Cashing In On The Cashing Outside
When I say the name Danielle Bregoli Peskowitz, there’s a solid chance you’ll have no idea who I’m talking about. However, if I were to instead say Cash Me Outside Girl or Bhad Bhabie, you suddenly know exactly who I’m referring to. What started off as a story about a troubled teen became… well still a story about a troubled teen, just now with lots of money. Danielle Bregoli, a 14 year old girl from Florida, began her career as a guest on the Dr. Phil show. Her use of street dialect paired with her not-caring attitude on the show went viral and she instantly became one of the biggest internet sensations of that time. After her quick claim to fame, she was welcomed back on the Dr. Phil show yet again to do a follow up interview on how she’s been doing. She used this extra publicity to extend her moment in the spotlight by telling Dr. Phil that she was the one that made him famous. Bold strategy for someone who became famous from being on the Dr. Phil show.
It wasn’t long before she realised that becoming an internet sensation could only last so long. In order to maintain your meme status, you need to work to keep it up; and that’s exactly what she did. She was able to use the popularity she gained from becoming an internet sensation to transform herself into Bhad Bhabie, an “American Rapper”. With hits such as These Heaux and Hi Bitch, she’s been racking in the views — and more importantly — the money. Right now, Danielle’s net worth is estimated to be approximately $10 Million with her views exceeding 15 million on almost all of her YouTube videos. Although her videos are split pretty evenly between likes and dislikes, I think it’s safe to say that she’s been doing pretty well for herself.
One thing I find a bit bothersome about this whole situation is that the internet made it so easy for her to start a successful rap career. Old school rappers like Tupac and Nas had to jump through hurdles to get to where they were, but now as long as you can make people laugh you’re eligible to join the rap game. The internet has obviously been very useful for various reasons, but internet fame is one case that I believe has gone too far. The entire media industry has been corrupted by nonsensical YouTube humour, and the world has turned soft because of it. I’d be lying if I said I don’t find some internet memes funny, but some people just take it too far. Smosh has a movie, Logan Paul has an album — and now if you search Danielle Bregoli’s name on Google, she’s described as an American Rapper. I know that music is subject to change throughout time, and I’m generally on board with adapting to new styles; but these internet rappers are a category I don’t think I’ll ever be able to take seriously.
