The Bachelor Nation personality, 30, opened up about the experience via her Instagram Story on Saturday, March 13. She thanked fans for their kindness and revealed that she spoke with longtime host Chris Harrison, whom she and Bristowe, 35, are replacing.

“Oh my gosh, you guys. What a wild announcement to be made within the last 24 hours,” the California native began. “I feel so honored to be given the opportunity. I’m just so, so, so happy and I’m so happy that you guys are happy. … It means so much.”

She continued: “The fact that I talked to Chris the other day and he was so kind and congratulated me for being a part of the next season meant the absolute world. With that being said, y’all, let’s freakin’ go.”

While Adams’ experience after the announcement was largely positive, Bristowe faced some backlash. The Canada native hit back at trolls after being named one of Harrison’s replacements on The Bachelorette.

“Love you Kaitlyn but no, just no,” one Instagram user wrote. She clapped back, “Do you though?”

Another social media user wrote, “Horrible to celebrate Chris Harrison being involved in Cancel Culture…. Bachelor Nation is over.” Bristowe replied, “I’m celebrating a friendship here to be honest.”

Plenty of fans were happy for Bristowe and Adams, though. One commented, “YAS QUEENS.” The ABC personality responded with a red heart emoji.

Harrison, 49, announced that he was temporarily stepping back from Bachelor Nation on February 13. His announcement came days after his controversial interview with former Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay for Extra. During the conversation, Harrison defended Bachelor season 25 contestant Rachael Kirkconnell amid her racism scandal. Harrison has since apologized for his statements.

Us Weekly confirmed on Friday, March 12, that Harrison would not return to The Bachelorette as host in season 17. ABC released a statement addressing the decision and revealed his replacements.

“Chris Harrison will not be hosting the next season of The Bachelorette. We support Chris in the work that he is committed to doing. In his absence, former Bachelorettes Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe will support the new Bachelorette through next season,” the statement read. “As we continue the dialogue around achieving greater equality and inclusion within The Bachelor franchise, we are dedicated to improving the BIPOC representation of our crew, including among the executive producer ranks. These are important steps in effecting fundamental change so that our franchise is a celebration of love that is reflective of our world.”

Adams starred in the second half of The Bachelorette season 16 after Clare Crawley chose to leave with then-fiancé Dale Moss after two weeks of filming together. Bristowe appeared in season 11 of the show.

This story originally appeared on: US Magazine - Author:Caitlyn Hitt