Storage Wars: 16 Brandi Passante Facts You May Not Know
Brandi Passante was originally the only female buyer who appeared on the hit A&E series, "Storage Wars." However, it didn't take long for viewers to realize that she was not intimidated by all the testosterone around her, and her no-nonsense attitude helped make her a formidable foe and a fan favorite. "I find that the men in my business will walk all over you once they discover your weaknesses, so you have no choice but to develop a thick skin," she said during a 2013 interview with Lifetime Moms.
Brandi is a Houston native, who described her childhood as "tumultuous" during a 2021 appearance on the "Spirit Talk Hosted by Shavaun and Sabrina" podcast. However, she believes that she has one aspect of her upbringing to thank for her grit and fortitude, telling Lifetime Moms, "I grew up with brothers, and they used to beat the crap out of me when we were younger, and I think that toughened me up a bit!"
When she first appeared on "Storage Wars" in 2010, Brandi was one half of the team that was deemed the "Young Guns" due to the duo's inexperience. She and her partner, Jarrod Schulz, had been in a relationship for over 10 years at this point and had two children together (via Heavy). They both returned to "Storage Wars" for its 13th season in 2021, but under much different circumstances. Keep scrolling to find out more about the pair and to learn some facts that you might not know about Brandi Passante.
Brandi Passante and Jarrod Schulz are still co-stars, but are no longer a couple
Many "Storage Wars" viewers likely assumed that Brandi Passante and Jarrod Schulz were married, but they were not. Their witty banter and battles over bid amounts made for entertaining television, but Brandi revealed that some of their more intense moments were making life at home no fun. "When we were first starting out, we would have rock-star fights! It was exhausting, so we had to make the decision not to bring what happened on the show home," she told Lifetime Moms.
While they had their fair share of disagreements, Brandi's level-headedness and Jarrod's willingness to take risks actually seemed to make them a pretty good team, so it likely came as a shock to many viewers when Brandi revealed that they were no longer together. "I'm not with Jarrod anymore," she said during the Season 13 premiere of "Storage Wars," according to People. They both appeared in the episode, and viewers got at least one small taste of their former dynamic when Brandi branded her ex "an idiot" for overspending on a locker.
The couple called it quits after filming on the show's 12th season wrapped in 2018. While she's had some time to heal, Brandi told PopCulture that it's "not comfortable" filming with her ex, and she has dropped a big hint that their breakup wasn't exactly amicable. In March 2021, she tweeted a promotional photo for "Storage Wars" with Jarrod's face hidden behind an ogre emoji.
The reality star's ex allegedly shoved her and got charged with a misdemeanor
Weeks after Brandi Passante shared the altered image portraying her ex as a monster on Twitter, TMZ reported that Jarrod Schulz had been charged with misdemeanor domestic violence battery. On April 30, 2021, he reportedly showed up at a bar in Orange County, where Brandi was hanging out with some friends. The former couple had an angry altercation, and Brandi asked Jarrod to leave. Instead, he allegedly yelled at her and shoved her twice. Police arrived at the scene, but Jarrod had already left the bar, and later denied to law enforcement that he had gotten physical with his ex.
According to Entertainment Weekly, Jarrod probably won't face a judge anytime soon. "The courts have really not allowed out-of-custody misdemeanors so that's why it'll be a while before he's in court," stated Kimberly Edds, a public information officer for the Orange County District Attorney's office. It remains to be seen how this incident will affect Jarrod and Brandi's future on "Storage Wars," but some viewers might find it hard to imagine them working together at all now.
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.
Brandi Passante said that she's a single mom
Brandi Passante dropped another bombshell about her split from Jarrod Schulz during a June 2020 interview with "The Dad Diary" YouTube channel. Brandi and Jarrod's two kids, son Cameron and daughter Payton, are now both teenagers, and Brandi admitted, "Teenagers are tough. Especially when you're doing it by yourself."
