Love 'em or hate 'em, folks can't stop gabbing about the cast of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta." For some the show has become an addiction and others just another abhorrent  melodrama that marks the impending death of quality TV. But for Kandi Burruss, the newest ATL housewife, it's simply surreal. Before joining the infamous Georgia Peaches, the former Xscape member was a bonafide couch potato and die-hard "RHOA" fan, making sure to TIVO every episode of Bravo's southern installment. Now the Grammy-winning singer and songwriter stands on the frontlines with the cast waiting to live excerpts of her life in front of millions. ESSENCE.com caught up with the single mom to talk about her sudden engagement, her fiancé's critics and her beef with NeNe Leakes.

ESSENCE.COM: Welcome to the show. How's it been going?
KANDI BURRUSS: it's been fun for the most part. But, to be honest, when it was first announced that I would be a part of the show the blogs really dogged my fiancé. At first I was upset that they were saying he has all these kids and he cheats and that the lovin' must be so good that it makes me want to stay. It was just crazy, but it has made for some good song material.

ESSENCE.COM: It's tough living under a microscope, but we've read that your mom has been equally critical of your relationship with Ashley "AJ" Jewel. How have you and your mom been getting along?
BURRUSS: It's gotten worse and we deal with some of our issues on camera. Our engagement is fairly new. We met last July and got engaged in January. It's been hurtful to him because he has kids old enough to read this, and really I expected that people would have things to say about me, not my fiancé. When he read what they were saying he was like, I wish you weren't doing the show, but it was too late because we'd already signed the contracts. So we're going to ride it out.

ESSENCE.COM: Unfortunately, living in the spotlight of dramality TV, this level of public scrutiny is to be expected. Why have so many people accused him of not being employed?
BURRUSS: People were accusing him of being a street pharmacist, but AJ has his own music production company and he also does other things outside of music. I recognize some people don't like dating people with children but I'm a single mom of a 6-year-old, and now I also have AJ's twin 12-year-old daughters living with us, and we're all adjusting as a blended family. My daughter enjoys them and I enjoy being able to experience the [tween] years.

ESSENCE.COM: Well, there's talk that you and NeNe have beef. Is that true?
BURRUSS: It started off cool, and as taping went on me and NeNe, well, I'll just say things got stressful. We have words and we a'ight now. We at least tolerate each other. It's kind of funny because I was a big fan of hers, but it's one thing to think when you watch people on television and they seem larger than life and you think it's cute and funny, but when you meet that person in real life and that same attitude is directed at you it ain't so funny no more.

ESSENCE.COM: Does this mean we can expect catfights?
BURRUSS: I'm not a person who's going to back down and will tell you in a second that you can't talk to me any old kind of way. So I'll just say there will be a lot of big disagreements and a lot of drama on the show.

Tune in to see more of Kandi Burruss on "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" (Bravo) on Thursday, July 30, at 10 P.M. EST.