Haliey Welch, the girl who has become famous for the “Hawk Tuah” meme on social media, celebrated reaching one million followers on Instagram over the weekend.
In a video shared by TMZ, Welch was seen celebrating while wearing a Miami Dolphins jersey at Daer Dayclub at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Fla.
Here’s the full TMZ video of “Hawk-Tuah” girl Hailey Welch celebrating 1M followers in a Dolphins jersey at Daer Dayclub at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, FL.pic.twitter.com/381MUa85f4 https://t.co/RLu8KSKefU
— David Furones (@DavidFurones_) July 9, 2024
According to TMZ, Welch was invited to judge the Miss Daer bikini contest and was even paid around $30,000 just to make an appearance.
In the video, Welch appears to be getting emotional during the celebration, as she’s reached a major milestone in her social media career.
TMZ also recently reported that the new social media star could be landing a TV deal.
“Haliey Welch — aka the ‘Hawk Tuah’ Girl — is about to hop the Nashville to Hollywood Express, ’cause she’s within striking distance of landing a TV deal,” TMZ wrote.
Welch’s rise to fame has been extremely quick, and she has met several celebrities along the way. Not only did the social media star get a chance to go on stage at a Zach Bryan concert, but she also received some advice from former Los Angeles Lakers superstar Shaquille O’Neal.
“We’re told Shaq gave Haliey a bunch of tips on how to deal with fame,” TMZ wrote, “…advising her to keep a smart team around because folks will come out of the woodwork to try and take advantage of her.
“Our sources say the conversation included Hailey showing Shaq some of the hateful comments she’s getting in response to her viral video…with Shaq telling her to pay the haters no mind because none of them actually know her.”
It’s unclear if Welch is a Dolphins fan or if she simply was rocking the jersey because she was in Florida. Either way, it’s cool to see the Dolphins getting some love at the event.
If Welch is a fan, she’ll certainly want to see Miami back in the playoffs for the third straight season in the 2024 campaign.
The Dolphins have reached the playoffs in each of Mike McDaniel’s first two seasons as the franchise’s head coach, but they haven’t been able to break through and earn a win. Last season, Miami lost 26-7 in the first round of the playoffs against the Kansas City Chiefs.
While it appears that Welch may move out West to pursue her career, it’s always possible that the Dolphins could host her at a game since she’s already shown some affinity to the franchise.
