‘Southern Charm’s Whitner Slagsvol Talks Being Related to Jimmy Buffett: ‘A Great Man’ (Exclusive)

Southern Charm‘s Whitner Slagsvol is opening up about the massive impact his uncle, trop-rock legend Jimmy Buffett, had on his family.

Ahead of Wednesday’s Season 11 finale of Southern Charm, Whitner spoke to PopCulture.com about the “outsized influence” the late “Margaritaville” singer had on his life after previously revealing that he is the nephew of the Grammy-nominated artist’s widow, Jane Slagsvol.

“Jimmy was a great man,” Whitner told PopCulture. “He had a pretty outsized influence on our family — I mean, he had an outsized influence on the world.”

“My dad was always really close with his sister, who is Jane, and my mom was really close with Jane and was really close with Jimmy,” he continued, adding that he and his sisters were a “convenient age for their kids,” which made for “a lot of amazing trips” together.

After Buffett passed away in 2023 at the age of 76, Whitner said he realized that “any one” of the regular vacations he took with his aunt and uncle, whether it be a safari or an trip “on their boat down in some remote island chain” was a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a life-changing trip.”

“[I’m] enormously grateful for having him in my life,” Whitner said, noting, “My family is also just, outside of that, all real cool … so it’s been fun sharing that, and I think that was one of the reasons I was pretty comfortable going on [Southern Charm], just knowing that we have a pretty cool story to tell, so why not?”

Whitner had “a lot of fun” on his first season of reality television, and while he largely stayed out of the drama, he admitted to PopCulture that one of his biggest moments of the season didn’t make the final edit.

The Charleston-based lawyer revealed that he actually did go on a date with fellow newcomer Charley Manley prior to her interest in fellow castmate Craig Conover, but that it was “edited out,” likely due to the “hesitation” both he and Charley had being around cameras as first-time cast members.

“It was a good date, like we remain friends,” he said. “I think the only hesitation there, because there is a slight hesitation, was that it was both of our first time having cameras in our face in a date situation…it was just very fishbowl-y. We got to know each other a little bit better, but it wasn’t like some major sparks flying situation.”

As for his love life today, Whitner revealed to PopCulture that he was “seeing someone for a few months recently” who he’s not currently seeing.

“Part of that is intentional, just because I’m intentional when it comes to relationships — I mean, I feel like most people are. It seemed difficult to go into a relationship knowing that my life was about to be entirely different than anything I had ever dealt with,” he explained. “So I didn’t feel like I had good ground underneath my own feet, let alone the feet of a couple.”

Now, Whitner is looking for someone who can give him the “mental attachment” he needs in a relationship. “Not to be derogatory, but a pretty face and not much there, I’m going to get bored or annoyed or something,” he shared, adding, “I always felt I’d fall in love with like a musician or something. So if there are any gorgeous musicians who are really smart, give me a call.”

Southern Charm airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo.