On the latest episode of Vanderpump Rules, DJ James Kennedy popped the question to his girlfriend of five years, Raquel Leviss. They had already announced it on social media, but fans didn’t yet know how it all went down. True to his form, it was a big production, formerly called “Rachella,” that took place at the actual Coachella campground, with a lot of bells and whistles and fireworks. And apparently, the show’s matriarch, Lisa Vanderpump, actually had helped Kennedy with his proposal beforehand.
They've had a rocky relationship over the years, with Lisa Vanderpump constantly firing and rehiring James Kennedy at her L.A. restaurants. However, Kennedy has practically said on the show that he sees Vanderpump more like a second mom figure, which his own mother has even echoed on the series. So it's no surprise that his proposal to his co-star Raquel Leviss needed to pass by her first. While on E! News' Daily Pop, Kennedy shared:
[Lisa’s] always given me advice. We actually had dinner over at Villa Rosa and she actually made me get down on one knee in front of her and try this out. She was like, ‘Hm, not bad!’ So I took the things she liked and I was like, 'Alright, I'm gonna perfect this for the moment.’
I doubt that the always elegant restauranteur had a Coachella-themed marriage proposal in mind for her second son. But James Kennedy is known to not do everything exactly as Vanderpump says to. As was seen in a previous episode of Vanderpump Rules just last week, Kennedy didn’t make amends with Vanderpump’s actual son, Max, and isn't allowed to DJ (yet again) back at her restaurant.
Hopefully, the rift can be mended sometime before James Kennedy and Raquel Leviss’ eventual wedding, which they say could be sometime in the summer of 2023. But apparently, their ousted ex-Vanderpump Rules castmates, including Stassi Schroeder, Kristen Doute, Jax Taylor and Brittany Cartwright, will “most likely” not be getting an invite. Leviss said:
I didn't get that close to anybody that was on the previous cast. And I want to keep it all positive and like only good energy, especially at our wedding. We only get one wedding in life, so we're just going to keep it to our closest friends.
On the show, the DJ had infamously huge feuds with all of the former castmates, especially Jax Taylor. So it’s no wonder why they potentially won’t get an invite to the upcoming ceremony.
Lisa Vanderpump has indicated that some of her former staff should have been given a chance to show growth on Vanderpump Rules’ ninth season, after their controversies last year. It could, in theory, still happen, in which case James Kennedy and Raquel Leviss might have to reconsider the plans for their nuptials. I guess it depends on how petty Kennedy could be feeling at that point. (He’s already going to be competing with co-star Scheana Shay’s wedding…) For more Vanderpump Rules, new episodes air on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo!
