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TikTok star Indy Clinton on how she deals with the haters: 'Everyone has an opinion'
EXCLUSIVE: The influencer has amassed a cult following with her chaotic family videos.
Aussie influencer Indy Clinton has made a name for herself on TikTok, amassing over 1.4 million followers, with her videos earning her a nomination for Creator of the Year at next week's TikTok awards.
From opening up on life as a young mum to entertaining millions with her chaotic videos (including the time a magpie invaded her house), there are a whole lot of people out there obsessed with Indy Clinton, while the content creator also has to toe the line of dealing with the negativity that comes with putting your life on display.
"I've been on social media since I was 15," Indy told Yahoo Lifestyle. "I was on Instagram before so I'm very used to the heat and the negativity that can come with being on social media."
Indy is married to Ben Azar and the couple share two children: Navy, 3, and Bambi, 1, with Indy due to give birth to their third baby in December.
Life for the influencer is often chaotic, which she depicts perfectly on her TikTok as she chases her kids around wearing goggles, catches them doing things like painting the wall bright red, or throws them living room dance parties.
Indy's kids have now become viral stars themselves — with people holding out waiting for Bambi to learn to say 'Mama' or wanting an update on how well Navy can surf. Others find the young mum's content a lesson on 'how not' to raise children, something she shrugs off.
"The reaction is mixed," she said. "I get comments with my videos where people are either saying [my content] is making them go on birth control, or they're saying it's making them want to have a baby. That's fine! I just kind of block it [the negativity] out."
'Everyone has an opinion'
Despite how life appears on her social media, Indy is quick to point out that creating content for platforms like TikTok still involves a storyline and people read into how her life is depicted a little too much.
"As soon as you enter the motherhood realm, everyone has an opinion," she says. "You've got to take it with a grain of salt.
"I won't post throughout the day all the things we're actually doing, because I want to be a present mum. So I'll usually showcase my morning or night routine," she explained.
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And when it comes to her kids becoming their own version of TikTok famous, she said it's all about striking the balance.
"About a year ago with Navy I started feeling guilty, thinking that he was like, a monkey for me... whereas now I do my morning routine and the kids can feature if they want to feature," she said.
"I ask Navy first if he wants to be in the video. Some mornings he says no, other mornings he puts on this crazy character. It's a balance."
'TikTok is like a story'
Another character who has sucked people into watching Indy's life is her husband Ben — who often appears in their "family counselling" sessions looking slightly stressed out, or other times left wondering why the TikTok community has coined the nickname 'Big Eddie' for him after a fan once pointed out Ben reminded them of Big Ed from 90 Day Fiancé.
"People are always asking why Ben isn't there to help," Indy said. "Ben has a full-time job that isn't social media! He's out there slugging his a** away in the office while I'm at home creating videos.
"There's a huge misconception that 'the father never helps, Ben's never around' but I'm like, guys, if he's out here helping then I can't be creating this good content because then I've got help," she laughed.
"I also think I've created this character [with Ben]. I say TikTok is like a story. So I create him to be this grumpy man but he's not like that. He obviously has his stressful days but I've written him into my story as the grumpy old villain."
There's also been an obsession with knowing Ben's age and what exactly he does for a living by Indy's fans, who now often lovingly call him Big Ed.
"I think it's because I've created this secretive character. He appears sometimes in my vlogs and he just seems stressed and angry. I guess people don't know much about him, but I'm like guys, this is my platform!" she joked.
'Mum's need a break!'
It was only recently one of Indy's TikToks went viral when she opened up about losing friends when you're a young mum, due to everyone's lives going in different directions.
When asked what advice she had to childless friends trying to support their mates who have children, Indy's endearing unfiltered honesty shone through again.
"As much as you love your kids, you kind of just don't want to feel like a mum for a moment," she said. "For childless friends, I think it's really important to know that mums need a break! I need to get out of the house!"
She elaborated, saying while it's "so nice" when friends want to visit her and the kids, she also said people without kids shouldn't be afraid to organise a lunch or drinks with their mum friends.
"I wanna know your goss about your weekend or who you hooked up with!" she laughed. "It's really easy to talk about your kids, but then you're like 'Oh my god, I've just spoken the whole entire time'. So let's just talk about everything but kids!"
Find out more about the TikTok awards here.
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