Countess Luann De Lesseps has been a key person for The Real Housewives of New York City for many years. Throughout her time on the show, she made her presence known with all her countess’s mannerisms and the many moments she enjoyed stirring the pot among the ladies. When viewers met her, she was proud of being called a countess, but she would use this title to an extreme to feel inferior to everybody. At the beginning of her journey in RHONY, she was not very liked by the cast because of her title, but as she went through hardships, her relationship with some of the ladies grew for the better.
Still, even during those times, she managed to be a fan-favorite because of her personality, and viewers also enjoyed how her world was and everyone else was living in it. Unfortunately, viewers lost the privilege of following Luann’s life after RHONY was rebooted, but she has not let it stop her. Thanks to her great personality, she was chosen for her spinoff with Sonja Morgan called Welcome to Crappie Lake and has been thriving with her cabaret show. She may not be on a show anymore, but she’s shown how she doesn’t need it by continuing to be herself.
Luann De Lesseps’ Beginnings on RHONY
Any loyal The Real Housewives of New York City knows that Luann is one of the cast members who has impacted not only the franchise but also Bravo because of her personality. Viewers have grown to love her every season on RHONY because she is always evolving. When viewers first met Luann, she was married to Count Alexandre de Lesseps, with whom she had been for 17 years, and the person she believed to be her only love. It seemed Luann’s life was sunshine and rainbows for her, but it was quickly turned around when the Count and she divorced. When recounting the moment she realized her marriage was over, she said it became true with a single email that said, “He had met someone, and they were serious.”
During the time she was married to a Count, viewers will never forget how, at the start of her RHONY career, Luann had a superiority complex that rubbed many of the ladies the wrong way because she would constantly bring up her countess title and try to teach everyone proper etiquette. She was so involved in continuing her countess title after her divorce and the etiquette world that she even wrote a book called Class with the Countess: How to Live with Elegance. The ladies did not favor Luann, but she started to grow on them once her divorce became final, and she was able to develop her friendship with the cast. Not only that, but she also started dating and living her best single life, and it was noticeable how her attitude had changed, but she still felt like the countess. Luann experienced many ups and downs in her relationships, and viewers could see how much she loved being in love.
Perhaps her toughest time on the show was when she achieved her goal of getting married to Tom D’Agostino. When she married Tom, there was a level of delusion that she started to show around her cast members, which made them step away from her. She started boasting about her marriage, and with most of the cast divorced, it would strike a nerve for all of them. It seemed she finally had her happily ever after, but after learning from Bethenny Frankel that Tom had cheated on her and he previously dated Sonja and Ramona, Luann’s world came crashing down. She went through divorce once again and got arrested with a DUI in the same place where she got married. She couldn’t catch a break, but even at her lowest, Luann still persevered, and viewers felt for her because they could see she wanted to thrive after her arrest. After her DUI and going to rehab, Luann was able to grow and reevaluate how she was living her life. She could focus on what she loved doing: to be on stage for a cabaret show and perform her songs.
Luann Has Showed She Doesn’t Need RHONY
Even when it came to relationships, Luann would try to one-up the ladies by showing off her relationships. Luann’s attitude was very show-offy, but viewers enjoyed seeing her live in her dreamland, which was one of the factors that got her wanting to get into music. In her earlier years on RHONY, Luann started to dabble in the music industry, which is when she created her now-hit song Money Can’t Buy You, Class. In typical housewife fashion, when it came to a music career, Luann started to make it her personality and would constantly talk about her music; many of the ladies did not take her seriously, but it was ultimately another aspect that made viewers fall in love with her. During her last few seasons on The Real Housewives of New York City, Luann focused a lot more on her cabaret shows, which ultimately became an outlet that helped her out when the show’s reboot happened. She has now been able to perform throughout the United States her shows and has had the opportunity to be a part of different reality shows like The Masked Singer.
She spoke to Paper Magazine about how most of her cast used to hate on her cabaret life, “I just did an interview about season eleven of RHONY, when they were all hating on me about cabaret, like, “Why is she looking at her poster instead of bringing us truffle fries. Life is not a cabaret.” Well, I guess for you, but it is for me!” She has continued growing in the cabaret world, and Bravo allowed her to have her spinoff with her friend Sonja. This showed that even though they may not be on a housewives show, viewers still needed to see what Sonja and Luann were up to.
Thanks to this new and improved Luann, she has continued her friendships with housewives Ramona Singer and Dorinda Medley, who she has to thank for her songFeeling Jovani. Luann has still spoken highly about her times on RHONY, and even after allegations came out about Andy Cohen, she had his back and showed support for him. It can be seen how Luann also looks happier and is thriving without having to be filmed constantly. She has a lighter aura about herself, which has given her a no-filter personality, which has made her even more popular than when she was on RHONY. Fans on social media have called out to have Luann back on a show, but it has been seen she doesn’t need to be in one to thrive in her life.