If you've been on the internet at any point over the last two years, you'll likely have heard of 'Hawk Tuah'. The phrase was coined by Haliey Welch as she spoke at length during a street interview back in June of 2024.
Since then, she's shot to fame and come crashing down again after she was embroiled in a slew of scandals. After the string of poor choices, Haliey opted to step back from the public eye and has not been seen since – until recently.
The viral star recently restarted her career with a cameo on new Disney+ show Chad Powers, seen just minutes into the first episode. So here, we take a look at the 'Hawk Tuah' girl's dramatic rise, fall and potential resurgence...
Haliey's journey to fame began in June of 2024, when she was interviewed by TikTok stars Tim & Dee TV.
The interview centred around speaking to women after they had a boozy night out, which led to many making confessions they probably wouldn't have done otherwise.
In the infamous clip, Haliey was asked what makes a guy "go crazy" when getting hot and steamy. She immediately replied: "You gotta hawk tuah and spit on that thing."
The phrase "hawk tuah" mimics the sound of someone clearing their throat to spit, and her delivery, combined with her Southern accent, quickly became a meme across the internet.
Viral fame
After the clip was uploaded, Haliey was propelled into internet stardom – and she capitalised on it fast. She immediately launched a line of merchandise and amassed her own following, going on to start her own businesses in the process.
As well as this, she also had her own podcast – the Hawk Tuah podcast, produced in conjunction with Jake Paul's media company. She used the show as a way to respond to the media after she blew up.
In the trailer for the podcast, Haliey explained: "I'm sitting down with the coolest guests and having actual conversations with them."
However, it didn't last long. After an attempt at weekly episodes, Haliey called time on the project as it was simply impossible to film the podcast in LA each week and go back to her home in the Midwestern US.
DownfallThe worst problem that Haliey faced was her failed foray into cryptocurrency – a move which some claim resulted in them losing their entire life savings.
In December of 2024, Haliey revealed she had launched a memecoin, $HAWK, based on the moment that made her famous.
The coin, however, was never registered with authorities in the US. Within just hours of launching the cryptocurrency, the value was crashing in real time.
Fans would blast Haliey as they invested heavily into the scheme, but she would do little to calm the storm.
In one hilarious cockup, Haliey had jumped onto a Space on X to try and calm people's nerves surrounding the issue, saying they were working to find out what the problem was.
But after sustained pressure, Haliey simply gave up, saying: "I'm gonna go to bed, and I'll see you all tomorrow," leaving fans fuming.
Return to fame?
Haliey disappeared for some time, before returning to relaunch her career online by streaming on Twitch, a dedicated livestream site.
Her latest comeback came in October, when she made a surprise cameo in Disney+ hit Chad Powers' first episode.
Playing herself, her acting career chops were busted, as she meets the title character in a nightclub, but storms off when she tells Chad not to tell people they met.
Only time will tell what Haliey does next!
