'The Hype House': TikTokers are taking over feuds and controversies, a world that belonged to YouTubers once
Since the introduction of TikTok in 2017, many YouTubers have joined the platform, with their feuds and controversies. Before TikTok, YouTube influencers were known for their recurring feuds and now the Tiktok influencers have taken over.
Former YouTuber and associate of Jake Paul, Thomas Petrou, 21, now a Tiktok influencer, made the headlines recently for his feud with Daisy Keech, a 20-year-old YouTuber, Tiktoker and Petrou's former associate.
Petrou and Keech were the first members of ‘The Hype House’. In fact, they, along with Chase Hudson co-founded ‘The Hype House’. In March 2020, Keech revealed the ongoing feud and drama between her and the members on her YouTube channel after leaving ‘The Hype House’.
She claimed that she invested a large amount of money for the house and is still left out in all the decisions. She alleges that she is not receiving the credit she deserves. In response to this Petrou released a video, clapping back to all the claims Keech made.
Petrou gained fame through his YouTube channel, PetrouTV. He rose to popularity in 2017 after being affiliated with ‘Team 10’, a social media incubator and management company, co-founded by Jake Paul. He was, however, later fired from ‘Team 10’ for reasons not specified.
Paul and ‘Team 10’ are known for their feuds and controversies, especially involving Alissa Violet, Paul’s former lover. Paul fired Violet form ‘Team 10’, blaming her for cheating on him. This was the beginning of the long-lasting feud.
In 2019, Petrou started using TikTok more often than his YouTube channel. He later co-founded ‘The Hype House’. The Hype House is a Spanish style mansion owned equally by the members of the group. The group of TikTokers use the mansion to make content for their page. There are 19 members in the group, and most of them come and go as they please. Only four members of the group actually live there. Each member pays $900 every month as the rent.
Petrou acts as a default den mother, he calls himself the unofficial manager. Though Chase helped put money down for the house, Petrou manages schedules, handles the house issues and resolves the inevitable conflicts. Unlike ‘Team 10’ and other groups, Hype House doesn’t take a cut of anyone’s revenue.
However, according to Keech, Petrou’s had a little too much of power and control over the group. “We can’t ever have any group decisions, he somehow has authority over everything, he has that because he is the only one with access to all of the social media accounts and emails,” she said, while vlogging on her YouTube channel.
She went on to reveal more details about the workings of the Hype House, and how Petrou has tried to turn other members against her after she confronted about his authority over the group. Keech left the ‘Hype House’ to form another collective called the ‘Clubhouse’.
After the release of Keech's vlog on her Youtube channel, Petrou had a quickfire response to her claims. He responds to her allegations saying that Keech was uninvolved in early efforts to recruit ‘The Hype House’ squad and grow the group’s profile in the press. For instance, he claims that he and Hudson recruited a bunch of early creators, while Keech “continued to do her own thing in her room”.
All the members of the group were actively involved in promoting their group on their social media and their channels.
Petrou said that Keech declined to help out. She did not want to promote on her social media pages, even though she has around 1.5 million followers. He also vlogged about her uninterest in the group and group decisions. He claims that Keech also declined to participate in subsequent press opportunities, including interviews with the ‘Today’ show, ‘Entertainment Tonight’, and ‘Forbes’.
Despite everything, however, Petrou has wished Keech good luck on her venture.
YouTubers have had many cases of controversies and feuds.
Shawn Dawson and Logan Paul fell out, when Dawson called Paul and his brother a sociopath; James Charles and Tati Westbrooke feud started when the latter called out Charles for promoting other brands that are Westbrook’s rival.
The beef between Jeffree Star and Kat Von D was an intense feud. Von D claimed that Star did not pay her artist friend BJ Betts for the design he made for Star’s makeup line. Star and Von D are beauty rivals. YouTube communities are known for vlogging their feuds and sharing them on their channels.
It seems now is the turn of TikTokers.