YouTuber Colleen Ballinger attempted to stage a comeback on Saturday, months after allegations of inappropriate relationships with underage fans sparked scandal.
Ballinger, famous for her annoying teen Miranda Sings character, titled the latest 13-minute video simply “fall vlog.” It was the first video she uploaded since late June, when she responded to the allegations against her by performing a folksy song on a ukulele about a “toxic gossip train,” further angering some fans and critics who said she appeared to be mocking the seriousness of the situation.
Ballinger had been a YouTube star for more than a decade when controversy boiled over last summer, with former fans accusing her of exploiting her underage fans and emotionally “grooming” them.
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She devoted about three minutes of her latest video to addressing those allegations—and the next 10 to a vlog about her family and her home.
“Hello, everybody. Sorry I’ve been gone for so long. I’ve really missed this, I’ve missed talking to everyone every single day,” she opened the video. “The last video that I posted on here is really embarrassing to say the least. I was being accused of some pretty awful things and I just was mad. I should’ve handled that situation with maturity and empathy, but instead I just let my ego take over and I’m really disappointed in myself,” she said.
She went on to admit she’d been “immature” and “inappropriate” with her humor in the past, adding that, “There were times when I did not put enough thought into some of my fan interactions. And because of that behavior, people got hurt. And I am so sorry.”
Then she announced her intention to “start the process of starting over.”
“I know it’s going to be awkward and clunky at first as I try to get back in the swing of things, but I’m going to try,” she said, before launching into an update on her personal life. “If I’m being completely honest, the majority of the last few months has just been spent in therapy,” she said.
Her reappearance was not met kindly on social media, where many commentators accused her of offering up a lazy apology and generally being insincere. Others suggested she had come back just in time for the holidays only to capitalize on holiday ad revenues on the video platform.
“Looks like Colleen Ballinger ran out of money!” one commenter quipped on X.