Brandi stated that she and the kids have "a good relationship" that includes plenty of communication. "We're able to tell each other things without me getting shocked or upset," she stated. The reality TV star does, however, have to remind her son and daughter of the role that she plays in their lives now that they've reached a stage where they view themselves as adults. "I also have to reiterate to them often, 'I'm not your friend,'" she said. "'We can be cool, we can have a good time together, but I'm not your friend — I'm your mom.'"
Revealing that she's always done a lot of the parenting herself, even when Jarrod was a part of the picture, Brandi explained that she's used to going at it alone. However, she confessed that there are times when it would be helpful to have her kids' dad around — like when she has to ask them multiple times to take out the trash. "I did a lot of it on my own anyway, but it's the scary dad voice in the background that we're missing," she stated.
The Storage Wars star's wrist clicks because of her appearance on a second reality show
While Brandi Passante and Jarrod Schultz never made it to the altar, fans of the couple got to watch Jarrod propose to Brandi with a little help from one of their dogs on a spin-off series titled "Brandi & Jarrod: Married to the Job." The show, which premiered in 2014, also gave fans an inside look at the couple's wedding planning process and their life at home with their two kids. It lasted just one season, but it had a lasting impact on Brandi's body.
During her interview with "The Dad Diary," Brandi spoke about what it was like filming the reality series. She learned that continuity was important, which became an issue when she injured her wrist while shooting an episode of "Storage Wars." Jarrod had discovered a bowling ball inside a storage locker, and he accidentally rolled it into a chair Brandi was standing on. This caused her to fall and fracture her wrist.
The couple was shooting "Married to the Job" at the same time, which was unfortunate for Brandi. "And for continuity, I couldn't wear a cast," she said. "It would have just f**ked up the whole other show. So, now I have a little click." Her engagement ring may have gone the way of the items that she finds in storage lockers, but the noise her wrist makes will forever serve as a reminder of the time she almost got married.
Jarrod Schulz used to be Brandi Passante's boss
Brandi Passante and Jarrod Schulz met at work. In 1999, Jarrod had a job as a carpet cleaning company's sales manager, and Brandi also worked there (via The Orange County Register). "Technically, I was her boss... and you were not supposed to do that," Jarrod told Inquirer.net in 2016, adding that a mutual friend left notes on his truck reminding him "to be nice to Brandi."
They disagree on what their courtship was like, with Brandi confessing that it wasn't exactly love at first sight. "That was a process. He wore me down. He was persistent," she said. However, during a 2017 appearance on "The Mystery Men Show," Jarrod claimed that it was Brandi doing the pursuing. "She pretty much stalked me for like three months, and at that stage in my life — I mean, have pretty low standards, so I pretty much grab onto anything," he joked.
Jarrod worked in the mortgage industry for a while, and Brandi was a stay-at-home mom (via Lifetime Moms). During a 2012 interview with IOL, Jarrod said that he was introduced to the world of storage locker auctions through a relative, and the amount of items he accumulated soon began "taking over the house." The couple was even threatened by the city. "I had to draw the line. We could have been on 'Hoarders' instead," Brandi told the The Orange County Register. In 2010, the couple began selling their treasures at the Now and Then Second-Hand Store.
Brandi Passante got dressed up and got invited to star on 'Storage Wars'
Brandi Passante and Jarrod Schulz weren't originally a package deal. Jarrod was working solo at an auction in Harbor City, California when the "Storage Wars" producers approached him about the show (via The Orange County Register). A few months later, they asked if they could film at his thrift store, and Brandi just so happened to be working the register when the cameras and producers showed up. "They asked me, 'Who's the girl up front?'" Jarrod recalled. "'Would she mind being on TV?'"
During an appearance on "The Mystery Men Show" podcast, Jarrod said that Brandi was wearing a nice dress when she caught the producers' attention, and he repeated his wise-guy answer to their question (via Inquisitr). "'Do you think she wore that dress for nothing?'" he snarked. "It was a long dress!" Brandi said in her defense.
