When will parents stop exploiting their children for fame? On April 9th, 2025, a new documentary uncovered the reality about kid influencers and the evil side of one of the most famous channels, “The Squad.” This series follows the narrative of Piper Rockelle, who is controlled by her mother, Tiffany, and several other children. Do kids truly enjoy being behind the camera all the time, or is it just an act?
Rockelle started competing in pageants at the age of three. She excelled at it as a youngster because she was outgoing and self-assured, which attracted media attention on reality television. Her mother tried to encourage her to use social media as her fame grew. One of them was a musical app that was quite popular at the time, allowing users to lip-sync and express themselves. As everyone is aware, TikTok, a globally renowned app, was launched after its predecessor, Musical.ly, was acquired. Piper’s increased popularity through the app inspired her mother to relocate to Los Angeles in 2017.
She eventually turned more to YouTube, where she started making videos. Because of her lively nature, one of her very first videos, about making fluffy slime, began to receive a lot of views. We shall see later that everything would become a script, even though it all appeared so innocent and honest then. In 2017 and 2018, organizations like Team 10 and David Dobrik’s Vlog Squad gained much popularity. This allowed Tiffany to follow and assemble some of Piper’s pals to form “The Squad” in 2018. Hunter joined the team as their cameraman and editor. The parents of the children were okay with Smith talking to them about working together to get the money they would get. However, Hunter would have total authority over the kids’ channels in exchange.
The Abuse:
As time passed and the number of views grew significantly, Piper’s mother, Tiffany, began to exert greater control. She would force them to put in up to twelve hours of work. They were her little money-grubbing puppets, so she had to prepare a script so everything worked out perfectly. Additionally, the “Crushes” material began to gain popularity. According to this pattern, these influencers are “shipped” together before departing. Initially, it was a lovely little affair, but Tiffany eventually insisted that they dress more provocatively and engage in entirely inappropriate activities for youngsters. Without a doubt, the children began to realize what Tiffany was doing, and Areeco, the first member of the team, fled. She was immediately placed on a blacklist as a result, and other members were compelled to stop communicating. Despite all of these problems, things grew worse over time. Piper’s mother had begun to abuse Rockelle in particular. She tortured the children in a way that was so improper that the children were at a loss for what to do. It took a while for the parents to discover what had been happening in the house, and they were deeply sorry that they hadn’t tried to safeguard their kids. The mother of a former Walker Bryant squad member concluded that Tiffany is a manipulator and that her behavior is repulsive.
The Lawsuit:
After all of these terrible incidents, a lawsuit about the claims of sexual assault eventually took place. Even though the action was successful and a settlement of $1.85 million was reached, it was insufficient. Tiffany Smith was never arrested and remains free today, along with her 17-year-old daughter, who continues to produce material. Parents must stop exploiting their children for fame and money, and instead give them a normal childhood.
