Latest news with #NelkBoys
The Independent
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Is Kai Trump the next Alex Cooper? President's granddaughter turns to interviews as her social media profiles rises
With a growing social media following and close family ties to the White House, Kai Trump looks set to be a major Gen Z player in politics and the influencer world. President Donald Trump 's 17-year-old granddaughter interviewed the Cavinder twins on her YouTube channel while the trio caught up at last weekend's UFC event in Miami, signaling a possible interest in moving into the podcast domain - joining other popular female podcasters such as Call Her Daddy's Alex Cooper or Mel Robbins of the podcast that carries her name. But unlike Trump's election tactics to conquer the 'manosphere' by appearing on Joe Rogan's podcast and others such as the Nelk Boys, Adin Ross and Theo Von, Kai's content could nudge more young women and girls towards the MAGA movement, and the GOP more broadly. Kai offers 'a window into the Trump family that feels more real,' author Kate Andersen Brower, who has written about the first ladies and the White House in depth, told the Washington Post. 'She's not as guarded as Melania. And she's clearly great on camera,' she added. Kai, the daughter of Don Jr and Vanessa Trump, has amassed more than 1 million subscribers on YouTube, 3 million TikTok followers and 1.6 million followers on Instagram. Her content is largely about life on the golf course and about what she claims Trump is like as a grandfather. 'He's just a normal grandpa,' she said. 'He gives us candy and soda when our parents aren't looking.' The way Kai talks about the president 'humanizes' him in a way that comes across as 'authentic,' Brower added. She also posts videos about her outfits and getting ready for events she often attends with Trump, and muses about some of her favorite TV shows like Selling Sunset and Grey's Anatomy. Her videos are produced by a professional management group, according to the Post. The high school junior has a promising golfing career ahead of her and is already committed to playing the sport at the University of Miami. Companies have been lining up to confirm endorsement deals and sponsorships with Trump's oldest grandchild as her personal brand, the NIL – which stands for name, image and likeness – as a college athlete is already worth over $1.2 million. Kai's latest YouTube venture saw her accompany Trump to the UFC event on Air Force One. She created a 14-minute vlog on YouTube about the experience, which included a candid chat with influencers Hanna and Hailey Cavinder about the former's recent breakup with college football player Carson Beck. Shorter clips of the interview were widely shared on social media. 'Does he have friends?' Kai quizzed the twins, both 24. 'No, nobody likes him,' Hanna replied. 'I broke up with him and all this cheating s*** came out, I had no idea. I didn't break up with him because he was cheating, I broke up with him because of who he was.' 'Never cheat on my twin,' Hailey added. Beck, 23, has not publicly addressed any of the claims made by the trio. The Independent previously reached out to Beck for comment. 'At the same time, he lowkey embarrassed himself,' Kai chimed in. 'He went to Miami because of you. He embarrassed himself.'
Express Tribune
08-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Conor McGregor parties with Nelk Boys amid UFC retirement speculation
Conor McGregor was seen enjoying a lively Saint Patrick's Day celebration with the Nelk Boys at his pub, The Black Forge Inn, in a new video that has further fueled speculation about his future in the UFC. Conor McGregor, once known for his fierce dedication to fighting, was seen indulging in a spirited Saint Patrick's Day celebration at his iconic pub, The Black Forge Inn, with YouTube stars the Nelk Boys. The footage, shared on YouTube, features McGregor drinking, singing, and partying with the group—a stark contrast to the days when he was known for his intense training regime. The Nelk Boys, who had previously met McGregor at Donald Trump's inauguration, were in Ireland as part of a larger trip to celebrate Saint Patrick's Day. They visited McGregor's pub after a $10,000 giveaway to a Belfast resident, with the lucky winner meeting them in Dublin for the handover. What followed was a celebration at McGregor's venue, where the former UFC superstar mingled with guests, poured drinks, and belted out a rendition of Robbie Williams' 'Angels.' While McGregor's recent involvement with BKFC, where he acts as a part-owner, shows that he's still connected to the fight world, his time in the cage seems behind him. Partying with Conor McGregor in Ireland ft. Sydney Sweeney — Nelk Boys (@nelkboys) April 7, 2025 McGregor recently admitted that he is content with his career achievements, and videos of him enjoying life outside of fighting have raised questions about his future in the sport. The footage of McGregor partying with the Nelk Boys has sparked mixed reactions on social media. While some fans celebrate the fighter's success and newfound freedom, others are critical, claiming that McGregor's partying is a far cry from the athlete they once admired. actually so sad to see Conor McGregor in this state — Dovy🔌 (@DovySimuMMA) April 8, 2025 Conor McGregor was partying with the Nelk Boys 😭 — Mcgregor Forever (@mcgregorufc22) April 8, 2025 How far dude has fallen — miike (@LAMikeIAmStill) April 8, 2025 SO MUCH FOR SAVING IRELAND,LOL — Bobby Rogers (@bobby_roge30456) April 8, 2025 As McGregor continues to indulge in his personal life, the possibility of his return to the UFC appears less likely. His status as a global icon and business mogul means he no longer needs to fight for money, and fans will have to wait and see whether 'The Notorious' ever returns to the octagon.
