Exclusive: Kailah Casillas Explains Her Friendship With Ronnie Ortiz-Magro, Scheana Shay

Reality TV Twitter all but exploded in late April when Vanderpump Rules personality Scheana Shay posted photos of herself partying with The Challenge competitor Kailah Casillas and Jersey Shore star Ronnie Ortiz-Magro.

Emotions from fans of the MTV and Bravo shows ranged from “How do these people know each other?” to outrage over Ortiz-Magro’s ongoing drama with baby mama Jen Harley. But it turns out the trio of reality personalities’ gathering wasn’t so random after all, Casillas revealed in an exclusive interview with PopCulture.com this week.

The common thread between the three isn’t their roles on TV, but Casillas’ boyfriend, recording artist Mikey P.

“So Ronnie and my boyfriend Mikey have been friends for like 10-plus years, like they go way back,” Casillas told PopCulture, adding Jersey Shore star Paul “DJ Pauly D” DelVecchio to the mix. “They’re all from the same Jersey Shore-type area, and Mikey was actually on a few episodes of the Jersey Shore with them as an extra-type thing.”

As for Shay, she and Mikey had worked together at a prior gig, Casillas revealed, and when the SUR employee moved to Las Vegas for the duration of her show, Sex Tips for Straight Women from a Gay Man, the musician thought the two would get along.

“My boyfriend is the glue that holds us all together,” Casillas joked, adding that Ortiz-Magro has been on the scene less since he welcomed daughter Ariana Sky with Harley in April. “I love both of them. We all have a lot of fun. I mean Ron’s a dad now, and he’s focused on that, so we don’t see him as much as we used to, but he’s a good time and we enjoy hanging out when he’s around.”

The three have a lot in common, Casillas added, including that they all have gotten their fair share of hate in the court of public opinion over the years.

“That’s kind of the nice part about having friends who also do reality TV, whether it’s the same channel or show or whatever,” she told PopCulture. “It’s like, we get it.”

She added: “Whenever I see Scheana writing back to people on Twitter, it’s like, I see myself in her sometimes. It’s like Scheana, I wish the both of us didn’t feel the need to have to defend ourselves, because that doesn’t make it any better. But we definitely do talk about it, and that someone else gets it.”

The Challenge: Champs vs. Stars airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on MTV.

Photo credit: Instagram/Kailah Casillas