While Brandi quickly attracted a lot of attention simply for being young and a woman, she was also arguably the most stylish "Storage Wars" cast member. While she was filming a Facebook Live video, a fan even asked Brandi where she got one of her dresses, and she revealed that Anthropologie is one of her favorite places to shop. Brandi has also explained why she wears high heels to auctions. "I have a high arch in my feet, and actually flat shoes are a little less comfortable for me," she stated. "I know it sounds weird."
She was a victim of 'the most hated man on the internet'
In 2012, Brandi Passante learned that Hunter Moore, the infamous creator of the now-defunct "revenge porn" website, IsAnyoneUp.com, was trying to profit off her name and likeness in a truly loathsome manner. Moore, whom Rolling Stone once described as "the most hated man on the internet," had claimed that Brandi was a woman who appeared nude in photos and videos on his website, per The Wrap. Brandi was made aware of their existence when she received messages on Twitter that said things like, "Can't wait to see more of the video" (via The Hollywood Reporter).
Brandi subsequently filed a lawsuit, in which she described the pornographic media as "fabricated." Her suit read in part, "Passante looked at the referenced website and was horrified, hurt and ashamed to see images of someone portraying her in pornographic video and associated images." She further claimed that Moore's actions caused her anxiety and physical illness, and she sued him for "Lanham Act violations, defamation, invasion of privacy, consumer fraud and more."
Brandi sought $2.5 million in damages, and she won her lawsuit in 2013. But unfortunately, a federal judge only awarded her a paltry $750, plus her attorneys' fees, saying that the amount she was asking for couldn't be justified. She and Moore's other numerous victims did eventually get to see him face more serious repercussions for his actions in 2015, when he was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in federal prison.
Both of Brandi Passante's kids have experienced serious health problems
Brandi Passante's two children have had to overcome some major health issues. During her appearance on "The Dad Diary," Brandi revealed that her daughter, Payton, was born deaf and with a cleft palate. When Payton was just six weeks old, she underwent a successful surgery on her ears.
Months later, Brandi was the only parent present at the hospital when Payton spent 16 hours on the operating table for her mouth. "I was with her by myself, as well," she said. "That's something I'm used to, anyway." Payton's mouth surgery was also a success, but it would be a long time before she completely recovered from her ordeal. "For years, she would be really quiet, until she started cheerleading," Brandi said. "I think that was kind of life-changing for her. She became more confident, and you could actually start to hear her voice."
Brandi's son, Cameron, later had a condition that required him to visit a urologist periodically and undergo ultrasounds. During one visit, a mass was found on his kidney. It became symptomatic a year-and-a-half later, and "he missed three months of high school" while he was hospitalized. "It set back everything that he had ever kind of worked towards. It was really discouraging," Brandi said. Cameron had to undergo multiple surgeries, one of which left him with a drain bag in his back that Brandi had to drain herself. Thankfully, she said that he "seems to be doing really well" now.
She's friends with a 'Racing Wives' star
Brandi Passante has some fast friends. She's a NASCAR fan who has grown close with a few people closely associated with the racing industry, including race car driver Kyle Busch and his wife, Samantha. Samantha, who starred on the CMT reality series, "Racing Wives," has made a number of appearances on Brandi's Instagram page, where the two women can be seen attending a NASCAR party together and posing in front of a champagne vending machine. Brandi also joked that she was "mastering the art of being the third wheel" when she, Samantha, and Kyle attended a UFC fight together, and she clapped back at a Twitter user who compared Kyle to her "Storage Wars" nemesis Dave Hester. "WOW that was rude @KyleBusch is a super nice guy and is an amazing racer!" she wrote.
Brandi's love of NASCAR also led to her getting involved with Women's Own Worth, an organization that helps survivors of domestic violence and violent crimes. According to The Saline Courier, she met the nonprofit's founder through her friend, NASCAR Marketing Manager Cari Cellini. Brandi even emceed WOW's annual WOWpalooza event in 2019. "I have experienced some things in my life, and it's a really wonderful cause," she said of the organization. "It's things that are needed, so I wanted to help in any way possible."
