It’s like “Toddlers and Tiaras” for the TikTok generation.
A woman in Ireland has managed to make her toddler an influencing star on TikTok, and is hoping that her newborn son will follow in the footsteps of his sister soon enough.
Sam Connelly, 34, is mom to Ivy Connelly, 3, who has already amassed over 126,000 followers on her account, “Ivy the Scottish toddler,” as she loves to entertain viewers with her Scottish slang and funny antics.
“I didn’t think other people would think she is funny but we get loads of messages saying she is hilarious,” Connelly told South West News Service.
“Even when we are in the supermarket, people will come up to us and say hello and ask for a selfie,” she continued.
So far, her daughter has managed to earn over $1,200 and is earning $32 per pop by wishing people a happy birthday in custom videos on Vimeo.
Her mom estimates that her daughter earns a little bit over $300 per month, and plans for the three-year-old to use that money to go on vacations next year.
Ivy first rose to fame after a video of her dog, Alfie, stealing her lollipop went viral with over 7 million views on the short clip.
“She is a normal wee girl who goes to nursery,” Connelly told SWNS about her daughter. “She has no idea that people know how hilarious she is.”
The 34-year-old began sharing videos of her daughter on the video-sharing social media platform in 2021, after initially using it for family and friends — and now, she’s looking to get Ivy’s brother, five-week-old baby brother Nolan, in on some of the action.
He has even begun to get in on some of his sister’s videos.
“There is one of them saying how much she loves him but he is sleeping most of the time,” Connelly explained.
“If he starts to be cheeky he will be in the videos too,” she continued. “He is relaxed compared to Ivy – she is trouble.”
However, even though Connelly has made a career for her child, she’s leaving the future all up to her.
“This is all about her, she likes being funny but obviously the older she gets if she doesn’t want to do it I will stop,” she assured.
And, of course, the safety of her daughter also comes first and is a big concern for Connelly.
She told SWNS that she has been offered gifts from their followers before, but does not accept them because it can pose a risk — only accepting products from brands.
“Brands have sent gifts,” she explained. “The general public have offered but we haven’t taken that.”
But, at least for right now, Ivy’s TikTok career is continuing to take off and her videos are making people laugh.
“So many people have sent messages to say how much they would miss her videos and to say it cheers them up,” Connelly said.
However, although many kids have risen to fame on TikTok over the past few years, a researcher in Australia called for more regulation around the growing practice of kids hawking toys as paid social media influencers in May.
In a paper published in the M/C Journal, Archer argued that the rise of social media has presented marketers with a way to reach kids 24/7.
“These are often children of celebrities who develop lucrative partnerships with brands to maximize engagement and ‘selling power,’” Dr. Catherine Archer, of Edith Cowan University, said in a statement at the time.
“Our study has highlighted key concerns regarding privacy issues, commodification, and gendered and ‘stealth’ marketing of toys to children through ‘advertorials.’”