Current:Home > ScamsMiranda Sings YouTuber Colleen Ballinger Breaks Silence on Grooming Allegations With Ukulele Song -WealthX
Miranda Sings YouTuber Colleen Ballinger Breaks Silence on Grooming Allegations With Ukulele Song
View
Date:2025-04-15 10:03:58
Colleen Ballinger is singing her side of the story.
The YouTuber, best known for her awkward alter ego Miranda Sings, refuted allegations of grooming and forming inappropriate relationships with underage fans in musical vlog on June 28. While strumming a ukulele, Ballinger likened the accusations to a "toxic gossip train" headed for "manipulation station" as the rest of the internet "tie me to the tracks and harass me for my past."
"Some people are saying things about me that just aren't true," she said in a sing-song voice. "Even though my team has strongly advised me not to say what I'm going to say, I realized they never said I couldn't sing about what I want to say."
Ballinger, 36, went on to explain how she used to message her fans "to be besties with everybody" earlier in her career, but "didn't understand that maybe there should be some boundaries there."
As a result, according to the Haters Back Off star, there were "times in the DMs when I would overshare details of my life—which was really weird of me—and I haven't done that in years because I changed my behavior and took accountability."
Earlier this month, Ballinger was accused of grooming her fans when YouTuber KodeeRants shared screenshots of an alleged text exchange between actress and her fans. Per NBC News, the unverified group text was named "Colleeny's Weenies," with Ballinger allegedly asking fans their "favorite position" during one conversation.
In her ukulele video, Ballinger addressed the recent online chatter over her past, singing, "I thought you wanted me to take accountability, but that's not the point of your mob mentality. Your goal is to ruin the life of the person you despise while you dramatize your lies and monetize their demise."
"I'm sure you're disappointed in my s--tty little song, I know you wanted me to say that I was 100 percent in the wrong," she continued. "Well, I'm sorry I'm not gonna take that route of admitting to lies and rumors that you made up for clout."
And while Ballinger confessed to making "jokes in poor taste" and "lots of dumb mistakes," she denied ever sending inappropriate messages to teenage fans with the intention of grooming them.
"I just wanted to say that thing I've ever groomed is my two Persian cats," Ballinger added. "I'm not a groomer. I'm just a loser who didn't understand I shouldn't respond to fans."
Allegations over Ballinger's behavior previously surfaced back in 2020, when fellow YouTube star Adam McIntyre accused her of putting him in uncomfortable situations between the ages of 13 and 16. In a video titled "colleen ballinger, stop lying," he specifically called out a past livestream where Ballinger sent him lingerie.
At the time, Ballinger responded to McIntyre and acknowledged that the underwear stunt was "completely stupid," saying in a separate apology video, "I should have never sent that."
"I don't know what part of my brain was missing at the time that I thought, 'Oh, this is a normal, silly thing to do,'" added Ballinger. "But I am not a monster."
(E! and NBC News are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News AppveryGood! (546)
Related
- From family road trips to travel woes: Americans are navigating skyrocketing holiday costs
- Vietnam War veteran comes out as gay in his obituary, reveals he will be buried next to the love of my life
- Suspect arrested after Louisiana woman killed, her 2 young daughters abducted and 1 killed, authorities say
- Holly Bobo murder case returns to court, 7 years after a Tennessee man’s conviction
- Meet the volunteers risking their lives to deliver Christmas gifts to children in Haiti
- Top US bishop worries Catholic border services for migrants might be imperiled by government action
- Tyson Foods suspends executive John R. Tyson after DWI arrest in Arkansas
- Top US bishop worries Catholic border services for migrants might be imperiled by government action
- In ‘Nickel Boys,’ striving for a new way to see
- Get an Extra 40% Off Anthropologie Sale Styles, 70% Off Tarte Cosmetics, $50 Off Cuisinart Gadgets & More
Ranking
- 'Kraven the Hunter' spoilers! Let's dig into that twisty ending, supervillain reveal
- Takeaways from Supreme Court ruling: Abortion pill still available but opponents say fight not over
- Trooper with checkered FBI past convicted of child rape in Alabama
- Hurry! Gap Is Offering 50% off Your Entire Purchase, Including Sale Items Like Basics for Summer & More
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Micro communities for the homeless sprout in US cities eager for small, quick and cheap solutions
- 90 Day Fiancé’s Liz Calls Out Big Ed With Scathing Message in Awkward AF Final Goodbye
- 9 swimmers you should know for Olympic swimming trials: Kate Douglass, Regan Smith
Recommendation
A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
Google CEO testifies at trial of collapsed startup Ozy Media and founder Carlos Watson
G7 leaders tackle the issue of migration on the second day of their summit in Italy
Little Big Town on celebrating 25 years of harmony with upcoming tour and Greatest Hits album
Stamford Road collision sends motorcyclist flying; driver arrested
Sandy Hook families want to seize Alex Jones' social media accounts
Vietnam War veteran comes out as gay in his obituary, reveals he will be buried next to the love of my life
TikTokers are eating raw garlic to cure acne in viral videos. Does it actually work?