Anyone paying attention this season is well-aware that Tom Schwartz’s latest Vanderpump fling (well, the one he’s not sharing with Katie Maloney) is a woman of many names: Jo Wenberg, Joseph, and Jomygosh, to name a few. It turns out that Jo, aficionado of bleached hair and living life like the crossed-eyed tongue-out emoji, has more titular surprises up her sleeve even though season eleven filming has already wrapped. Reddit detectives have discovered Jo’s government name is actually Kaleigh (the devil works hard but Redditors work harder) and are unpacking infidelity/hairstyling tea from the guys’ girl’s past. Though I’ll take any excuse not to have to use Schwartz’s nickname “Joseph,” which I can only hear in that Colleen Ballinger-coded voice, I was curious why Jo changed her name in the first place. Here’s what my investigation (wild speculation) found.
The Jo/Kaleigh Tea
View this post on Instagram
Bravo art account, drunkdrawn, received an anonymous DM that alleged Jo’s “real name Kayleigh [sic]” had been her boyfriend’s hairdresser/friend in Milwaukee. Eventually, that friendship turned into a deeper connection (sound familiar?) and the pair ran off to LA together leaving the girlfriend in the dust. An online transfer announcement from Jo’s former university of St. Norberg confirmed her original name along with a picture of young Jo that looks straight out of a Mormon high school yearbook.
Why Does Anyone Care?
While no one should be up in arms about an ancient cheating scandal or electing to drop one of the baby names that white lady wrote a chalkboard, it is lukewarm (if not scalding) hot, tea for several reasons. Firstly, VPR fans are somewhat divided over whether to feel bad for Jo for getting played by Schwartz on national television or charge it to the game since she was complicit in Ariana getting played by Sandoval and Rachel. The cheating rumors would add credence to the side that believes Jo is not a girl’s girl, so while Schwartz is still the ultimate villain, she’s not entirely innocent of how she ended up in that scenario. Her cool chill hottie persona does come on strong and knowing that she changed her name from Kaleigh to something far more bro-friendly is admittedly lol-worthy.
Why Did Kaleigh Change Her Name to Jo?
Let’s take some educated guesses, shall we? Rachel, FKA Raquel, changed her name to make herself feel more “special.” Since they’re practically matching-friendship-bracelets-level close these days, perhaps birds of a feather flock together, and Jo wanted something a little more vibey before she hopped off the plane at LAX. Also, apparently Jo is her middle name, so perhaps she identified with that more than her first one. Jo’s styling business seems to go by “JoMyGosh Hair” so it’s even possible this was purely a business decision. Considering I’m contemplating buying a “JoMyGosh I Will Cut You” hat, it would be a good business decision, at that. Jo gave some very negative feedback on Rachel’s podcast about her Pump Rules experience, so it’s unlikely we’ll see her back on the show to explain. But Jo, if you’re reading this, feel free to DM me the truth (and a link for the hat).
