From well-known storage hunter to charity giver, survivor, and… podcaster?! Brandi Passante's doing
more than just going treasure hunting every week. Here’s what she’s been up to today!
Brandi Passante and her co-star-slash-boyfriend, Jarrod Schulz welcomed two kids, Payton and
Cameron, before their stint on "Storage Wars." While her success meant more money
to provide for her kids, it resulted in unwanted attention from the public.
According to Passante, her rise to stardom was an anxiety-filled one.
As her popularity on the show grew, she'd find herself in uncomfortable
situations whenever she'd step out in public. Passante told Lifetime:
Safe to say, this passed down to her children, as she revealed that they're also not fans of
the limelight. Outside of their brief appearances on "Storage Wars" and their short-lived spinoff
"Brandi and Jarrod: Married to the Job," not much is known about her two children. On February 22,
2020, Passante posted a picture of Payton on Instagram with the caption:
Brandi Passante met Jarrod Schulz while working at a carpet-cleaning company in
1999. Much like their banter-filled relationship, the two seemingly have
different perspectives on who came on to who first according to The Orange County Register.
Nonetheless, their effortless interactions with each other made fans believe Brandi
and Jarrod were endgame. Unfortunately, on the 13th season premiere of "Storage Wars,"
Passante revealed that as of 2018, the two are no longer an item. In the episode, Passante stated:
"I'm not with Jarrod anymore."
Schulz believed this wouldn't be an issue in their auctioning endeavors
as long as they didn't cross paths. Although their spinoff show suggested
that they would get married, the two never tied the knot.
Through his Instagram, it became apparent that Schulz seamlessly moved on as he began to post
selfies with his girlfriend, Rachel Beckman. Passante revealed that she's not only taking
her time adjusting to the single life after 19 years but taking on the responsibility of
being a single mother as well. As she told Danny Jordan on ‘The Dad Diary’:
"I have them all the time, 24/7 they're here with me, so I have to navigate that.”
Jarrod Schulz seemingly took no time jumping into another relationship after splitting with Brandi
Passante. Although Passante's Instagram may suggest that she is actively dating,
the A&E alumni stated that she is not looking to get into any relationships.
During her appearance on "Spirit Talk Hosted by Shavaun and Sabrina", Passante described
herself as being quote, "emotionally dead inside." Despite the harsh words,
she expressed an essential need to focus on her well-being, telling Shavaun and Sabrina:
"I wasn't really allowed to have an identity for many, many years. And so,
these last couple of years, I've kind of — coming into my own and figuring out who I am."
While this may seem unfortunate, Passante revealed that her therapist stated that
this is only temporary. Shavaun and Sabrina seemed to share that same notion as they
revealed that their readings indicate that she will meet somebody very soon.
"It's coming in the next few years. Very unexpected.
Not somebody you would normally be attracted to, and beautiful eyes."
Shavaun then added that this person would not only shower her with love,
but he would also be someone of status. Aside from her matter-of-fact personality,
Passante appeared very hopeful after hearing the good news.
The sometimes-tense animosity between each of the enthusiastic bidders on "Storage Wars"
seemingly spilled into their real life. According to Brandi, she wasn't close to those on the show.
She even went as far as to express her dislike towards Dave Hester during her
appearance on the "Happening Now with Hammer" podcast. When
Hammer asked if that was one of her favorite co-stars, she responded:
"And I don't think that that's a secret."
Hester's been notorious for appearing as the show's main antagonist,
and according to Passante, he didn't care for masquerading as a nice guy.
Although she may not get along with the uncivil treasure hunter,
she did reveal that she's still in touch with Barry Weiss and Kenny Crossley. In
an interview with Inquirer.net, Passante and Jarrod suggested that they remained
good friends with Weiss following their departure in 2014, saying:
As for Kenny Crossley, Passante revealed that they
remained good friends — stating he’s one of her quote, “favorite humans."
Outside of her treasure-hunting endeavors, Brandi Passante made
it known that mental health is vital. Amid her ever-growing popularity, Brandi revealed
that the amount of attention she was getting caused her great stress and anxiety, saying:
It's safe to assume that Passante became involved in helping others due to her
own mental struggles. If you were to take a brief look at her Instagram,
you'd see several posts of the charities she's participated in.
From promoting the American Foundation for
Suicide Prevention on Instagram to emceeing a Women's Own Worth event,
Passante has had her hands full trying to give back to organizations she seemingly cares about.
According to The Saline Courier, 2019's WOWapalooza saw the organization raise
over $100,000 with the help of Passante. Driven by pure intentions, Passante revealed that the
organization was skeptical about having her emcee the event due to her celebrity status. However,
the "Storage Wars" reality star had no problem helping out for free, saying:
Helping to raise $100,000 for a charity event revolving around
domestic violence was more than just an act of goodwill from the A&E alumni herself.
On Instagram, Passante revealed she is a survivor of domestic abuse. In 2021,
she unveiled a meaningful hand tattoo that read,
"Free." Passante penned a lengthy caption explaining its meaning, writing:
Although she never specified who this was about, many of her followers believe this
may be a callback to Jarrod Schulz's alleged domestic abuse charge in May of the same year.
According to TMZ, Schulz and Passante got into an argument that resulted in Schulz pushing her
twice in front of her friends. The two at the time were broken up and seemed to have moved on
from their 19-year-long relationship. However, they seemingly built up tension that may have
reawakened amid their appearance together on the set of the 13th season of "Storage Wars."
2020 was a year filled with uncertainty for not
just us but for Brandi Passante. Along with contracting COVID-19,
the reality star seemingly lost tight-knit family members throughout the year.
On October 26, 2020, Brandi Passante took to Instagram to announce that
her father had passed away. By quoting Neil Young's "Angel's Flying Too Close
to the Ground," the "daddy's girl" acknowledged her father's kind soul
while declaring that she's tired of 2020 being a year filled with grief, writing:
For her father, it seemed like this was a long-winded battle. During her appearance
on "Spirit Talk Hosted by Shavaun and Sabrina", she revealed that her father
had faced several medical hardships for 35 years before his passing, revealing:
"He had rheumatoid arthritis, he had osteoporosis,
he got liver cancer. So many things. He ended up dying of lung cancer."
As a result of several diagnoses, her father was seemingly depressed — a revelation that Shavaun
picked up on during her reading. While the loss may still be fresh in her head,
the two revealed that he is watching over her, reassuring Passante that he loved her dearly.
Is it much of a surprise that the TV personality herself hopped
on the podcasting bandwagon? Given Brandi Passante's sharp-wittedness,
most would assume she'd fit right in with the Joe Rogans and the Andrew Schulzes of the world.
According to Hammer and Troy from the "Happening Now with Hammer" podcast,
they seem to carry that same notion. On June 24, 2021,
she made her first appearance on the show. Though it seemed like she was merely a guest,
Hammer opens up the episode by suggesting that Passante may become a regular on the podcast.
Before discussing several topics regarding her journey to "Storage Wars," Hammer stated:
"We have a new friend of ours that's going to be joining us
periodically — hopefully more often than not.”
Fortunately, Brandi Passante became a regular on the show,
starring in almost every weekly episode since her first appearance. Despite
Hammer jokingly having a different take on how they met, the two met at a dive bar.
Their friendship presumably reached a point where
they trusted Passante enough to be a dedicated co-host. On her Instagram,
you could see her promote the podcast alongside posting quirky selfies of them hanging out.
As for the podcast, topics discussed on the show range from weird holiday traditions to
Only Fans stories. As fans of "Storage Wars," Hammer and Alex even had Don and Laura Dotson,
Kenny Crossley, and Lisa Delarios on their podcast.
Despite her prolonged break from reality television,
the matter-of-fact buyer herself returned to "Storage Wars" for its 13th season.
Brandi Passante said her return to the show was out of sheer boredom.
Aside from her other endeavors, it seems that Passante hasn't fed into her passion
for treasure hunting in quite some time. Her long-awaited return to real-life TV saw her
reunite with Barry Weiss, Kenny Crossley, Dan and Laura Dotson, and her ex-boyfriend Jarrod Schulz.
Passante — who was slightly uncomfortable being on set with Schulz — tried to avoid him. However,
this was short-lived, as the 13th season premiere saw the two run into each other at an auction.
Though they may have preferred to stay as far from each other as possible,
it didn't take long for them to make wisecracks at each other's expense. Although it took some
time for the cast members to get back into the swing of things, Passante assured fans
that this didn't stop them from producing a great season, telling Pop Culture in 2021:
While fans were ecstatic about Brandi’s return to "Storage Wars," they couldn't help but notice
that she sounded a lot different from what they remembered. According to Passante, this is due to
a rare autoimmune disorder. When asked about her scratchy voice on Instagram, Passante responded:
According to the Mayo Clinic, Hashimoto's disease halts the production of hormones
our thyroid produces. While the disorder can cause several alarming health issues
like reproductive dysfunction and cardiovascular diseases,
it seems that Passante's only apparent symptom is a scratchy voice.
Despite being affected by a rare autoimmune disorder, it seems that Passante still leads
a healthy life, nonetheless. She's seemingly doing well, as the disease hasn't prevented
her from returning to "Storage Wars" and continuing her co-hosting duties on her podcast.