"Why I Left" Video

[RadrabbitZo]

MAJOR eye roll at her new video. At least she had the decency to not pretend like she drew it herself and gave credit to the artist in the description. I just... find it so sad that she went to art school and she talks all the time about how much she loves art and she's an art student blah blah but she can't even draw a video like this which is so personal. If art is so close to her heart like she always claims you would think she wouldn't care about how "good" her art is and more about the underlying message. Didn't draw your webcomic and didn't draw your "honest" video. Come on, Michelle.

[peachtea]

is she still with Dom?

[Evil_robot]

the new video was typical drama queen special snowflake shit.
I felt disgusted.
of course the mionions can only protect and talk about sincerity, yeah.

[Lamour88]

In all fairness, I thought there were good and bad parts of the video.

No use pretending the good didn't exist. I was surprised, for example, at how she was upfront about certain things. Her cosmetic surgery, for example, and admitting that she did so out of vanity and insecurity. The fakeness of her social media and how it didn't reflect her true world.
Admitting that she was out of touch. Admitting that others took over her vision in the pursuit of money. Admitting she WAS fake and that she'd been a shitty 'content creator'. There are so many YTers who explain this shit away and deflect and at certain parts of the video, I really did feel that she was laying bare how poor her own self management was.
I was also surprised that she did take care to mention that it was her financial privilege that allowed her to 'escape'. You rarely see that from any YouTuber. I appreciated the part where she said her money bought her the ability to leave.

The bad and cringeworthy-- the lawsuit stuff stood WAY out and put so much of the video in question. She wasn't sued because people wanted a part of her-- it was actually the opposite.
Secondly, the whole narrative was very convenient. Poor, naive, small town kid just chasing a dream and lost herself to the 'suits' of the big city in LA. Found solace away from the Internet in ~nature~ and now wants to find herself again. No mention of her own greed, her own mistakes that weren't just naive missteps of a wide eyed young girl-- but real and conniving choices made by an adult woman. The part where she just ~stumbled across one of her old videos~ was just too much lol. It was just such a perfect little movie, and real life is rarely that simple. People are not that simple.
And then, of course, the fact that this is all part of a new business pursuit. She could have just put out a video talking about her struggles and then reintroduced her new business in another video.

I don't think it's entirely fair to say that she has no place to complain because she has money. In that sense, her video could have been a mediation on how oney doesn't buy happiness and in fact, greed can make you very unhappy and unfulfilled. It seemed that's where it was going at times, but, ultimately the fact that she's using this to launch a ~natural~ makeup range just turns everything around.

[queenalice]

I kinda rolled my eyes in the beginning because we've heard of her ~tragic and humble~ beginnings so many times before, but I was really starting to think she changed when she mentioned that she felt imprisoned in her own narcissism and greed. But then she starts talking about becoming a learner of life and it's like... what? I applaud her honesty and confirmation to some of our accusations, but I question if she really learned anything by the end of it all....

And deleting comments... I very much feel that she's in danger of micromanaging/ obsessing over public opinion again

[Trololol]

She is still whining after being handed so many opportunities? Girl, you were practically catapulted to the top, don't you dare make it sound like you were forced. You kept pandering to people instead of making something that represented YOU yourself.

Nerve.

[haze]

Watched 15 seconds and couldn't stomach her story telling and tone. It's amazing to me that she still can't, even after all these years, sit down and address her audience directly about her faults. She's so vapid. I also can't believe how many YouTubers or beauty bloggers are giving her praise for being real and inspirational when she's still blaming others for her failures. Viewers are not dumb and do not live in a fantasy world like Michelle has been for the past 10 years.

[hopelesscoffeeaddict]

I re-watched a bit of the video to determine exactly why it makes me feel so extremely uncomfortable besides the things she is saying. To me, this just seems highly, highly manipulative: she uses this almost hypnotic tone of voice, the arousing music, the imagery evoked is very "little girl/innocent" (aimed at her target audience of impressionable young girls), and she just phrases everything in a way that makes her sound like a victim, even the lawsuit etc. And then the ad for em cosmetics thrown in right at the end, almost casually, after stirring the viewers up emotionally. It's just really shady and emotionally manipulative, and I find it super problematic. I never liked or trusted her, but this video makes me think that she is a true narcissist!

