Otherwise known as Hailey Welch, Hawk Tuah Girl is rising to prominence after being featured in a man-on-the-street interview from creators Tim & Dee TV. In the video, she’s asked, “What’s one move in bed that makes a man go crazy every time?” Her response is what’s made her go viral.

“You gotta give ’em that ‘hawk tuah’ and spit on that thang,” she exclaimed. Words can’t really capture her whole vibe, so let’s run the tape.

Do you get it now? “Hawk tuah” is like the sound of the guy in the back of an old Western saloon using a spittoon, but she’s talking about sex. It is funny. Whether or not it’s more than a week’s worth of virality levels is up to you.

Wait, that’s it?

Yeah. It might be helpful to conceptualise this as a PG-13 version of the “Damn, Daniel” moment. She said something funny; the internet is loving it, and people are quickly scrambling to figure out how to capitalise on it. There was even a rumour that she was going to sign with United Talent Agency, but TMZ is now reporting that no such deal is actually in the works. Someone should figure out something to do with this girl. She’s a good sport with a lot of charisma, which is like half the job of being famous.

Did she lose her job?

No, people are just trolling. Tippah County Tribune, a satirical social media account, shared a post on Facebook in which they claimed that Welch (whom they identify as “Hailey Wellington”) had lost her job as a preschool teacher at “Epstein Day School.” Their fake story included children “spitting on each other and everything else” in the wake of the viral video. Welch later revealed that she actually worked at a spring factory in her hometown, Tennessee, and that she did not lose that job over this whole ordeal. (She quit once the video blew up.)

What has she said about going viral?

Welch sat down for her first interview with Brianna Lapaglia of the Barstool Sports podcast. Plan Bri. Lapaglia is dating country singer Zach Bryan and interviewed Welch backstage at his concert. Later in the evening, he brought Welch onstage to sing his hit “Revival” with him, and she dutifully screamed. “Hawk tuah!”into the mic.

Welch told Lapaglia that she had been in Nashville for CMA Fest when she filmed her infamous clip and that she never expected to see the video again. She said that she saw it going viral at around 2 a.m. while getting ready for work. “I sh*t a brick,” Welch said. As the video continued to gain traction, people began to make fake social media accounts for the 21-year-old, who explained that she had deleted all her accounts six months ago for personal reasons. “It’s kind of creepy to see your face on another account that doesn’t belong to you,” she said.

Of course, people have been weird about this whole thing. Welch said that someone recently offered Poteete (the hat guy) $600 if he could get her to spit in a jar and mail it to him.

While there are errant problems to deal with, Welch says she wants to use this as a springboard for a career. She has a manager and a team now, and she says that her plan is to do “a show, and we’re just going to be on a bunch of podcasts and everything else in between.”

Are people being normal about her?

No! People are actually being super weird about her, which unfortunately is to be expected when you’re a cute girl who goes megaviral—especially for answering a question about sex. The internet is filled with freaks and perverts, and they have all become obsessed with Welch and her newly coined phrase.

Meanwhile, “hawk tuah” has also become a political battleground. In her interview with Lapaglia, Welch declared that she would not give Donald Trump the ol’ hawk tuah. “It’s a no from me,” she said. 

People whose brains have been poisoned by the internet have interpreted this as Welch stating her politics. “The degenerate Hawk Tuah girl, whose real name is Hailey Welsh, is ANTI TRUMP,” far-right political activist Laura Loomer posted on X. On the other side, a bizarre anonymous liberal account called Biden’s Wins declared that Welch had “demolished” Trump. Neither party seems to understand that Welch has not made a political statement; she simply does not want to engage in a sexual relationship with a 78-year-old man who always looks like he’s melting.

What’s next for Ms. Tuah?

As she told Lapaglia, she has a management team, and they’re figuring out the next steps for her. The Hollywood Reporter reported that Welch had signed with a management firm called The Penthouse.

“I’m glad our team can help guide this rocket ship,” said The Penthouse founder Jonnie Forster in a statement. “All the podcasters are right—spend five minutes with her and you’ll see why she is America’s sweetheart.” I’m not sure who “all the podcasters” are, seeing as she’s only done one podcast.

Welch, for her part, seems excited about this new venture. “Two weeks ago, it was just my grandmother and me in itty-bitty Belfast, Tennessee. Then I said something silly, and now my life has changed. Isn’t God great?! I can’t wait for what’s ahead,” Welch said in a statement. She has since hit the ground running. Welch returned to Instagram last week and quickly gained 1 million followers.