Twitch star Pokimane has responded after facing backlash for showing off a massive bouquet made of dollar bills she received as a birthday present on TikTok.
Imane ‘Pokimane’ Anys turned 28 on May 14, 2024, and in honor of her birthday, the streamer’s assistant gifted her a huge bouquet made out of dollar bills, which she showed off in a short video on TikTok.
While many viewers were impressed by the elaborate gift and wished her a happy birthday, others were less than pleased by Pokimane flaunting such a large amount of cash.
“It’s really tiring seeing so many celebs, streamers, etc. so detached from reality and [not] reading the room,” one said.
“100% that much money to you is like five bucks for us normies,” another wrote.
One user took to the comments section to air out their frustrations with the influencer. “Probably not smart to upload this with people blocking celebs… hate to rally the world to block you, too,” they wrote.
Anys responded to their comment, saying she “understands” their feelings and that she “hopes people can see this was meant as a joke.”
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The viewer’s comment referenced the current “digital guillotine” movement that sparked as a result of the 2024 Met Gala, where netizens are blocking celebrities who haven’t spoken out about current social issues as a means of protesting their apparent disconnection from the rest of society.
This movement is best illustrated by the backlash against TikTok star Haleyy Baylee, who caught the ire of the internet after uploading a video of herself dressed up in floral finery at the Met Gala, lip syncing to audio from Kirsten Dunst’s Marie Antoinette film saying, ‘let them eat cake.’
Users flocked to Baylee’s video, outraged that she would choose such audio at such a prestigious event during a time of global conflict.
Baylee later apologized for the incident, calling herself “dumb” for choosing the audio and “never even thought it would be taken in that way because I wasn’t elite enough to even be invited to the Met Gala.”
Despite the criticism, Pokimane has promised to put her money where her mouth is, claiming her divisive video was merely a lighthearted way to celebrate her birthday.
