Haliey Welch also known as Hawk Tuah Girl, is gaining popularity after her appearance in a street interview by Tim & Dee TV. The video asks her, “What’s one move in bed that makes a man go crazy every time?”
Her answer has caused her to go viral. “You gotta give ’em that ‘hawk tuah’ and spit on that thang.” Words can’t do her justice, so you’ll need to watch the video.
Got it now? “Hawk tuah” sounds like someone spitting into a spittoon in an old Western saloon, but she’s talking about sex. It’s pretty funny, especially when you consider the buzz around Who is Hawk Tuah Girl. You can decide if it’s funny enough to go viral for more than a week.
Hold on, that’s all there is to it?
Yeah. Think of this as a PG-13 version of the “Damn, Daniel” thing. She cracked a joke. The Internet’s head over heels and folks are rushing to cash in on her popularity. Word got out that she was about to ink a deal with United Talent Agency, but TMZ now says that’s not happening.
Someone needs to come up with a plan for this girl. She’s got tons of charm, which you know, is a big part of being a celebrity. Welch is raking in cash from the official Hawk Tuah hats. Jason Poteete, who owns the apparel company Fathead Threads, makes these trucker-style caps.
He told Rolling Stone he’s known Welch for years. In his chat with the magazine, Poteete said the merch is flying off the shelves. They’ve moved over 2,000 hats so far. The signed $50 version ran out of stock. With the cheapest one priced at $32.78, the company has pulled in at least $65,000 just from hat sales.
Poteete didn’t reveal how much Welch would get, but he said he wanted to ensure she got a cut of the profits made from her name. “She hasn’t seen a penny from the first video that went viral,” Poteete told the magazine. “Nobody asked her permission to do anything either. I just wanted her to get some money from this situation.”
Did she lose her job?
No, people are just joking around. A joke account on social media called Tippah County Tribune put out a fake news story on Facebook. They said Welch, who they called “Haliey Wellington,” lost her job as a preschool teacher at “Epstein Day School.”
Their made-up story claimed the kids started “spitting on each other and everything else” after the video went viral. Welch later said she actually worked at a spring factory in her hometown in Tennessee. She didn’t lose that job because of this whole thing. She quit after the video blew up.
What has she said about becoming famous?
Welch gave her first interview to Brianna Lapaglia, who hosts the Plan Bri podcast on Barstool Sports. Lapaglia is in a relationship with country singer Zach Bryan. Bryan talked to Welch backstage before his show. Later, he invited her to join him on stage.
They performed his popular song “Revival” together. During the performance, Welch yelled “Hawk tuah!” into the microphone. Welch informed Lapaglia that she had been in Nashville to attend CMA Fest when she recorded her now-famous video. She mentioned she never expected to see the clip again.
She said she noticed it going viral around 2 a.m. as she prepared for work. “I freaked out,” Welch stated. As the video kept gaining popularity, people started creating fake social media profiles for the 21-year-old. She explained she had deleted all her accounts six months earlier for personal reasons.
“It’s kind of unsettling seeing your face on another account that isn’t yours,” she remarked. People have acted about this whole situation. Welch mentioned that someone offered Poteete—the hat guy—$600 if he could get her to spit in a jar and mail it to him.
Hawk Tuah says she wants to use this opportunity to launch a career. She now has a manager and a team and says her plan is “a show, and we’re just gonna be on a bunch of podcasts and everything else in between.”
Ms. Tuah looks to the future
She informed Lapaglia, “My management team is working out my next moves.” The Hollywood Reporter states Welch had joined a management company named The Penthouse. “Our team is excited to steer this fast-rising star,” The Penthouse founder Jonnie Forster said in a statement.
“Every podcaster agrees — chat with her for a few minutes and you’ll understand why she’s won America’s heart.” I’m unsure which podcasters he means, given she’s been on one podcast show. She explained her statement about not “Hawk Tuah” Trump, stating, “I was talking about looks-wise.
Donald Trump, I’m sure you’re a nice man, but you ain’t getting the hawk from me. He’s old enough to be my granddaddy.” Welch and her team seem uncertain about her next career move. She expressed interest in podcasting and wants to work in a somewhat comedic area.
She now has a publicist, and when told she’s represented by the same firm that handles Bruce Springsteen’s publicity, she asked, “Who is that?” Meanwhile, people are still asking, “Who is Hawk Tuah Girl?” as she navigates her new-found fame. “Okay take a breath and say this with me: It’s fine if a 21-year-old from a village of 700 people doesn’t know Bruce Springsteen.”