Brandi Glanville: From Model To Real Housewives Star
Whether you love her or hate her, there's no denying that Brandi Glanville is excellent television. With drama surrounding her every move, from her very public split from her ex-husband, Eddie Cibrian, to her claims that she had a romantic relationship with her married co-star, Denise Richards, her life is one big soap opera. All of her offscreen scandals make her an ideal reality television candidate, and Bravo lovers have been lucky enough to watch her grace their screens on and off for over a decade.
As she explained to Sactown Magazine, Glanville was born in Salinas, California, but she grew up further north in Sacramento, California. "I spent the rest of my years until I was 17 years old in Sacramento. I lived in South Sac," she explained. Though she seemed destined for stardom thanks to her striking good looks, she had a relatively normal upbringing before starting a career as a model. "I grew up working in the restaurant business ... I was a waitress, a cocktail waitress, and a hostess at Capitol Grill," Glanville reminisced to the outlet.
Her days as a waitress were numbered, as she eventually got swept up into the world of entertainment and has since enjoyed a rollercoaster of a career in Hollywood. From a waitress and model to one of the fiercest "Real Housewives" cast members ever, Brandi Glanville has enjoyed quite the glamorous and dramatic evolution.
Brandi Glanville first got her start modeling
At a statuesque five foot ten inches, it seemed natural that Brandi Glanville started out as a model. The future reality star opened up about her humble beginnings to Sactown Magazine, where she revealed that she was discovered after graduating high school. "I was at Arden [Fair] mall, and a guy came up and gave me his card," she shared. "He was like, 'We have an open call in San Francisco.' I showed up, and that was the beginning of the end."
That one chance meeting ended up launching a successful career. While Glanville worked every angle of the modeling industry — from catalogs to catwalks — there was one type she was more fond of, and she saw a lot of success in that arena. "I was more of a runway girl than a print girl," she suggested. "Almost every big designer you can think of, I've been in their show. My first big show was Valentino. I did Armani a ton, Chanel, and Versace." On top of getting to rock styles from some of the world's top designers, her career also gave her the opportunity to travel. The former model noted to Sactown Magazine that she'd lived in such exciting locations as Tokyo, Hamburg, and Munich.
The reality star continues to look back fondly on her modeling days. On Instagram in 2020, she shared a throwback pic of herself modeling a robe on the runway, dryly noting that such attire had since become her everyday look.
Her marriage to a hunky Hollywood actor
It was a match made in heaven! Brandi Glanville met the hunky actor, Eddie Cibrian, at a nightclub in Los Angeles in the early '90s. At the time, Cibrian had been making a name for himself in television, in popular shows such as Sunset Beach," "The Young and the Restless," and "Baywatch Nights." The couple dated for a few years before the actor popped the question later that decade, according to Fame10. Cibrian reportedly proposed with a three-carat diamond ring on New Year's Eve in 1999, when the couple decided to take their relationship to the next level.
About a year and a half later, the pair were married in a gorgeous ceremony at the Ritz-Carlton in Laguna Niguel, California in May 2001. Glanville wore a stunning custom dress by Reem Acra for the occasion. And despite the wedding not really being the pair's true happy ending, Glanville made lemonade out of those lemons a few years after their divorce by giving away her wedding dress to a sweet cause. In January 2013, the reality star tweeted, "I donated my wedding gown to a soon-to-be army wife [and] I still haven't heard about who received it! Well, I hope it [makes] someone very happy."
She welcomed two children with Eddie Cibrian
After their wedding in May 2001, Brandi Glanville and Eddie Cibrian settled into married life. It didn't take long before they decided to expand their brood, with their pair welcoming their first child together, a son named Mason, in 2003. Four years later, their second son, Jake, completed their family of four.
Despite having a sweet relationship with her children, viewers of Glanville's reality shows weren't able to see much interaction between the mother and her sons. Her co-star and former bestie, Lisa Vanderpump. once weighed in on this unfortunate fact, telling OK!, "Unfortunately, her children are not on the show, so I think viewers don't see the most admirable quality I like about her ... [She is] a great mother and I see her interact with the boys that are her life."
As her sons come into their own – her eldest graduated from high school in 2021 — she seems proud to watch them flourish, and even follow in her footsteps. In 2022, the star told People magazine, "Mason signed this huge [modeling] contract." Standing at six foot four inches, Glanville wasn't surprised her eldest son had been fielding modeling opportunities. "He has a really unique look," she noted to the outlet. Little brother, Jake isn't doing too shabby, either. He graduated from junior high in 2021 and advanced to high school, with his mom proudly proclaiming to People that he was a straight-A student at the time.
