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Hawk Tuah girl returns after crypto scam controversy

Credit: YouTube/Haliey Welch
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Bristol, UK
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Haliey Welch went viral last year for her ‘hawk tuah’ TikTok interview moment. Since then, she’s amassed over 2 million Instagram followers, launched a podcast, and faced controversy for a pump-and-dump crypto currency scheme. She’s now returned after two months offline.

‘Hawk Tuah’ girl is back, everyone!

22-year-old Haliey Welch went viral last year for a street interview she did with TikTok content creators Tim Dickerson and DeArius Marlow. When asked ‘what’s a move in bed that makes a man go crazy?,’ she responded: ‘you gotta give him that hawk tuah and spit on that thing, you get me?’

The clip was one of the most shared memes of 2024 and it soon took on a life of its own. People made t-shirts, banners, tribute posts, and much more. I even saw her iconic catch phrase hand-painted onto flags at Glastonbury, for crying out loud.

Haliey has since jumped on the opportunity to build her personal brand. She hired her own influencer team and an agent, launched a line of hats and merchandise, and started a podcast. She was received well and has gained over 2.5 million Instagram followers in six months.

Despite all the success, Haliey managed to fall out of public opinion at the end of last year when she launched her own cryptocurrency meme coin, which she dubbed ‘HAWKTUAH.’ Yes, really.

The currency was very clearly a pump-and-dump scheme, whereby the original creators of the coin take a large percentage of stock while the value is high early on and then immediately sell before the value falls through. It left many of her audience out of pocket and was labelled a scam. Haliey herself defended the coin at the time and pushed back against investigators.

Since the scam, Haliey has been radio silent. Her podcast YouTube channel stopped posting regular episodes and she has not uploaded any new content to her Instagram profile. Until now!

A new episode of the Talk Tuah Podcast (that is what it’s called, yes) was uploaded to YouTube and then immediately deleted. She appears to sit down with fellow content creator Faze Banks who ‘explains’ crypto and the benefits of digital currencies. Haliey also admits to knowing very little about crypto and says that her team are doing ‘everything to make this right.’

There is no real apology or admittance of guilt, mind.

The video has bizarrely already been removed, maybe due to the initial backlash and poor response from viewers. Haliey and her team are likely considering their options for damage control at this point as a large swathe of public opinion appears to be inherently negative.


What does her story say about influencer culture in 2025?

Haliey Welch’s story is an interesting one. In many ways, her six-month career trajectory has essentially been a speed run of the usual influencer pipeline. She was insanely popular for a trivial, silly moment, which was then capitalised on and immediately tainted.

Other creators have fallen down the rabbit hole of dodgy investment scams and meme coins. The most obvious that comes to mind is Logan Paul, who fell into hot water for his ‘Cryptozoo’ blockchain game in 2022. The project was never completed and investors lost out on millions of US dollars. Keep in mind that Hailey is signed to Jake Paul’s management company – the brother of Logan.

Many people have looked at Haliey’s success as underserved and ridiculous.

Her name became synonymous with KSI, Mr Beast and Logan Paul’s poorly-received ‘Lunchly’ product last year. TikTokers pretended to watch her podcast while grossly eating the cheese and crackers that come inside every box, lumping all of it into the realm of ‘brain rot.’

There is a sense that the standard for influencer marketing is slipping. There are countless management companies and agencies ready and willing to take on any new ‘talent’ regardless of their origins, but the moral standards and regulatory practices are not keeping up. Scams are easy to exploit, younger audiences can be duped, and there are far fewer checks and balances in place for online spaces than there are traditional media.

Haliey’s podcast in particular is regarded as cringey and unnecessary.

While some blame can be placed on Hailey herself, she is only one part of a wider team. A 22-year-old with no prior experience in the influencer industry is bound to be taken advantage of, and more scrutiny should be placed on the people that she surrounded herself with.

Audience appetite also allows this type of content to thrive too. As long as there is a demand there will always be a supply. Haliey’s story is a cautionary tale, but not all of it is on her.

Remote Writer Bristol, UK

I’m Charlie (He/Him), a Remote Writer at Thred. I was previously the Editor at Thred before moving to Bristol in 2024. As a music and gaming enthusiast, I’m a nerd for pop culture. You can find me curating playlists, designing article headline images, and sipping cider on a Thursday. Follow me on Twitter, LinkedIn and drop me some ideas/feedback via email.

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