New York Times
10-03-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Accused Sex Traffickers Receive Warm Welcome From a Trump Ally
Dana White, the chief executive of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, is a fight promoter. That means the old saw 'all publicity is good publicity' usually applies. But with a simple greeting, the pugnacious ally of President Trump may have stretched the saying to its limit. On the other side of a handshake and a hug from Mr. White at his Power Slap event in Las Vegas on Friday were Andrew and Tristan Tate, the controversial internet personalities who recently left Romania, which they had been barred from leaving while facing criminal charges, including human trafficking in continued form. The travel ban was lifted late last month. In a widely shared video of his interaction with the Tates, Mr. White can be heard saying 'Welcome to the States, boys.' The next night, the Tates were at another of Mr. White's events when they attended U.F.C. 313. Mr. White has built a multibillion-dollar business safe for figures who say outrageous and sometimes odious things. A shrewd cultural figure, he has helped define a new, masculinist American mainstream where major brands, right-wing YouTubers and celebrities mix freely. But by welcoming the Tate brothers — long seen as the misogynistic outer edge of the so-called manosphere and accused of crimes against women — Mr. White has thrown open the tent to such an extent that even some prominent internet commentators who vigorously support Mr. Trump expressed shock. 'I'm done with @ufc,' John Cardillo, a conservative influencer, wrote on X. 'If @danawhite can't draw a line and disassociate from trash who bragged on video about grooming and raping teen girls, it tells me all I need to know.' The Misfit Patriot, an X account that supports Mr. Trump, posted a video of Mr. Tate discussing marrying and having sex with 16-year-olds and commented 'Hey .@danawhite, this is the guy whose hand you just shook last night.' Representatives for the Tates and Mr. White did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Tate brothers, who maintain that they are innocent, are not out of legal jeopardy. Florida's attorney general, James Uthmeier, announced last week that his office had opened a 'preliminary inquiry' into the brothers, who have dual citizenship in the United States and Britain. 'Florida has zero tolerance for human trafficking and violence against women,' Mr. Uthmeier said. 'If any of these alleged crimes trigger Florida jurisdiction, we will hold them accountable.' But this has not stopped the brothers, who have repeatedly mocked Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida on social media, from seeking the spotlight. Since arriving in the United States, they have appeared on the popular Full Send podcast, hosted by Kyle Forgeard of the Nelk Boys, a close ally of Mr. White's; as well as on the Trump-supporting podcasts of Patrick Bet-David and Keith and Kevin Hodge. These appearances, while generating a great deal of attention and support from fans of the Tates, have highlighted fissures within the conservative media ecosystem. Prominent figures like Megyn Kelly and Ben Shapiro have spoken out against the Tates, who have also drawn a great deal of criticism from religious groups and various other factions of the conservative world. 'The way conservatives and conservative organizations respond to Andrew Tate arriving on US soil will tell you everything you need to know about them,' Jeremy Boreing, the chief executive of the Daily Wire, wrote on X last month. 'Any organization or host who embraces him is engaged in far worse than simple grift, though it is that. Andrew Tate is the enemy of any traditional American conservatism.' Mr. Trump won last November partly by adding young men to his coalition, a success many cultural observers credited Mr. White with helping to bring about. But Mr. White has had his own controversies — in 2023, he was filmed slapping his wife on vacation in Mexico, for which he said 'There are no excuses for it' — and the sensibility of the men's culture over which figures like him preside is profane, outrageous and lewd, putting it at odds with more traditional conservative groups. Now, by greeting Mr. Tate — whose subscription War Room network offered a program teaching members how to groom women for sex work — Mr. White may have highlighted cracks within parts of the Trump coalition.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Adin Ross says he is planning a GTA 6 server where you can earn real money
