Rachel Lindsay announces she is leaving the Bachelor Happy Hour podcast: ‘I’ve been struggling’
Rachel Lindsay is leaving the Bachelor Happy Hour podcast.
The reality star, 36, who was the first Black Bachelorette in the Bachelor franchise, announced her departure on Tuesday’s episode of the podcast.
‘I’m going to make this short and sweet: All good things must come to an end and I feel like certain things run their course and for me I have run my course when it comes to the podcast,’ she explained.
‘I have run my course’: Rachel Lindsay has announced she is leaving the Bachelor Happy Hour podcast
Rachel explained her decision to leave came down her mental health.
‘For me I’ve been struggling, that’s no secret,’ Lindsay said. ‘And it’s been really, really hard for me lately and a lot of the things that we talk about on this podcast are also about taking care of yourself and finding your peace and protecting that peace and protecting your mental health.
‘And so for me, I just feel like I’ve come to the end of doing the podcast and I’m glad that I’m leaving on a high note where it’s the 100th episode, it’s such a big milestone.
‘This is the first podcast I’ve ever done and for me, it’s just stepping away. You should never say never. I’m definitely closing the door but I’m not locking it and throwing away the key. It’s just I have to, for me, walk away. And I feel like this podcast is in amazing hands with you.
‘I’ve been struggling’: Rachel explained her decision to leave came down her mental health.
‘For you, I just feel like this is at a place where I can walk away and I know it’s all good and I know it’s gonna be great and you’ve allowed me to have the space to step away when I needed to and I would listen to the podcast on the side and I’m like, “Oh, she’s got this,” and like, for me it’s like you can walk away now, I can walk away. I’m doing some other things, I’m sure I’ll pop in from time to time to say hello.’
Rachel will be back for one more episode, the upcoming 100th episode of the podcast, before a new co-host for Becca Kufrin is announced.
Rachel has not shied away from airing her frustrations with the Bachelor franchise ever since becoming the very first Black Bachelorette in 2017.
Controversy: The problems really escalated this past year, when Rachel became embroiled in drama after an interview she conducted with host Chris Harrison
Scandal: Harrison defended contestant Rachael Kirkconnell after photos of her attending a plantation-themed party in 2018 emerged
The problems escalated this past year, when Rachel became embroiled in drama after an interview she conducted with host Chris Harrison.
In an interview with Rachel on Extra, Chris defended Bachelor contestant Rachael Kirkconnell after photos emerged of her attending a plantation-themed party in 2018.
His comments sparked controversy within the franchise, and he ultimately decided to step away from the show for the time being.
Fan favorite: Lindsay rose to fame as a contestant on Nick Viall’s season of The Bachelor
Wasn’t meant to be: Though she received his first impression rose, Lindsay ultimately made it third in the show
Soon after the interview, Rachel deleted her Instagram account after receiving harassment online.
She returned to the platform not long after.
Rachel first grew to fame in Bachelor Nation as a contestant on Nick Viall’s season of The Bachelor, where she received the first impression rose and came in third.
The fan favorite soon thereafter made history as the very first Black lead on the show when she was named the next Bachelorette.
She became engaged to her final rose pick Bryan Abasolo, and the couple married in 2019.
Will you accept this rose? Lindsay became the very first Black lead in the history of the show in 2017
Happily ever after: Lindsay married her final rose choice, Bryan Abasolo, in 2019