Newest Beverly Hills Housewives Erika Girardi Teases Run-In with Bethenny Frankel: She 'Kind of Let Me Have It'

People.com:

There's a new Housewife coming to Beverly Hills!

Though she's better known as Erika Jayne, the dance-music queen with eight Billboard No. 1 singles, Erika Girardi is here to prove there's more to her than her fabulous alter ego.

"I hope the audience enjoys getting to know me as a person," Girardi, 44, tells PEOPLE about joining the show. "There's a lot to look at [as Erika Jayne], but I think underneath all of the glitz and fashion and makeup, there's a pretty nice girl here."

Best friend and RHOBH cast member Yolanda Foster recruited Girardi to become part of the show's cast. 

"Yolanda has a wonderful way of persuasion," Girardi explains. "I'm always interested in stepping out of my comfort zone, trying new things and really stretching and getting the most out of life. So, why not?"

Fans of the show received their first look at Girardi on the show in the season 6 promo, which showed Girardi saying she wasn't like the typical Beverly Hills woman who only eats salad. Although she stands out for enjoying the occasional cheeseburger and fries, she's used to it by now.

"I have always been a little bit bigger, a little bit louder and a little bit sassier than most little girls," she says.

When it came to getting along with the other women, Girardi says that, unlike Erika Jayne, she was worried her shyness might make it hard for the other Housewives to get to know her at first.

"I have social anxiety," Girardi says. "When you're coming into a group of women like this, it's a moment for pause because there's a lot of personalities here. I had not seen the show. I had never met any of the women other than Yolanda and she was not around a lot of the time I was with these women."  

This season's other newest addition is Kathryn Edwards. Girardi admits there were a few "bumps along the road" when they first met, but now they've both come to a point where they both "really appreciate each other."

From the trailer, we also know Girardi has a confrontation with The Real Housewives of New York City's Bethenny Frankel, who pays Beverly Hills a visit this season. Although she was reluctant to give too much away, she assured us it was a good moment.

"Bethenny, in true Bethenny fashion, kind of let me have it," she teases. "She has her opinion and she definitely says what she thinks." 

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