Crystal Kung Minkoff Weighs In on Ashley Tisdale's 'Toxic' Mom Group Drama After Losing Friends

FormerReal Housewives of Beverly Hills star Crystal Kung Minkoff, who revealed she lost “14 friends” after joining the franchise in Season 11, weighed in on Ashley Tisdale's drama surrounding her “toxic” mom group during a recent episode of her “Humble Brag” podcast.

“I know probably 70 percent of the mom group because [our kids] all went to preschool together … and one [of the moms] went to the same high school as us,” Minkoff, 42, said on Monday, January 12. She clarified that her comments would remain broad to "protect people's privacy."

Although Minkoff isn't part of the high-profile mom group that includes Hilary Duff, Mandy Moore, and Meghan Trainor, she can relate to Tisdale’s feelings. Earlier this month, Tisdale, 40, wrote an essay for The Cut titled “Breaking Up With My Toxic Mom Group.” In it, she described the insecurity of feeling “not cool enough” after being excluded from group hangouts, prompting her to distance herself from those friendships.

“Ashley’s story was that she left the group, and my story is I didn’t leave the group,” Minkoff stated. “I did the show — and I did a whole episode about this, so it’s not untold — but I did the show, and they all went against me and dropped me.”

“You know if you’re being pushed out,” she said.

Following the viral response to Tisdale's essay and the backlash she received, the star's publicist claimed the actress was referencing a different mom group.

However, Minkoff maintained her belief, insisting, “I know it’s the group,” especially after comments from others, including Duff's husband, Matthew Koma.

While Minkoff acknowledged the difficulty of including everyone, she doesn’t believe Tisdale stretched the truth. “It’s hard to always include everybody. I don’t think Ashley was reading it wrong,” she said.

Minkoff, who shares son Max, 13, and daughter Zoe, 10, with husband Rob Minkoff, admitted she reached out to one of the moms in Tisdale’s former group after the media frenzy.

“I was like, ‘I gotta know what’s going on,’” she recalled, adding that the response she received was, “It’s so ironic that we’re the toxic ones, and she’s on her own.”

While Crystal sympathizes with Ashley, she has known Hilary, whom she describes as “super sweet,” for over a decade.

Crystal expressed, “I have mixed feelings about this whole ordeal. I feel for Ashley, obviously. I understand [because] I was on my own.”

Though she questions why Ashley chose to go public with her experiences, Crystal believes the situation sparked an “important conversation.”

“Everyone has gone through this on some level,” she reflected, stating that Ashley's article reminded her of her own past experiences. “I’ve put so much effort and stress wanting to be part of something I’m not part of anymore, and I don’t care anymore.”