Tamar Braxton is clearing the air after fans became convinced there was still bad blood between her, Kandi Burruss, and Monica following an awkward moment at the 2026 ESSENCE Festival. According to the “Love & War” songstress, she’s moved on, and everyone else should too.
Source: Arturo Holmes/ Prince Williams/ Getty
Tamar Braxton thinks people are “dragging” the viral video.
During a TikTok Live Q&A on July 9, the “Love & War” singer reacted to the now-viral clip in which Kandi appears to roll her eyes after greeting her, while Monica looks down quickly, avoiding eye contact. She explained that she simply wanted to congratulate Kandi on her accomplishments and made it clear that fans were “dragging” the interaction a little too far.
“That was that,” Tamar said, shutting down theories that there was any hidden meaning behind the interaction.
The singer said she was just being “cordial” to Kandi in the video.
As previously reported, social media quickly went into detective mode after a viral clip showed Tamar greeting Kandi during a photo-op featuring Brandy, Monica, Missy Elliott, Mona Scott-Young, and other honorees at ESSENCE’s Black Women in Music celebration on July 5. While Tamar appeared to warmly congratulate Kandi, viewers couldn’t help but notice what they believed was a frosty response. Monica seemed to look down, while Kandi flashed what many called a fake smile before appearing to roll her eyes, sending the internet into overdrive with renewed feud speculation.
Tamar explained that she was simply being “cordial” by giving Kandi flowers for the honor.
“That was the gist of it… I don’t think that’s fake and I don’t think that’s weird. I just think saying congratulations is home training and cordial,” she continued. “That’s it. And the whole thing was awkward… It’s okay. I know I didn’t say anything wrong. I know I didn’t say anything wrong,” she added, reassuring both herself and fans that the brief exchange had been blown out of proportion.
She also followed up in TheNeighborhoodTalk’s comments section, accusing fans of blowing things out of proportion. The songstress also encouraged fans to watch the second season of Cooking Sessions With Tamar & Miss E on CleoTV, which premiered on Wednesday, and her filmStepfatheron Tubi.
“Yall are draaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagging this. yall watch me and Mommie cooking show yet? Or my movie #the stepfather… or all of Dinner with Tamar is sold out except for New York…. It only have a few seat and don’t miss it!!!
Still, social media users believe tension was present. Some believe Tamar should never have greeted Kandi.
Still, plenty of social media users were convinced Kandi and Monica’s reactions spoke volumes, arguing that the pair had no interest in interacting with Tamar. Some even felt Tamar should have skipped the greeting altogether.
“This is what I can’t stand about women like Tamar, you can’t be upset if you’re not people’s cup of tea, if they don’t f–k with you, it’s ok they kept it respectful and that’s all it matters.”
Others pointed to both Tamar’s and Kandi’s social media posts following the viral moment as further evidence that the tension between them is still very real. Kandi appeared to reignite the conversation with a post that many interpreted as a subtle response. On July 6, the Real Housewives of Atlanta star posted a glamorous photo from the ESSENCE Festival on Instagram with a caption that many fans felt was a jab at Tamar.
“Giving side-eye while keeping it classy!” she wrote.
Tamar, however, wasn’t interested in matching the energy. Instead, she focused on celebrating everything going right in her life, well, with a little shade thrown in for good measure.
“I have the #1 movie of the summer! My dinner with Tamar tour is almost sold, completely sold out AND I have AMAZING iconic friends who love me for REAL!!! …so, for those who can..celebrate and sing with us. Ima be nice to the devil cause God is soooo good to me,” she penned on Instagram.
Source: Photo courtesy of Tamar Braxton’s Instagram.
Of course, fans didn’t need much convincing that the awkward interaction could have deeper roots.
Here’s why fans think Monica and Kandi Burruss are still mad at Tamar.
Tamar and Kandi’s complicated relationship dates back to 2017 when they worked together on The Great Xscape Tour.
Both women have acknowledged that tensions developed behind the scenes due to communication issues and business disagreements. Their rocky relationship became even more public during Celebrity Big Brother in 2019, when Tamar accused Kandi of spreading misinformation about her, and both admitted they weren’t on good terms.
The drama resurfaced again in 2023 after Tamar claimed Kandi’s husband, Todd Tucker, threatened her during an off-camera incident. Kandi strongly denied the allegation, sparking yet another round of back-and-forth between the two.
Meanwhile, fans also couldn’t stop talking about Monica’s reaction during the now-viral ESSENCE Festival clip, which could be connected to an issue that occurred in 2020, when Tamar addressed rumors about unfollowing Monica during an appearance on The Wendy Williams Show. At the time, Tamar explained that she had unfollowed around 30 people after becoming emotionally overwhelmed by seeing constant posts about her firing from The Real. She insisted it wasn’t personal and planned to follow everyone back. However, when she tried to reconnect with Monica, she realized the R&B star had already blocked her.
So far, Monica hasn’t publicly addressed the viral ESSENCE Festival moment, leaving fans to continue speculating about whether the awkward interaction was simply an uncomfortable misunderstanding or proof that old wounds still haven’t fully healed.
What do you think? Was Tamar simply being cordial, or do you believe there’s still unresolved tension between her, Kandi Burruss, and Monica?
