“Cash” Me Ousside, How Bow Dah?
“Did you just say…?” Yup, Dr. Phil. She just said that.
I wish I could just pat Dr. Phil’s back and say “I feel you, man” because when I watched this episode, I was just as confused as Dr. Phil and the live audience. I can’t even deny the fact that I shamelessly binge-watched bits and pieces from this specific interview after hundreds of tweets and posts spread all over social media. Well, Danielle Bregoli, you just won the heart of memes with your catch phrase. I’m pretty sure that there are so many more important things going on in this world, but let me shift my focus on why (and honestly, HOW) “cash me ousside girl” became one of the most popular and most talked about meme in the world for a consecutive amount of times. After appearing on Dr. Phil as a delinquent and rebellious teen, Danielle Bregoli became the talk of the town, not just because of her signature catchphrase but also because of the documented unruly behaviour she exhibited on TV towards her mother, Dr. Phil and the audience. YES. The Audience: the innocent strangers who were just there to watch Dr. Phil, fell victim to Bregoli’s behaviour. Bregoli started calling the audience “h*es” on national television, causing her to be a laughing stock. Okay, maybe, I knew she was saying “catch me outside, how ‘bout that?”, but with her “so-called-street” accent, it sounded differently and this one little incident, ultimately became her source of income.
I personally don’t think Bregoli even knew what she was about to get into when she said that phrase, but as soon as her video blew up, she exploited the opportunity to capitalize on her so-called-fame. After her appearance on Dr. Phil, she was invited to several shows such as the Rolling Loud Music Festival in which she offered to appear for a price of £30,000. These event organizers knew that she was the hot topic all over social media, therefore they were willing to pay grands just to have Bregoli show up for 2 seconds since they know that her presence can drive up their sales.
In addition to her ridiculous offer to appear at a Miami festival, several advertisers contacted her for sponsorships because of her ever-growing number of followers. Although her rise to fame wasn’t necessarily ideal, the “boom” of her career was already enough for companies to approach her to promote their products for (at least) $500 per post as they are aware that she can influence the minds of consumers; however, it also risks their image and their brand as Bregoli is known for her unruly behaviour. FitTea and PostMates are two of the biggest brands that are partnering with Bregoli right now; although she does not necessarily fit the overall image of these brands, FitTea and Postmates are actually known to partner with many social media influencers (including Alexis Renn, Connor Franta and LaurDIY). Surprisingly, these companies are successful (sponsor me too, please).
Still using her social media presence, Bregoli further exploited her fame by shocking her followers with photoshoots that exhibited her complete make-over. Behind the scenes, it is clear that she capitalized her fame by partnering with photographers to do these photoshoots. These photos are then posted on her Instagram where people can look and be intrigued by her new makeover. Thus, allowing her to gain more followers which persuades more advertisers to partner with her for sponsorships.
If you think Bregoli has only been capitalizing her fame through social media, well think again, because she’s been eye-ing down and attempting to sue major companies who are allegedly “stealing” her catch phrase from her. She recently just filed a lawsuit against a mobile gaming company who “infringed her intellectual property rights by making cash off her “likeness, voice and signature catchphrase without consent” by creating games called “Cash Me Outside” and “How Bow Dat”. Additionally, she also tried to sue Walmart for thousands of dollars for using her catch phrase on several merchandise, however, she failed on this case as the lawyers of both sides agreed to remove these products off the shelves.
But what else can she do to gain more money from this fame? I thought she would run out of ways too, but Bregoli apparently had dreams of becoming a rapper that we did not know about as she has an alter-ego named “Bhad Bhabie”. “Bhad Bhabie” actually has an amazing rapper career going on for her as her single “These Heaux” became a hit and was listed under the Billboard Hot 100 Charts (and she’s actually the youngest person ever to hit that record. WOW. Just wow). Being on the Top 100 chart means her single is being played on the radio, on music streaming devices and is being bought online by curious consumers, which therefore adds up to her income. Furthermore, just like any other influencers, Bregoli has been using YouTube (under her alter-ego name Bhad Bhabie) to gain AdSense money by releasing her own music videos, remixes to her other songs, as well as her self-made vlogs and videos. She currently has over 3 Million Subscribers and gains an average of 15 Million views.
But the real question right now is:
“will Bhad Bhabie be able to make it to the music industry and remove her “Cash Me Ousside How Bow Dah” brand by shifting everyone’s focus to her new rapper movement?”
For a 14 year old who started off on a show based on giving advice regarding human and psychological behaviours, she exploited her opportunities at the right time. Who would have even thought that one simple catch phrase can lead to something as big as everything Danielle Bregoli achieved. Even so, the presence of social media gave her the platform to transition to the music industry without any concerns of whether or not people will listen to her music. Danielle Bregoli is a living legend of memes who successfully capitalized on her chance to become famous. Now as an artist myself who’s been struggling to make it to the music industry, i’m so close to rethinking my decision of using YouTube as a platform to reach my audience and just appear on a TV show to say a catch phrase that will capture the world’s attention.
