first Vanderpump Rules reunion, despite the fact that she was not quite sure what she was getting herself into. Leviss credited her couture dress for empowering her and giving her confidence as she faced off with her haters, which, unfortunately, includes most of the cast of the Bravo reality show.

The Vanderpump Rules reunion got extremely explosive when James Kennedy accused his nemesis Jax Taylor of creating a fake Twitter account to pose as Raquel and try to damage their relationship. In addition, nearly all of the Vanderpump Rules cast called Raquel out for staying with James amid rampant allegations that he has cheated on her.

While Raquel admitted she does question if James has been faithful for her during their entire relationship, in the past, she has said that she doesn’t trust any of the Vanderpump Rules stars except her boyfriend.

“I know James hasn’t cheated on me in the way the girls related to Vanderpump Rules claim to say,” Raquel told Hollywood Life earlier this year.

The model also shot down rumors that she only stays with James to ride on his coattails as she looks for fame. Leviss says she is actually very shy and didn’t seek out to be filmed by Bravo’s cameras. The reluctant Vanderpumnp Rules star added that while she is now “happy” to film for the show, she only does it because she loves her boyfriend.

Because James Kennedy is such a volatile force on Vanderpump Rules, Raquel Leviss has struggled to connect with the show’s other female stars — including Stassi Schroeder, Katie Maloney, Kristen Dourte, Scheana Shay, and Lala Kent — and nearly all of whom have confronted her with cheating rumors about James.

Kent told Us Weekly she is convinced James is a serial cheater, and she questions why Raquel continues to stay with him.

“I don’t know that I feel badly for her anymore because … it’s like seeing the murder scene and still needing more evidence,” Lala Kent told Us in December. “It’s like, ‘Okay, girl, I can’t even deal.’ Like, you’re killing my brain cells at this point, and I don’t have a lot of those to lose.”

Vanderpump Rules airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on Bravo.