What happened between Chanel Ayan and Melissa Gorga? Rift between housewives widens

RHODubai's Chanel Ayan accuses 'RHONJ' star Melissa Gorga of buying her Instagram followers
RHODubai's Chanel Ayan continues to throw shade at 'RHONJ' star Melissa Gorga (Instagram/@chanelayan/@melissagorga)
RHODubai's Chanel Ayan continues to throw shade at 'RHONJ' star Melissa Gorga (Instagram/@chanelayan/@melissagorga)

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Chanel Ayan of 'The Real Housewives of Dubai' blasted Melissa Gorga for claiming that she had more Instagram followers than her sister-in-law Teresa Giudice and Kenya Moore. Chanel then questioned whether Melissa had paid for them.

Chanel was put on the hot seat by Andy Cohen on her most recent appearance on 'Watch What Happens Live' on August 6, as she proceeded to sling shade at the fellow Bravo housewife.

When Andy raised a question regarding Melissa/Tre on 'WWHL', Chanel's response was muted. Then Andy reminded her that it was live television.

Plus, she was requested to mention three good things about Melissa, but all she said were facts. So, what did we overlook that triggered the conflict between them?


 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Watch What Happens Live! (@bravowwhl)


 

'RHODubai's Chanel Ayan questions Melissa Gorga's Instagram followers

An 'RHODubai' cast member questioned Melissa's large Instagram following (she presently has 2.8 million followers), asking, "Did she buy them?" Chanel seemed to write in an Instagram remark, according to Reality Blurb.

'RHODubai's Chanel Ayan questions 'RHONJ's Melissa Gorga over her social media following (Instagram/chanelayan/melissagorga)
'RHODubai's Chanel Ayan questions 'RHONJ's Melissa Gorga over her social media following (Instagram/@chanelayan/@melissagorga)

RHONJ's Melissa Gorga defends her social media after dig from Chanel Ayan

Later, on the July 11 episode of her podcast, 'On Display', Melissa addressed the comment.

Melissa told her husband Joe Gorga on the podcast, "She's talking about my followers and the fact that I have so many more followers than a lot of the Housewives, and much more than a lot of my cast members, and she's questioning that."

"And what annoys me about that is, you know, I built this platform off of authenticity, off of showing you guys my real life. And if you're going to come at me about my honesty or my authenticity, it's just something that's been here from Day 1 for me..."

Melissa gave the following explanation of how she increased her following: "At some point, I think I should get a little credit for being good at what I do, and that when you give relatable content, the followers come."

Regarding the claim that she purchased some of her Instagram followers, the 'RHONJ' cast member stated, "I would never come at anybody because they had a lot of followers, and assume that they did something wrong to get them. I know Chanel’s not a weak-minded individual. She’s a tough, strong woman. I’ve seen her on the show."

'RHONJ's Melissa Gorga defends herself against 'RHODubai's Chanel Ayan (Instagram/melissagorga/chanelayan)
'RHONJ's Melissa Gorga defends herself against 'RHODubai's Chanel Ayan (Instagram/@melissagorga/@chanelayan)

Melissa Gorga open to getting to know Bravo star Chanel Ayan on deeper level

Melissa continued by saying that she was not really sure why Chanel was disparaging her online.

"She just wants to mention my name, when I have no idea why. I don't approach her, I don't follow her, I don't know her..." Melissa added it to her podcast. "It's actually really confusing for me to figure out why she's doing this."

"I don't play in the mud. I don't randomly call out other Housewives on other franchises for absolutely no reason..." she said about Chanel. "It's not my style, it's not what I do."

Melissa is amenable to furthering her acquaintance with Chanel in the future, though.

“She’s snarky, and I think she’s great at what she does. So I don’t… really get it," she stated. "So hit me up, girl, if you ever want to talk, because I’m confused."

'RHONJ's Melissa Gorga ready to move past animosity with 'RHODubai's Chanel Ayan (Instagram/chanelayan/melissagorga)
'RHONJ's Melissa Gorga ready to move past animosity with 'RHODubai's Chanel Ayan (Instagram/@chanelayan/@melissagorga)

GET THE BIGGEST ENTERTAINMENT STORIES
STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX.

MORE STORIES

Two participants withdrew voluntarily, and the third withdrew for medical reasons.
2026-10-30T05:14:07.000Z
‘The Last Cowboy’ returns with six episodes, following elite riders competing for a $1 million prize.
2026-10-30T04:47:05.000Z
The show’s judges were seen at recent auditions held in Savannah.
2026-10-30T03:38:18.000Z
Andy Cohen’s question about Vicki’s past gets cast talking in the ‘RHOC’ Season 20 reunion trailer.
2026-10-29T19:42:30.000Z
Tyler Cameron and Sharna Burgess received the lowest score of the night, earning 26 points
2026-10-29T08:16:55.000Z
Episode 6 saw the teams face an Intersection twist while racing in Albania
2026-10-29T06:48:41.000Z
The Savu Tribe went to Tribal Council for the third week in a row
2026-10-29T05:08:13.000Z
Since Team Orange won on Day 1, they were given a 10-minute head start over Team Gray
2026-10-29T02:53:47.000Z
Eight couples prepare for Disney Night and team dances as ‘DWTS’ makes a one-week schedule change.
2026-10-28T16:27:34.000Z
After multiple heated exchanges with the producer and fellow castmates, Rob left the experiment.
2026-10-28T10:22:35.000Z