Brandi Glanville's marriage ended in heartbreak
In 2009, it was reported that Eddie Cibrian had been cheating on his wife, Brandi Glanville, with numerous other women. "He had extra girlfriends, I guess you can say. He had some ladies on the side," Glanville told William Shatner on Ora TV's "Brown Bag Wine Tasting." Despite the infidelity, the star shared that she tried to forgive him, but couldn't. " ... When I found out there was more than a couple, I decided I was better off on my own." The two called time on their relationship, after eight years of marriage.
Among those ladies? Future "Vanderpump Rules" star Scheana Marie, who had an awkward run-in with Glanville on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" in 2013. However, it was another of Cibrian's affairs that would become extremely public. In 2009, Us Weekly alleged that the actor had been romantically involved with country star, LeAnn Rimes, who was also married at the time. The pair were starring in a made-for-TV film called "Northern Lights," when they were thought to have started the forbidden fling. Following his filing for divorce from Glanville just months later, Cibrian and Rimes made their first public appearance as a couple by attending a Kings of Leon show together.
Speaking with Rimes' ex-husband, Dean Sheremet, in a juicy 2016 episode of her podcast, "Unfiltered," Glanville discussed how the shocking news was difficult to process, stating, "It was so bizarre to me because I knew it, but I didn't want to believe it."
Real Housewives came calling a few years later
In 2011, Brandi Glanville joined the cast of "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," appearing on the show's second season as a friend. Her debut was anything but subtle, as the former model made a splash by starting up fights with multiple housewives. Her real-life pal, Adrienne Maloof, introduced her in the episode by stating, "She is like bringing a child [to a party]. You don't know really what she is going to say. She has no filter, so that's why you want to stay tuned!"
By Season 3, that signature candor earned her a spot as a main cast member. She continued on with the show through Season 5, after which point rumors swirled that she had been fired in 2015. A source told People at the time, "Brandi got too big for her britches. She was a diva, and it came around to bite her. By the end, she couldn't get along with anyone, and no one wanted to shoot with her."
Andy Cohen echoed that sentiment during a stop on "The Howard Stern Show." When asked whether everyone hated Glanville, the "Real Housewives" executive producer confirmed the gossip and revealed, "Yeah. And by the way, Brandi hates them." Despite the bad blood, that wouldn't be the last that Bravo fans saw of the former model, as she's enjoyed multiple "RHOBH" guest appearances since.
Brandi got real in her memoir
Though she willingly engaged in catfights and served up drama on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," Brandi Glanville got even more real when she released her 2013 memoir, "Drinking & Tweeting and other Brandi Blunders." The book included some juicy scoops straight from the star's real life, including some candid confessions about her infamous divorce from Eddie Cibrian.
In one such salacious segment, the reality star revealed that she became savvy to her husband's affair while visiting Cibrian on the set of "Northern Lights," the film he was shooting with LeAnn Rimes. "And this woman, whom I had just met, spent more time flirting with my husband than acknowledging her own," the reality star wrote. She also added, "When later that same night, LeAnn awkwardly pulled my husband (not hers!) onstage for an awful karaoke rendition of Sonny and Cher's 'I Got You Babe,' I just about lost it ... Was she serious? I felt like I was in 'The Twilight Zone.'" Glanville noted that the couple even danced to this particular tune at their eventual wedding.
Aside from her romantic drama, Glanville also got candid about other personal experiences, like her time in jail after being arrested for a DUI in 2010. "The Beverly Hills Police Department holding cells were shockingly comfortable," she wrote (via LA Weekly). "... I'm not suggesting anyone try to get locked up; I'm just saying it wasn't as horrible as I thought it would be."
She moved on to other reality shows
Shortly after turning in her diamond on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," Brandi Glanville tried her hand at another type of reality show, "Celebrity Apprentice," in 2015. The show debuted that January and the star was in good company as fellow reality legends like "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" star, Kenya Moore, and "Jon and Kate Plus Eight" star, Kate Gosselin, were also in the cast. Unfortunately, she didn't win the season. In fact, she was sent home during a shocking double elimination alongside fellow Moore.
In 2017, Glanville joined the cast of another reality competition, "My Kitchen Rules." This show saw the reality star compete against other celebrities, while cooking and reviewing each other's creations. It also paired the "RHOBH" alum with an infamous face from her past — Dean Sheremet. Yep, she teamed up with LeAnn Rimes' ex-husband for an episode.