Her creepiest storage locker find was worth money, but she threw it away
Brandi Passante has discovered some strange objects in the lockers that she's purchased. Some of her odd findings include a huge My Little Pony collection, a voodoo kit, human teeth, and a creepy doll with flaking skin. Brandi learned that the doll was worth 50 bucks, but this didn't stop her from tossing it to her two dogs to be used as a chew toy. Within seconds, the doll was headless.
Speaking of canines, one of Brandi's other disturbing finds was multiple Ziploc bags full of dog ashes. During an appearance on "The Mystery Men Show", she recounted how she realized what the mysterious powder was when she saw the deceased pets' dog tags. She left the remains at the storage facility's front office just in case the owners ever returned for them.
However, Brandi considers something else her "creepiest" find. "I found these old pictures of dead people," she said in a Facebook Live video. "This is something that they used to do, I guess. But they scared me. They were just creepy. They were babies, and the people surrounding them, and they would dress them up. They would even prop them up in chairs." Brandi admitted that she later learned that the pictures were collectibles and "worth a lot of money," but she had thrown them out because they were so creepy that she couldn't stand to have them in her house.
Brandi Passante experienced potential paranormal activity
Did Brandi Passante have a close encounter with something from beyond the grave? While she's seen her fair share of creepy items inside storage lockers, her potential paranormal experiences happened inside a friend's house. During her February 2021 appearance on "Spirit Talk," Brandi revealed that she was staying at the home of one of the podcast's hosts, Shavaun Avila, when both of her close encounters happened. The first time, Shavaun was giving her a tour that included a trip down to the dark and spooky cellar.
"I immediately was freezing cold, and I just had this overwhelming weight," Brandi said. She revealed that she felt a strange "attachment" on her back afterwards, and it took two days for it to go away. Brandi also recalled experiencing a terrible fright when she attempted to go downstairs to get a glass of water in the middle of the night. "I got halfway down the stairs, and all of the lights just turned on, but were flickering," she stated. "And I got a little chilly, and I was like, 'Nope, not that thirsty!'" According to Brandi, she sprinted back to her room and hid under her covers.
As if this wasn't spooky enough, Brandi recounted her son's even more terrifying experience in the same house. He told her that he saw a "really scary man" sitting on his bed, and the apparition kept pulling his covers off of him. "He just felt overwhelmingly terrified," Brandi said.
She has denied rumors about having work done and her work history
Like many women in the spotlight, Brandi Passante has had to deal with gossip aimed at painting her in an unflattering light. She's denied having breast implants on Twitter, where she labeled the fan who asked her about the rumor a "jacka**." Over on Instagram, she used a "Seinfeld" meme to inform her followers that, "They're real and they're spectacular." And when one of Brandi's Twitter followers asked her to address a rumor that she has "toe fingers," she seemed to respond in the negative by tweeting, "Eww what?????" She has, however, confessed to having "awkward chicken lips," which is why she doesn't wear lipstick.
"Storage Wars" alum Dave Hester referenced Brandi's appearance in his 2012 lawsuit against A&E, according to the National Enquirer. "Nearly every aspect of ["Storage Wars"] is faked, even down to the plastic surgery that one of the female cast members underwent in order to create more 'sex appeal' for the show," one of his legal filings claimed. An insider alleged that the unnamed cast member was Brandi.
However, Brandi credits her figure to eating healthy. She has also revealed that she enjoys hot yoga and hiking. One form of physical activity she has not tried is pole dancing, at least for money. In 2012, she used her Twitter page to shoot down a rumor that she used to be an exotic dancer, calling the fan who asked her about it "rude."
This 'Storage Wars' star has been arrested
According to Starcasm, Brandi Passante and Jarrod Schulz have both been arrested before. Jarrod's issues with the law were more serious, with his rap sheet including a 1997 arrest for felony possession of a controlled substance. As for Brandi, she was arrested for drunk driving in 2007. She was sentenced to three years probation, had to pay $390 in fines, and was required to attend the First Offender Alcohol program for three months.
While Brandi has seemingly avoided any similar run-ins with the law, some of her social media followers have expressed concern about her drinking. According to TV Shows Ace, they've responded to some of her booziest Instagram pics by suggesting that she seems to get drunk a lot, and she's even been accused of excessive alcohol use.
However, Brandi hasn't let the negative remarks stop her from hitting bars and partying with her pals, and she likes to joke about her love of alcohol. In 2013, she quipped that "lots of booze" was what helped her put up with Jarrod's bidding habits. And in a June 2020 Instagram photo, she's pictured holding up a bottle with a label that reads, "Still drunk from yesterday but f**k it."
If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
Brandi Passante has some scary fans
Brandi Passante has devised a creative method of dealing with her freakier fans. As reported by TV Shows Ace, she has a little fun at their expense by sharing screenshots of their creepy DMs in her Instagram stories. While speaking to KROQ in 2012, she shared her thoughts about the fan pages dedicated to her, and she seemed amused by one aimed at admirers of two certain body parts. "Yeah... My favorite one is the one devoted to my feet. It's by the Toe Wizard," she said with a laugh, according to Starcasm.
While Brandi is able to laugh at some of her badly behaving fans, including trolls who say that she looks like a possum, their actions can also be distressing and downright scary. In 2011, she revealed that she had to "shut down" her Facebook page due to the "vulgar comments" being left there. But this wasn't the worst of it. "I got some scary letters in the very beginning," she said during her appearance on "The Dad Diary," adding, "I did have to move at one point to a guard-gated community." She revealed that she even went to therapy and became fearful of leaving her house. In one of her Instagram posts, she explained that she had stopped sharing photos of her kids "because some creepy a** dudes were harassing them."
Luckily, Brandi knows how to handle the creeps. "I put them out there, and then I let everyone else tear them apart," she said.
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.
There's one thing fans do in public that she really hates
Brandi Passante doesn't just have to deal with bad behavior from fans online. When she's out in public, there's something that "Storage Wars" viewers do that she absolutely cannot stand. If fans want to get on her good side, they should, under no circumstances, channel Dave Hester. "My least favorite thing is when I am somewhere in public and someone yells, 'Yuuup!' across the room, thinking that's endearing or something," she said in a Facebook Live video. "I hate it. I hate it." She agreed with Jarrod Schulz that she'd rather get flipped off than have to hear Dave's famous catchphrase.
Brandi has made it abundantly clear that she's no fan of her former co-star. In 2013, she tweeted that hearing him bid on a locker "gives me hives." That same year, one of her Twitter followers asked her if she missed Dave, and she responded by writing, "Not really." During an interview with Inquirer.net, she was asked if Dave is "a real jerk," and her answer could have been, "YUUUP!" However, she chose to say, "Yes," instead.
Brandi Passante has a phobia
While tweeting out a few random facts about herself in 2013, Brandi Passante revealed that she has a unique fear that she shares with Nicki Minaj, according to The Sun. "I am terrified of escalators, positive they eat toes! I hold my breath every time I am on 1!" Brandi wrote. The official name of her phobia is "escalaphobia." Brandi also tweeted that she suffers from motion sickness, which probably makes being on an escalator even more uncomfortable for her. It may also explain why she hates spinning rides. She does, however, "love rollercoasters."
Fans who want to see more of Brandi can hold out hope that she'll keep appearing on future seasons of "Storage Wars," as she told them to "stay tuned" when she was asked about the possibility on "The Third String Morning Show." She also told "Spirit Talk" hosts Shavaun Avila and Sabrina Meglio that she "had a lot more autonomy" while filming season 13. "Where I felt always that I was being held back, this has been sort of enlightening and a little easier on me," she said.
As far as her love life is concerned, Brandi said that she has done some dating, but she doesn't "have an attachment to anyone," adding, "I'm waiting until I can feel an attachment to someone." Hopefully whoever it is will be a good auction partner.