Ariana Madix shared an update on her friendship with Scheana Shay one year after the “Vanderpump Rules” season 11 finale aired on Bravo TV.
The season 11 finale, which aired May 29, 2024, featured Madix walking out of a group event after refusing to film with her ex, Tom Sandoval. Shay seemed to agree with co-star Lala Kent that Madix should have continued filming. The “Good as Gold” singer also noted that she was struggling because Sandoval had always been a good friend to her, and she felt stuck in the middle of his bad breakup with Madix.
Speaking with Bustle, Madix revealed that she is in touch with Shay— occasionally. Madix made the relationship sound cordial, but not as close as it once was when the two started on “Vanderpump Rules” more than a decade ago.
“Scheana and I will say hi every now and again. It’s about to be her birthday, so we’ll check in,” Madix told the outlet in a May 2025 interview.
It is Unclear if Ariana Madix Attended Scheana Shay’s 40th Birthday Party
Shay celebrated her 40th birthday on May 7 with an over-the-top bash held in Los Angeles, per Page Six. As she entered a new decade, the party theme for Shay’s milestone day was “Death to Scheana’s Thirties.”
As seen in photos posted online, guests at the party included fellow former “Vanderpump Rules” cast members Lala Kent and Ally Lewber, and “The Valley” stars Brittany Cartwright, Michelle Saniei, Jasmine Goode, and Janet Caperna.
Madix, who was once Shay’s best friend, did not appear in any of the birthday photos posted to Shay’s social media accounts, but she was apparently invited to the celebration.
On the May 16 episode of her “Scheananagins With Scheana Shay” podcast, Shay said, “I specifically did not invite certain problematic men who are in our friend group because I didn’t want my friends to be uncomfortable with them there. … I’m not going to invite Tom Sandoval. Did I get a snarky belated birthday text, ‘Thanks for the invite,’ [from Tom Sandoval]? Of course. I just didn’t respond. And I’m like, ‘Dude, come on, first of all, I invited Ariana.”
Ariana Madix Reacted to Scheana Shay’s Upcoming Book
Shay is releasing a tell-all memoir, titled “My Good Side,” in July 2025. In a March 2025 episode of “Scheananagins”, she noted that she still talked to Madix but not as much as she used to. “We talk here and there. I think no matter what, Ariana and I are always going to have such a deep love for each other,” Shay said. “I hope she reads my [upcoming] book.”
While speaking with Bustle, Madix acknowledged that her longtime friend was writing a book and noted that it sounded like a daunting task. “I know that it’s hard to write a memoir, so congratulations to her for sure,” Madix said.
