The Ultimate Real Housewives Playlist

Real Housewives of New Jersey fans may remember Danielle’s first single, the powerful love ballad “Real Close” with collaborator Lori Michaels. At the time, many wondered if it was her official coming out song (nope). But this follow-up, which she also did with Lori, was all shades of real as the singer dove into issues of mental, sexual, and physical domestic abuse. “The song is just so full of emotion and victory, and I’m very proud,” she told Entertainment Weekly at the time. She also promised the singles would be included in a full EP, which, more than a decade later, never came to fruition.

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What’s the best way to clapback at the haters? With a rocking tune, of course. That’s how this RHOA star responded in 2012 after she and Porsha Williams got into it during a trip and Porsha accused Kenya of being old. Thus the “Gone with the Wind Fabulous” viral sensation started, but it certainly didn’t end there. Who could forget Kenya’s follow-up anthem that became a nightclub hit? And then there was the accompanying music video, which featured everything from an Andy Cohen cameo to a “Single Ladies” parody. Now that’s how to make “Lemonade,” Kenya.

Not one to ever be outdone by Kenya Moore, the RHOA star had her own claim to musical fame in 2014 when she released a soulful tune about the end of her marriage to Kordell Stewart. Like pretty much all of the other Housewives tracks the lyrics were a bit “flat,” but Porsha proved she’s got some musical chops with that voice of hers. Fans fully expected some sort of a follow-up anthem, but it never came.

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When The Countess declared she was releasing a song and music video on RHONY it was such a big deal that it even became its own storyline on the series. But who knew that all that money (coupled with auto-tuning) could actually buy a singing career? Not only was this 2010 single a surprise hit, but LuAnn went on to release three more tracks, including last year’s mind-boggling (but also catchy) “Feelin’ Jovani.” The song was a nod to the fashion brand and a dig at season 10 beef with Dorinda Medley; at the time, Dorinda openly (and annoyingly) heckled LuAnn during a show after LuAnn forgot to invite Dorinda’s boyfriend to the opening night.

There are plenty of Erika Jayne songs to jam out to at this point (she’s had nine number-one dance club songs, after all). But Erika Girardi made quite the impression when she joined RHOBH in 2015 and released this anthem at the same time. The song is all about not letting the drama get to you, a feat we’re not quite sure she’s actually mastered. Regardless it was a bold move that won over her fans, including Christina Aguilera, who covered the track on her own Instagram account. Now that’s how you kick off a season.

We dare you not to dance, dance, dance after hearing this 2012 track from Melissa Gorga. The simple lyrics (which also feature Santino Noir) are oddly catchy, and even if you want to stop yourself from listening you can’t, can’t, can’t. It’s almost a shame that after this and a few other ditties—including “Rockstar” and “How Many Times”—the RHONJ star revealed that she’s hanging up the mic on her singing career. For now anyhow. If Melissa has taught us anything over the years it’s that she knows how to put herself “On Display,” and she’ll inevitably be back.

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Moms everywhere praise the benefits of coffee and wine, but this Potomac personality only picked one of those two items to sing about in her 2018 track. We first heard the offering in a RHOP episode when she performed it at an open mic night, putting the lyrics about the ups and downs of her marriage to Michael Darby on full display. At least she kept it in the family; her brother Cazanova is the other voice you can hear on the track. So far there are no other songs in the works that we know of, but considering Ashley used “song” as her talent back in her pageant days, it can only be a matter of time, right?

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The time may be now for someone to break it to the former RHOC star that her songs aren’t exactly good… it’s more like they fall into the “so bad they’re kinda, sorta good” category. The best of the bunch though may be this 2013 track, which Gretchen sang to Slade Smiley on the series as a way to propose to him. Fittingly, the moment also marked the official end of Gretchen’s time on the series. Fast forward to today and she has yet to release any other songs… or marry Smiley.

While it often seems like some of the other Housewives are using their fanbases to help launch their singing careers, it’s pretty much the opposite for this RHOA star. Kandi is famously known for being part of the ‘90s trio Xscape, and she had a Grammy on her resume before she even joined the series. So her single “Fly Above” at the end of her first season on the show in 2009 was a welcome twist—especially since it covered some of that Housewives drama and explained how she was going to fly above it all. Well… at least she had good intentions of doing so. How that’s worked out for her a decade later is up for debate.

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How could you compile a list of Housewives songs without including the OG 2012 single from the former RHOA star? Not only did Kim show the world that Housewives stars could actually release successful tracks without any real industry experience, but she also proved that talent and enthusiasm aren’t exactly prerequisites for doing so. The catchy song was originally supposed to be a country song and was laughed off on the show when she began pursuing it, but now it’s widely considered to be the most successful of the batch to-date. Sadly for Kim, her follow-up tracks haven’t caught fire nearly to the same extent and she’s spoken out about how stressful singing actually was for her. That didn’t stop her from reentering the studio last year during an episode of Don’t Be Tardy though. TBD if this new track will reach the same cult-level status.

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