[janraeni16]

She just burned out needed time-off. People are criticizing her because she is trying to make her long-time vacation into some grand obstacle she endured and played victim. Oh, also, her new em cosmetic at the end.

[amuto_lover]

Since comments are being deleted I took some screenshots.

[Loilee]

Why is her cartoon self white? White-washing again.

Also, I cannot stand the way she says 'create'. She says 'crate' instead and it really bugs me.

[amuto_lover]

Michelle you're a first rate idiot, thinking that people would sympathise with you over #RichPeopleProbz
If she could go back in time and visit her family who were on foodstamps and tell them about her money problems, what do you think they'd say to you?

[amuto_lover]

Pt2

[amuto_lover]

Pt 3

[amuto_lover]

Last one

[lurker123]

I agree with Lamour88...there was some good, some bad. She acknowledged more than she used to before, although the whole thing is pretty tone-deaf.

Side note, not criticism or praise, just an observation: I feel like although Michelle sometimes blocks/deletes comments, she listens to "haters" (and forums like this) more than the sycophants she made her comment section into.

[DaylightAmy]

Oh my god, this "Why I Left" video she is so full of shit. She bought herself a luxury retreat just to shove her own head further up her own ass.

Sorry but I'm really not even buying it a little bit - respect to those of you who do give her props, but I can't see it that way.

Basically what she's saying is "My parents indoctrinated me my entire childhood that my only purpose in life was to make money, I was all alone in LA surrounded by just business contacts, I became a completely fake person online because I wasn't who I wanted to be, I had all this money and success and I wasn't happy, and then I figured out money can't buy you happiness and I remembered who I am."

I will bet you anything that if any of her side-projects had been as successful as she was hoping - or had been her property as much as she was claiming - she wouldn't have gone through this crisis. If she had actually ended up with a successful business that was hers and did well, she would have just been able to retire and do passion projects because she'd be set. The reason she had an identity crisis is because her projects kept failing and she made decent money, but never enough to stop her half-ass attempts at making more. It wasn't because she had all this money and just couldn't figure out why she wasn't happy. It was because she couldn't get the money she wanted and she couldn't deal with that. Her ego got bigger than her achievements and there was no way to step on the brakes without bruising her own ego... other than acting like instead of a failure of character, it was a moment of enlightenment.

Not buying it, never will.

[Trololol]

Since comments are being deleted I took some screenshots.

I can't believe she still deletes comments. It's childish.

[Egoist]

I tried watching her new video, but I stopped watching 20 seconds in. I hate her voice. Sounds like she's spewing BS.

[Rubberducks]

Hearing her voice again, the old fan in me made me slightly happy. After watching it, the video was confusing and felt like a commercial.

She admits some things but she should've explain more about her law suits and failed projects.


Her saying she's an artist, I felt like she does like art but not to the point she really REALLY want it as a career. I understand artists experience hard times just like everyone. In her case it was because of her ego and greed. In those years there were so many chances for her to continue to study art again or business. I don't know why she's surprised that not everything is about money. Instead she received a "special" diploma and started business with poor quality. Used her fame for her selfish needs.

This video is just the same as other gurus in her time that stayed in YT for money and fame. Lost what they really want.

Every year her skills never improved, always shilling things just like Nikkietutorials. With all the fancy shmancy tools it shows how she doesn't want to improve because she thinks highly of herself.

Since she admited a little it was her fault, with the same good girl persona in the video. Lol maybe it is time for her to live a normal life. Get a real degree, so many fake gurus and gullible fans compared back then I don't want her to fool more people like me. I am glad I found out the truth.

It is nice kids and teens are aware and active online, still most of them are still gullible and doesn't need another shit show.

I want to give her another chance but this video is the same old format of her "stories"

I am happy I can see comments of people not buying this shit.

That travelling and "learning" did she really renew and gain something from all of it??