Love & Hip Hop: New York (originally titled Love & Hip Hop) is the original installment of the Love & Hip Hop reality television franchise on VH1. The series premiered on March 6, 2011, and chronicles the lives of people involved with hip hop music in New York City (and nearby areas, including New Jersey, and Yonkers).
T has a large ensemble cast, with leading cast members in the opening credits, and a sprawling supporting cast, who are credited as "additional cast" or "featured" in the show's end credits. These secondary cast members appear in green screen confessional segments and (for the most part) have the same amount of screen time and storyline focus as the show's main cast members. Over the years, several supporting cast members have been upgraded to lead.
Cast timeline Main cast (appears in opening credits) Secondary cast (appears in green screen confessional segments and in end credits alongside the main cast) Guest cast (appears in a guest role or cameo) Main cast members Cast member Seasons 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Chrissy Lampkin colspan="2" colspan="7" Emily Bustamante colspan="2" colspan="8" Olivia Longott colspan="2" colspan="6" Somaya Reece colspan="2" colspan="5" Kimbella Vanderhee colspan="1" colspan="1" colspan="1" colspan="2" Yandy Smith-Harris colspan="1" colspan="9" Erica Mena colspan="3" colspan="2" Jen the Pen colspan="2" colspan="7" Raqi Thunda colspan="2" colspan="7" Winter Ramos colspan="7" Rashidah Ali colspan="2" colspan="2" colspan="4" Tahiry Jose colspan="2" colspan="2" colspan="3" Tara Wallace colspan="3" colspan="3" colspan="2" Erica Jean colspan="3" colspan="1" colspan="6" Amina Buddafly colspan="3" colspan="3" colspan="2" K. Michelle colspan="3" colspan="1" colspan="5" Cyn Santana colspan="3" colspan="3" colspan="2" Chrissy Monroe colspan="4" colspan="1" colspan="5" Cardi B colspan="5" colspan="2" colspan="3" Miss Moe Money & Sexxy Lexxy colspan="5" colspan="4" Mariahlynn colspan="5" colspan="3" Remy Ma colspan="5" colspan="5" Bianca Bonnie colspan="5" colspan="2" colspan="2" Felicia "Snoop" Pearson colspan="6" colspan="2" colspan="2" Juju C. colspan="5" colspan="1" colspan="2" Anaís colspan="7" colspan="1" Lil' Mo colspan="7" colspan="2" Papoose colspan="5" colspan="3" colspan="2" Joe Budden colspan="2" colspan="2" colspan="4" colspan="2" Juelz Santana colspan="2" Rich Dollaz colspan="8" colspan="2" Safaree Samuels colspan="7" colspan="1" colspan="2" Supporting cast members Cast member Seasons 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Jim Jones colspan="2" colspan="7" Mashonda Tifrere colspan="9" Maurice Aguilar colspan="2" colspan="8" Nancy "Mama" Jones colspan="2" colspan="2" colspan="4" Teairra Marí colspan="8" Mendeecees Harris colspan="2" colspan="2" colspan="4" Consequence colspan="2" colspan="7" Lore'l colspan="2" colspan="7" Kaylin Garcia colspan="2" colspan="7" Peter Gunz colspan="2" colspan="4" Nya Lee colspan="3" colspan="4" Saigon colspan="3" colspan="6" Diamond Strawberry colspan="4" colspan="5" Cisco Rosado colspan="2" colspan="3" Chink Santana colspan="4" colspan="5" Precious Paris colspan="4" colspan="5" Jhonni Blaze colspan="4" colspan="2" colspan="2" DJ Self colspan="3" colspan="4" Yorma Hernandez colspan="5" colspan="4" Rose colspan="5" colspan="4" Hennessy Carolina colspan="5" colspan="2" colspan="2" Samantha Wallace colspan="4" colspan="2" colspan="3" J. Adrienne colspan="6" colspan="3" Swift Star colspan="6" colspan="3" DJ Drewski colspan="6" colspan="2" Sofi Green colspan="6" colspan="3" Sky Landish colspan="6" colspan="2" Kim Wallace colspan="4" colspan="2" colspan="3" Erika DeShazo colspan="5" colspan="3" Judy Harris colspan="4" colspan="2" colspan="3" Asia Davies colspan="6" colspan="3" Ashley Trowers colspan="5" Jade Wifey colspan="6" colspan="3" Moniece Slaughter colspan="4" colspan="2" Major Galore colspan="6" colspan="3" Navarro Gray colspan="7" Brittney Taylor colspan="7" colspan="2" Jaquáe colspan="7" colspan="2" Jonathan Fernandez colspan="5" colspan="3" James R. colspan="6" colspan="2" Ashley Diaz colspan="7" colspan="2" DreamDoll colspan="7" colspan="2" Sophia Body colspan="7" colspan="2" Karl Dargan colspan="7" colspan="2" Grafh colspan="3" colspan="3" colspan="2" Ayisha Diaz colspan="7" colspan="2" Trent Crews colspan="7" colspan="2" Kiyanne colspan="7" colspan="2" Alexis Skyy colspan="8" Maino colspan="3" colspan="2" Sidney Starr colspan="8" Maggie Carrie colspan="8" Phresher colspan="9" Jennaske colspan="9" Jenn Coreano colspan="9"
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Main cast members Original cast members
