Who is Piper Rockelle? Age, parents, net worth and Bad Influence controversy explained

11 April 2025, 16:58

Who is Piper Rockelle from Netflix's Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing? Picture: Piper Rockelle via YouTube, Netflix

By Katie Louise Smith

How old was Piper Rockelle when she got famous on YouTube and where is she now? Netflix's Bad Influence explores the internet child star and the scandal behind the scenes.

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Popular YouTube personality and internet-famous teenager Piper Rockelle is at the centre of Netflix’s latest documentary, Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing. But, despite her massive online success, you probably have no idea who she is. Allow us to explain...

Piper first started posting vlogs and challenges on YouTube in 2016 when she was just eight years old. By the time she was 12, she had amassed millions of subscribers and was gaining millions and millions views per video.

In 2018, Piper began appearing in videos with a group of tweens who were dubbed 'The Squad'. However, scandal soon followed when Piper's mother and 'momager' Tiffany was sued by 11 of those former members who alleged abuse and exploitation.

But who is Piper Rockelle? What is her net worth? And how did she end up being called out by popstar Pink?!

Read more: Netflix's Bad Influence slammed by Piper Rockelle and Tiffany Smith
Read more: Where is Tiffany Smith now? Piper Rockelle's mom and what happened after lawsuit

Who is Piper Rockelle?

Piper Rockelle is a 17-year-old YouTube creator, actress, dancer and 'kidfluencer' who boasts 12.1 million subscribers on YouTube and 6.1 million Instagram followers.

With the guidance of her momager Tiffany and her mother's boyfriend Hunter Hill (who pretended to be Piper's old brother online), Piper grew her following by posting vlogs and eventually scripted videos and skits alongside 'The Squad', who were a rotating group of young creators who appeared in her videos.

Outside of YouTube, Piper has also appeared in a number of scripted and unscripted shows including web series Chicken Girls and Mani.

Watch the trailer for the Piper Rockelle documentary on Netflix

How old is Piper Rockelle?

Piper is currently 17 years old and she'll turn 18 in August 2025.

Piper was just 3 years old when her mother entered her into pageants. She was 8 years old when she first started appearing in videos online, and was 9 when she found internet fame on the musical.ly app. She shot to YouTube fame around the age of 11 or 12.

Because of Piper's young age, her mother has often been criticised for allowing some of her more inappropriate thumbnails, video titles and photos to be shared online. Others have also shared their concerns about Piper being exploited online for views and engagement.

When she was 14, Piper and her mother were publicly slammed by Pink who questioned why the young teen was posing in a bikini on social media. More on that further down the page...

Piper Rockelle and Sophie Fergi regularly appeared in videos together on Piper's channel. Picture: Netflix

Who is Piper Rockelle's mom? Who are her parents?

Piper's mother is Tiffany Smith, who also acts as her manager and is largely responsible for the success of Piper early fame and YouTube channel.

She raised Piper as a single mother after Piper's father left while she was pregnant.

In 2022, Tiffany was sued by 11 of the teens who were regularly featured on Piper’s channel. To capitalise on Piper's growing YouTube success, some members of The Squad ended up moving in with Piper and her mother to increase their content output.

Per NBC News, they accused her of abuse and exploitation while she held a position of "care and control" over them while creating content.

Tiffany publicly denied the allegations and the case eventually came to an end after the parties reached a $1.85 million settlement. But those allegations, and the context surrounding the claims, are now being brought up again in the Netflix documentary.

While Piper and mother do not appear in the show, Tiffany's sister Patience Rock Smith does.

Piper's mother Tiffany managed her YouTube success and appeared in some of her videos. Picture: Piper Rockelle via YouTube

What is Piper Rockelle's net worth?

There's no confirmed information about the exact amount Piper Rockelle has amassed through her YouTube earnings, brand deals and other appearances over the years.

But, according to Tudum, Piper's huge audience and high view counts came with a lot of revenue. Reports suggest she was earning upwards of over half a million dollars per month, with the L.A. Times stating she earned around $625,000 a month.

While unconfirmed, various sources claim Piper's net worth is around $2 million but it's possible that it may be higher.

Where is Piper Rockelle now? Picture: Getty

What did Pink say about Piper Rockelle and her mother?

In August 2021, a few months before Tiffany was sued by the former Squad members, pop star Pink publicly called her out while raising concerns about the possible exploitation of Piper and the young content creators who appeared in videos with her.

In a now-deleted tweet, Pink wrote: "How many kids like Piper Rockelle are being exploited by their parents? And at what point do the rest of us say, “this isn’t okay for a 13 yr old to be posing in a bikini whilst her MOTHER takes the photo?!?!"

Piper herself clapped back, defending her mother, telling TMZ: "The first thing I want everyone to know is that my mom doesn’t make me do anything. Quite the opposite. I’m a kid who had a dream, and my mom is amazing enough to help me live it out.

"I don’t think Pink has ever seen one of my YouTube videos because if she did, she’d see it’s just my friends and me having fun and acting like ourselves. The content we make is the kind of stuff anyone can watch."

She also told TODAY: "Why do we shame people for that? Pictures of teenagers in bikinis having fun are not sexual. They’re only sexual if you view us that way."

Piper Rockelle and her mother Tiffany were called out by Pink who had concerns she was being exploited. Picture: Getty

Where is Piper Rockelle now?

Piper is still posting videos on YouTube and frequently sharing content on Instagram. Her most recent video was shared on YouTube in December 2024.

However, after the allegations against her mother surfaced, YouTube demonetised her channel. She also no longer gets the same amount of views on each video as she did when she was younger.

According to Tudum, it appears that her output is still managed and directed by Tiffany and Hunter. Hunter is also said to film and direct her videos.