Scheana Shay Credits Unexpected Celebrity for Her ‘Vanderpump Rules’ Role

Heavy/Getty Scheana Shay.

Scheana Shay says John Mayer is the reason she was cast on “Vanderpump Rules.”

On an August 2023 episode of her “Scheananigans” podcast, the bar star opened up about her past history with the Grammy-winner and revealed that her involvement with him got her fired from a waitress job when she was in her 20s – which in turn led her to Lisa Vanderpump’s restaurant and reality TV empire.

Here’s what you need to know:

Scheana Shay Said She Was Fired From a Restaurant Owned By Actress Skyler Shaye’s Dad

On August 7, 2023, Shay was joined on her podcast by  “90210” actress Shenae Grimes-Beech. During the conversation, the two got on the topic of “Bratz” actress Skyler Shaye.

“Fun fact,” Shay said. “Skyler Shaye’s dad owned the first restaurant I worked in when I moved into LA/Beverly Hills, and I got fired from that job for dating John Mayer.”

“Much longer story for another time,” Shay added. “But because of me getting fired from that job, I went over to Villa Blanca, which Lisa Vanderpump owned, which turned into ‘Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’ and then ‘Vanderpump Rules.’ So, you know, thank you to Skyler Shay’s dad!”

Shay captioned a clip from the episode with: “In a way, John Mayer is the reason I’m on Vanderpump Rules. 😂.”

Shay previously worked at the Grand Havana Room in Beverly Hills. The famous members-only cigar club boasted locations in California and New York City at the time Shay worked there, and the business was co-owned by Skyler Shaye’s father, Stanley Shuster, per Cigar Aficionado.

Fans reacted to Shay’s reveal on Instagram.

“We have John Mayer to thank for ;Speak Now’ and VPR. He is an American treasure,” one commenter wrote, referencing Mayer’s past romance with singer Taylor Swift.

“Please tell me there was no NDA ☕️ Spill,”  another begged Shay.

“Does @bravoandy know this??” a third fan asked in light of Mayer’s close friendship with Bravo bigwig Andy Cohen.

Scheana Shay Previously Dished Details About Her Relationship With John Mayer

GettyAndy Cohen and John Mayer.

This is not the first time Shay has talked about Mayer’s part in her start on “Vanderpump Rules.” In 2020, she told the “Behind the Media” podcast that she was fired from Shuster’s restaurant club because there was a rule about staffers hanging out with the customers.

She then applied for a job at Vanderpump’s restaurant Villa Blanca. Shay dished that she met with Vanderpump’s husband Ken Todd, who joked that she wasn’t “very good looking” and didn’t “have much personality,” but that he’d give her a shot.

“Started the next day, had to work a double shift, messed up his dinner order, it was like a whole thing,” Shay recalled on the podcast. “Fast forward a decade later, nine successful seasons of a reality show came out of it. So I like to think that, you know, if it wasn’t for John Mayer, I wouldn’t be on ‘Vanderpump Rules.’”

According to People, Shay also told the “Flashbacks” podcast that her relationship with Mayer was not exclusive and was instead part of a “throuple” with her friend, bartender Stacie Adams. Adams was featured on the MTV reality show “The Hills.”

Shay told the podcast she met Mayer in 2008 and soon after she engaged in a threesome relationship with him and Adams, which lasted about six months.

She also revealed that her firing from the Grand Havana Room came after a co-worker overheard her talking about her relationship with Mayer and ratted her out. Shay said she called Mayer to tell him, “You know I’m losing my job over this?…I don’t think as a cocktail waitress we really get like a severance package.'”

Shay dished further details in an Amazon Live on August 7, 2023, in which she said that while she knew the Grand Havana Room’s rule about not being allowed to “fraternize with the members,” she didn’t care.

“He was John Mayer and wanted to hang out,” she said. “Long story short… I got fired. … I’m broke, and auditioning actresses living off tips. I called my friend from college and said, ‘Didn’t you just start bartending somewhere in Beverly Hills?’ And he said, ‘Yeah, it’s this place called Villa Blanca, it’s been open for two days… you should come by today.’”

When Shay first joined “Vanderpump Rules,”  her John Mayer story wasn’t on anyone’s radar. Instead, some of her co-stars didn’t like her because she had an affair with actor Eddie Cibrian when he was married to “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Brandi Glanville.

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