Ubah Hassan had her first major fight since joining The Real Housewives of New York City — and she doesn’t really care if anyone thought she overreacted.
“I’m not afraid to raise my voice. I also raise my voice when I’m happy; I’m just a bubbly, passionate person — don’t paint me anything else,” Ubah, 40, told Variety in an interview published on Sunday October 1. “Don’t f–king label me. My name is Ubah. That’s it. Don’t label me what you want to label me, it doesn’t sit well with me.”
Ubah and costar Erin Lichy had it out earlier this season on RHONY after a prank gone wrong. After Ubah pushed Erin, 36, into the pool during a girls’ trip to Anguilla, Erin retaliated by hiding Ubah’s phone. Ubah, who was not amused, responded by stealing Erin’s sunglasses, which led to a heated showdown at the beach.
During a confessional interview, Ubah said she was concerned that the fight would portray her as the stereotypical “angry Black woman” when Erin was also displaying plenty of ire.
“Erin yelled at me, screaming at me and calling me a bitch couple times. Nobody’s calling her angry,” Ubah told Variety. “Nobody’s calling her ghetto, nobody’s doing any of that, right? They are, in fact, calling her delicate. Me and her, I’m more delicate than her — she’s the gym rat.”
Ubah made it clear that the show didn’t paint her as angry, but some viewers may feel that way after seeing the episodes. “If you are a viewer, you know who is the biggest conflict,” she explained. “You know who is gossiping, who is the s–t-stirrer. You can see the whole season, who gets in people’s business, get in people’s marriage — I don’t give a f–k, I don’t.”
Last month, Erin exclusively told Us Weekly that she regretted taking the phone, but she didn’t expect the joke to have such serious repercussions. “I can take ownership of maybe I shouldn’t have played the prank,” Erin explained in September. “I also thought we were pranking. I didn’t think it was going to be that deep. Now knowing and looking back now, I know not to mess with it all.”
Erin went on to note that she and Ubah are on good terms again — but she probably won’t try any pranks in the future.
“I knew she had a spicy side, but I just adore her. I really do,” Erin said, adding that the drama actually helped bring the pair closer. “And I almost appreciate seeing that other side of her because it almost brings a depth to her that I didn’t fully understand. And even the way she talks about it after where she’s like, ‘I know I get hot, but it’s because I love you so much.’ It sounds kind of crazy, but … I love her more for it.”
The Real Housewives of New York City airs on Bravo Sundays at 9 p.m. ET.