Chrissy Lampkin (Seasons 1–2, 10) is the longtime girlfriend of rapper Jim Jones. She was born in Harlem to Afro-Cuban parents. She has been in a relationship with Jim since 2004, after meeting him in Miami. Chrissy first appeared in the 2006 presentation tape for Keeping Up the Joneses, a proposed doco-series that would attempt to chronicle Jim's everyday life, as well as the behind-the-scenes difficulties in actually making the documentary. While in development with VH1 under the title Diary of a Hip Hop Girlfriend, the show's focus shifted to Chrissy and her circle of friends, forming the basis of what would eventually become Love & Hip Hop. The first season of Love & Hip Hop chronicles her struggles with Jim's commitment issues, and her strained relationship with his mother, Nancy. Midway through the season, Chrissy proposes to Jim and the two become engaged. Her feud with Jim's long-term manager Yandy becomes the focus of season two, culminating in a violent showdown between the two women at a Miami nightclub. After this incident, Chrissy's relationship with the show's producers grew tense, with her refusing to sit down with executive producer Mona Scott-Young for the season's reunion special, accusing her of manipulating storylines for dramatic effect. On September 7, 2012, VH1 announced that Jim and Chrissy would leave Love & Hip Hop to star in their own spin-off show Chrissy & Mr. Jones, which premiered on September 24, 2012. The series chronicled the couple's relationship struggles, as well as Chrissy's forays into fashion and interior design. Its series finale aired on December 16, 2013, after two seasons. After a six-year hiatus from the franchise, and several years spent living in Miami, Chrissy returned to New York and rejoined the cast of Love & Hip Hop: New York for its tenth season. During the season, she reignites her feud with Yandy after making peace with Kimbella. Emily Bustamante (Seasons 1–2), also known as Emily B, is a stylist and fashion designer. She was born in New York City to Puerto Rican-Dominican parents, and raised in Norfolk, Virginia. She has been in an on-again, off-again relationship with the rapper Fabolous since 2001 and is the mother of his son, Johan Jackson, born 2008. She also has a daughter, Taina Williams, born 1998, from a previous relationship. The first two seasons of Love & Hip Hop chronicle her struggles with Fabolous' infidelity and his refusal to claim her in public. Emily did not return to the show after the second season's reunion special, instead going on to appear in a supporting role in the spin-off Chrissy & Mr. Jones for two seasons. In 2015, Emily gave birth to Fab's second son, Jonas Jackson. In March 2018, the couple made headlines after a violent incident occurred in which Fab allegedly knocked out her two front teeth. In 2019, Emily was reportedly in talks to appear with the other original cast members for season ten of Love & Hip Hop: New York, however she ultimately did not appear. Olivia Longott (Seasons 1–2, supporting cast member in seasons 3, 10) is a R&B singer-songwriter. She was born in Brooklyn, New York to a Jamaican mother and Indian-Cuban father. She rose to fame as the "First Lady" of G-Unit, as the first female signed to G-Unit Records. The first two seasons of Love & Hip Hop chronicle her struggles to comeback in the music industry after a series of career misfires. As the show aired, Olivia was publicly critical of her portrayal, most notably regarding a storyline involving her relationship with her mother. Subsequently, her role was diminished significantly, returning only as a supporting cast member in season three. During the season, she becomes caught up in the relationship drama between her manager Rich Dollaz, and his new artist Erica Mena. After a seven-year hiatus, Olivia returned to the show as a supporting cast member in season ten, in which she accuses Rich of stealing song royalties from her. Somaya Reece (Seasons 1–2, supporting cast member in season 10), born Ginie Castro, is a Salvadoran-Puerto Rican artist, originally from South Central, Los Angeles. She endured a rough childhood, including an abusive relationship with a teenage boyfriend, and a stint in a gang where she was stabbed and shot two times. She rose to fame as an urban model and through her relationship with rapper Joe Budden, who she dated in 2009. The first season of Love & Hip Hop chronicles her move to New York City and her struggles to kickstart her music career. During the season, she ignites a feud with Chrissy after pursuing Jim for a musical collaboration, and with her manager Maurice gets into a war of words with Olivia and her manager Rich. In season two, Somaya was phased gradually out of the show, with the finale showing her packing her bags and moving back to Los Angeles. During the season's reunion special, she confronts series creator Mona Scott-Young over having her storyline cut out, memorably calling her a "bitch". Somaya then made uncredited cameo appearances in the first season of the spin-off Chrissy & Mr. Jones, where she is seen attending Chrissy, Emily and Talia's fashion show, and in season two of Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood, where she is seen attending Nikki, Princess and Milan's fashion event. Somaya officially returned to the franchise in the special Love & Hip Hop New York: Dirty Little Secrets to discuss her time on the show, the only original cast member to do so. She reportedly filmed scenes with her then-girlfriend Lady Luck for the show's eighth season, however their scenes never made it to air. After an eight-year hiatus, Somaya returned to Love & Hip Hop: New York as a supporting cast member in season ten.
Season 2 additions