In a startling revelation, Kim Kardashian has admitted to orchestrating elaborate paparazzi scams during the formative years of her rise to fame. The billionaire entrepreneur, now 45, confessed on her sister Khloé Kardashian's podcast Khloé in Wonder Land last Wednesday that her desperation for celebrity status in the late 2000s led her to manipulate the media system.
A Calculated Deception
Kardashian detailed a specific incident from 2009 when she and her close friend Jonathan Cheban discovered which New York City hotel Britney Spears was occupying. The pair managed to secure transportation to the location in a Rolls-Royce Phantom thanks to a generous stranger, deliberately positioning themselves in the back seat to create the illusion of arriving with a chauffeur.
'We were like, "We'll sit in the back." So, it looks like we got out with a driver at this hotel. Paparazzi everywhere waiting for Britney at her hotel,' recalled the Skims CCO and founding partner.
The Hotel Lobby Charade
Upon arrival, the paparazzi immediately swarmed Kardashian, questioning whether she was visiting the pop icon. Cheban reportedly instructed her to 'keep your head down and just, like, shut up' as they navigated the chaotic scene. Once inside the establishment, the reality star and her companion found themselves in an awkward predicament.
'We didn't know anyone at this hotel,' Kardashian explained, revealing they spent twenty minutes hiding in a telephone booth within the lobby to maintain their fabricated narrative.
The Aftermath and Media Frenzy
When they eventually emerged from the hotel, photographers continued to press Kardashian about her supposed meeting with Spears. The socialite from Calabasas described how they completed their deception by departing in a taxi rather than the luxury vehicle that brought them, ensuring the paparazzi captured their exit.
'We took a cab, I think, because this Rolls-Royce dropped us off, but they weren't going to take pictures of us, like, getting in. So, we totally scammed the system. And it was like on every [magazine] cover. And we thought we were killing it,' Kardashian recounted with apparent pride.
Fame as an Obsession
The media personality's candid confession underscores her single-minded pursuit of celebrity during the early seasons of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, which premiered on E! in 2007. '[Fame] is all I wanted. I lived for it,' she declared on the podcast, acknowledging the lengths she would go to achieve recognition.
Current Projects and Legal Ambitions
While reflecting on these early career manipulations, Kardashian continues to expand her entertainment portfolio. Netflix recently announced production has commenced on Eva Longoria's ensemble comedy The Fifth Wheel, featuring Kardashian as a 'hot outsider' disrupting a Las Vegas reunion.
This casting confirms she will not be retaking the California State Bar exam scheduled for February 24-25, having discovered on November 7 that she failed the previous attempt by not achieving the required 1,390 out of 2,000 points. The aspiring attorney, who has expressed unconventional views about the 1969 Moon landing, dreams of following in the footsteps of her late father Robert Kardashian, who served on OJ Simpson's defense team.
Future Endeavours
Kardashian's upcoming projects demonstrate her continued diversification:
- Executive producing and reprising her role as divorce attorney Allura Grant in the second season of Ryan Murphy's legal drama All's Fair
- Producing and starring in the eighth season of The Kardashians
- Working on Amazon's live-action Bratz film for Amazon MGM Studios
- Producing Hulu pilot Group Chat starring La La Anthony
- Starring in an Amazon thriller written by Natalie Krinsky
Despite the passage of time, Kardashian's friendship with Jonathan Cheban endures, with the influencer last appearing on The Kardashians in March. Cheban, whom Kardashian met by chance at a 2009 birthday party, was famously nicknamed 'Foodgod' by her ex-husband Kanye West, a moniker that eventually became his legal name.
The reality star's recent social activities include a 'Calabasas night' on November 15 with Khloé, a 44-year-old pop star, and manager Cade Hudson, where they reportedly enjoyed a relaxed evening in pajamas. These contemporary moments contrast sharply with the calculated media manipulations of her early career, revealing the evolution of a woman who transformed desperate fame-seeking into a billion-dollar empire.
