Andy Cohen Reveals How They Filmed RHOA's First-Ever Virtual Reunion

Andy Cohen has practically seen it all at Real Housewives reunions over the years. However, The Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 12 reunion was unlike any other for the host.

That's because this season's RHOA reunion had to be filmed virtually for the first time ever due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Andy spoke to the Georgia Peaches via video chat from his apartment in New York City as they looked back at all of Season 12's jaw-dropping moments.

So, how exactly do you film a Real Housewives reunion virtually? Andy spilled some behind-the-scenes tea on how the taping went while giving a new tour of his home office on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen's Twitter account on May 2. "My home studio has come miles since our last tour," Andy said in the video.

First of all, Andy's got his lighting on lock, thanks to some trash bags over the windows and a ring light near his desk. He also has a new microphone and a new teleprompter above his laptop, which serves as his camera these days.

Andy now wears in-ear monitors like musicians have on while they're performing, which helps him hear much better — whether he likes it or not. "I had them jammed in my ears for 12 hours yesterday doing the Atlanta reunion so that the screaming went directly into my earlobe," he said.

It's no wonder the number one piece of advice the RHOA ladies had for Andy on his first-ever virtual reunion was to know where that good old mute button is. Find out what other words of wisdom they gave to the host in the above video.

The giant stack of cards containing all of Andy's questions for the Atlanta Housewives was still on Andy's desk, as was a laptop used for the reunion taping. "They sent us all our own laptops, and they were able to control the laptop remotely," Andy said.

It sounds like Andy has become something of an IT specialist, thanks to all of the equipment he's had to set up in his home during this time. "I'm very excited. I feel like everything that you see here is something that I have set up on FaceTime with our technical supervisor," he shared. "And I never thought that I had it in me to be able to set all this stuff up."

Andy also gave a quick tour of his radio studio, aka his bedroom, where he records his SiriusXM show Andy Cohen Live. "I set this little bad boy up, I click my Wi-Fi into it, I lay on my bed, and I talk into my headphones," he explained. "We're generating a lot of content out of this apartment."

After two days of technical rehearsals, Andy said prior to the RHOA reunion that he was "praying for the best" when it came to showtime. "I think it's going to be a very long day. The women have been champs," he said on the morning of the reunion. "It's like doing the Super Bowl on Zoom, but better a Super Bowl on Zoom than no Super Bowl at all is how I view it."

The Atlanta Housewives definitely did not disappoint. "Even though it was virtual, it was epic as every Atlanta reunion has been," Andy shared in his Instagram Story after the sit-down. "The Atlanta Housewives, man, they're trailblazers. They worked so hard to make that reunion happen. We had days of technical rehearsals and stuff just to make sure it would look good. And I think it did. Believe it or not, content-wise, there's so much stuff there, and tipping my hat to the Atlanta Housewives today."

You needn't look any further for proof of that than the below first look at the three-part RHOA Season 12 reunion, which kicks off Sunday, May 10 at 8/7c.

Your First Look at The Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 12 Reunion

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