She also appeared on not one, but two different varieties of "Big Brother." In 2017, she appeared in the UK version of the show, where she was the fourth contestant to be given the boot. She fared slightly better in the U.S. edition of "Big Brother" in 2018, where she was the fifth person evicted. Most recently, she returned to her Bravo roots to appear in Season 2 of "The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: Ex-Wives Club."
Brandi Glanville's brief Vegas marriage
After her very public divorce, it was a surprise when Brandi Glanville got married again in 2012. That surprise was short-lived, as it was revealed that the nuptials were a drunken wedding in Las Vegas that was quickly annulled.
The wild night took place while the former model was in town with her pal, Darin Harvey, a Mixed Martial Arts manager, on New Year's Eve. Always refreshingly candid, Glanville copped to her mistake on Twitter, telling fans, "Follow my new husband [Darin Harvey]! Getting my ring tomorrow! Yes, I did really do it! He is my best friend but after some beer and strippers, he is now my husband! No joke!" Glanville tweeted. Speaking to E! News, she suggested the whole thing was no biggie. "He is just a BFF," she reassured the outlet. "We will annul it."
For his part, Harvey backed up the annulment news, tweeting, "No worries was a drunken BFF thing getting annulled." Despite the quickie Vegas wedding, we have no doubt that when Glanville marries again for real, she'll have no problem giving her fans all the details.
She never shies away from tough topics
Brandi Glanville was a successful housewife thanks to her lack of a filter. That characteristic bubbles over to her personal life as well, since the star never shies away from talking about tough topics. During an episode of "Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen" (via ET), she had no problem opening up about a very private matter when she discussed having once received an abortion as a teenager. After the appearance, Glanville tweeted, "I don't have any shame about my abortion & thank God I had a choice."
After opening up about the demise of her marriage, the star also had no problem talking about later relationships, like her alleged dalliance with "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" co-star, Denise Richards. During an interview with DailyMailTV, the star claimed that the two had an affair, stating, "She was very sexually aggressive." Naturally, she went into some lurid details about one of their encounters where she suggested that the two started making out in a bathroom after Glanville flashed her breasts at the "Starship Troopers" star. Richards has denied the claims.
Her vocal opinions even got her into legal trouble at one point. In 2015, "The Real Housewives of Miami" star, Joanna Krupa, filed a defamation suit against Glanville. On an episode of "Watch What Happens Live," the former "RHOBH" star alleged that Kupa had smelly genitals and was having an affair with Mohamed Hadid. The lawsuit was finally settled in 2017.
She once wanted to kill LeAnn Rimes
In a tell-all essay published by The Sun in 2021, Brandi Glanville wrote that she once wanted to kill LeAnn Rimes. The shocking headline came after the "Can't Fight the Moonlight" singer had an affair with Glanville's ex-husband, Eddie Cibrian, leading the married couple to split. The "RHOBH" alum revealed that the murderous thoughts emerged when she saw Rimes with her youngest son, Jake.
"[She] got my husband and she was not getting my children," she wrote. "One time, before they were married, I walked up to a soccer game, and Jake, who was two, was sitting in her lap. I had this rage in my body. I really wanted to kill her ... I walked over to her, grabbed Jake and I looked at her and said: "I will f***ing murder you.'"
Still, things quietened down and the two women appear to have since transformed their relationship. So much so, that they now consider each other friends, and gather for family functions together — even posing together for Instagram posts. The former housewife opened up about their relationship on the "Hollywood Raw" podcast. "I think our kids had a lot to do with it because the kids love when we're all together, and it's so obvious. They're so happy." She added that she and Cibrian still argue like a married couple. "We're like sister wives," she quipped about her relationship with Rimes. "It's me and LeAnn and Eddie."
Brandi is switching up her game
After conquering the modeling world and then dominating reality television, Brandi Glanville has her sights set on music. The latest in a long line of "Housewives" tunes, the star released her very first song in 2022, and it will be a delight to hardcore Bravo fans' ears.
According to E! News, Glanville touts her rap name as "B-Geezy" at the top of the track, and also sounds a warning shot to her former co-stars, rapping, "F*** them other Housewives. Better watch their backs because I'm spitting out the motherf***ing facts." The former model also references many of her fellow Bravo stars in the track, making allusions to "The Real Housewives of New York" star, Luann de Lesseps' 2017 arrest for disorderly intoxication, as well as the infamous limo fight between Kyle Richards and her sister, Kim Richards.
The newly minted rapper concludes the song with the bars, "Life of a housewife. Money, fame, that's the game." But will she manage to parlay this tune into a music career? Stay tuned.