Jenn Tran is ‘very happy’ with how her ‘Bachelorette’ season ends

By Lisa Respers France, CNN

(CNN) — The first Asian American woman to star in “The Bachelorette” sounds plenty pleased with how her season will unfold.

The newest “Bachelorette,” Jenn Tran, 26, takes the lead on the reality dating show after missing out on winning the heart of Joey Graziadei’s on Season 28 of “The Bachelor.”

Tran told People magazine she plans to tune in and watch the new season, beginning Monday night, even though she lived it.

“Are you kidding me? I’m not going to watch the best two months of my life? Of course, I am!” she said. “I am so excited for it to premiere. I feel like it’s so weird that this crazy journey happened, and I am just so excited to be able to watch it back.”

Tran acknowledged appearing on reality TV hasn’t all been positive “because racism still exists.”

“I have gotten a lot of hate messages, but along with that, I’ve also gotten so many people who have been so grateful to see somebody like me on their screen,” Tran said. “I feel so grateful and honored that I get to do that for people because growing up, I never had that. I am becoming the role model that I’ve always wanted to see as a little girl.”

Tran, a physician assistant, said she was busy filming her season after the announcement was made that she would be “The Bachelorette” and didn’t have her phone. She said she only learned about some of the backlash to her casting after the fact.

“It was really tough for me to see all of that, but I continue to stay grateful. I’m so honored to be the first Asian American lead,” she said. “I know I’m inspiring so many people to embrace their differences. I really think my story lies in the fact that I’ve always felt different my entire life, and I hope that people can see that you shouldn’t want to be normal, you should embrace what makes you you.”

And the woman who went into the franchise looking for love says she’s thrilled with how her experience plays out.

“I’m very happy with the ending and I’m very happy with the way everything panned out,” Tran said. “I learned so much every day that I was there [to find out] about myself and what I wanted in a relationship. There was so much growth.”

“The Bachelorette” airs Mondays at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.

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