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Ubah Hassan Reveals the Brilliant Advice Dubai Housewife Chanel Ayan Gave Her
Chanel Ayan is rookie New York City Housewife Ubah Hassan's cousin — as well as a Real Housewives mentor.
Navigating the uncharted — and sometimes choppy — waters of reality TV can be a challenge. Just ask the entire cast of The Real Housewives of New York City, who are all rookies in the reality genre.
For Housewife Ubah Hassan, a supermodel and hot-sauce guru, having Chanel Ayan for a cousin and a close ally has helped make the experience smoother and more fun. As a member of The Real Housewives of Dubai, Chanel knows the drill and is willing to share what she’s learned to make the journey easier.
Chanel Ayan’s Advice for RHONY’s Ubah Hassan
At a red carpet event on July 12 in advance of the premiere of RHONY, Ubah exuberantly shared Chanel’s words of wisdom.
“She said, ‘Girl, you’re not a doormat. You show these bitches,” she told The Daily Dish. “And then she took it back!”
Chanel’s more reasoned, less salty, sage advice was, essentially, go high, even if someone else goes low.
“She’s like, 'You’re all women. You are on a women’s show. Don’t go below the belt,'” Ubah explained.
Ubah, who’s from Somalia, added that Chanel, who was born in Kenya, pointed out that the two share a tendency to be “hard-headed.” But when it comes to RHONY, Ubah’s cousin advised, being level-headed will be more useful.
Another thing: You don’t talk smack about others’ parents or kids.
On July 16, the premiere night for The Real Housewives of New York City, Chanel was on social media tweeting support for Ubah.
“A star is born tonight,” Chanel noted. “Her name is Ubah Hassan my cousin. She is smart, funny, successful, beautiful and hot …”
Following the episode, the new cast appeared on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen for a premiere debriefing.
Ubah was asked about her cousin Chanel, noting, “We are connected on my mother’s side.” She also expanded on Chanel's advice before filming.
“She said have a lot of fun,” said Ubah. “Don’t go below the belt because all of you guys are women and you should all stick together.”
That got applause from all her RHONY castmates.
(Of course, Chanel knows that tensions and hiccups are bound to arise when the cameras are rolling nonstop, which she experienced with castmate Caroline Stanbury.)
To see if Ubah and her fellow Housewives Sai De Silva, Erin Lichy, Brynn Whitfield, Jessel Taank and Jenna Lyons are able to adhere to Chanel’s advice, watch The Real Housewives of New York City on Sundays, at 9/8c on Bravo.