Online rabble-rouser Adin Ross, a popular livestreamer who was banned from Twitch for 'hateful conduct', has hatched a plan to launch a crypto-fueled GTA 6 economy that pays players for their in-game exploits. Unphased by the lack of info on the highly-anticipated game including, most prominently, the lack of a PC release date, Ross claims his GTA 6 server will see players earn real money for virtual hustles, from flipping houses to selling drugs. The rub? Players will have to convert their in-game coin into a cryptocurrency, of course. And, if you die, you lose it all. Ross made the comments on a podcast associated with viral pranksters the Nelk Boys who, along with Ross and Joe Rogan, fall into a nebulous segment of the internet dubbed the 'Manosphere'. Together, these outspoken influencers were credited with helping President Donald Trump clinch the Gen Z male vote. Needless to say, Ross's master plan to turn GTA 6 into a side gig for millions of players is full of holes. As social media users have pointed out, his server would be in violation of Rockstar Games and Take-Two's terms of service. Under commercial exploitation, they explicitly state that 'generating revenue via corporate sponsorships or in-game integrations, or the use of cryptocurrencies or crypto assets (e.g. NFTs) is not allowed. Not to mention the fact that gamers have previously taken umbrage with the idea of earn-as-you-play games, fearing that shady outsiders are exploiting their favorite pastime to line their pockets. It doesn't help that most of these projects have been associated with crypto, which is known for being rife with scams. Still, there have been some glimmers of hope. A recent shooter called Off the Grid felt like a more fleshed-out release, with an optional crypto-currency marketplace that saw players trading digital weapons and other items as NFTs. So, can we put this down to Ross's attention-seeking antics or is the 24-year-old on to something? Interestingly, a recent report did indicate that players would be able to earn money from GTA 6, but not in the way Ross is proposing. According to Digiday, Rockstar Games has held discussions with top creators from platforms like Roblox and Fortnite, as well as existing GTA 5 content creators, to develop content for GTA6. Notably, Roblox creators are making more bank than ever courtesy of their virtual clothing collections and in-game worlds. Between late October and January, they waltzed off with $280 million (£221mn), a 27 per cent increase from the year prior. The timing of Ross's announcement couldn't be worse, however. After a surge following Trump's inauguration, crypto has hit a reality check. Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a slew of so-called meme coins have all plummeted amid wider stock market turmoil sparked, in part, by the threat of a Trump-induced global trade war.
The Guardian
21-02-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Andrew Tate's alliance with Trump has been in the making for a long time
Ever since I began reporting on Andrew Tate four years ago (during which time my colleague Jamie Tahsin and I made two documentaries, wrote a book on him and interviewed his alleged rape victims), I've been sounding the alarm on the far-right disinformation network that connects him to Trump's inner circle. Earlier this month, US special envoy Richard Grenell, a vocal supporter of Andrew Tate pressured the Romanian government to remove judicial control restrictions on the Tate brothers, demanding that the alleged human traffickers be allowed to travel freely, according to sources who spoke to the Financial Times. The Romanian government has since confirmed this was a request but denied there was political 'pressure'. The alliance between the Trump administration and the Tate brothers has been in the making for a long time. Paul Ingrassia, one of the lawyers Andrew Tate hired to fight his human trafficking case, was recently sworn in as the White House liaison for the Department of Justice. According to him, the Tate brothers were 'sacrificed on the altar of the Matrix under the banner of egregious crimes they never committed'. Andrew Tate is friends with Donald Trump Jr, who called Tate's detention 'absolute insanity,' since 2016. Donald Trump himself Jr also appeared on a stream with Andrew Tate sycophant and collaborator Adin Ross in August 2024. Around the same time, JD Vance appeared on pro-Tate podcast the Nelk Boys. Elon Musk responded to Tate's 'run for prime minister of the UK' by saying 'he's not wrong' and JD Vance followed both Tate brothers on X in December. Alina Habba, who now holds the high-ranking political adviser role of counselour to the president, has said she is a 'big fan' of Andrew Tate. 'I sympathize with you,' Habba told Tate on a rightwing podcast, 'because I think you go through a lot of the same 'show-me-the-person-I'll-find-the-crime' that President Trump has gone through … I agree with everything you say, and I have your back, out here in the States. After Trump won the 2024 election, Tate tweeted that his case would be 'dismissed'. 'Watch this space ;-),' he said. Tate has access to the highest levels of Trump's inner circle. If, as he is insinuating, he has convinced the administration to act on his behalf, they would be attempting to interfere with dozens of alleged human trafficking and rape victims' quest for justice. Trump and Tate have a lot in common, and both stand to gain much from each other. They are disinformation virtuosos, having sought to delegitimize criminal allegations against them through information warfare. They both mastered their loud, obnoxious performance of self under the lights and cameras of reality TV (The Apprentice for Trump, Big Brother for Tate), before using the same model to dominate social media. There, among the likes and the shares and the algorithms, they learned that while truth and integrity get you nothing, controversy, lies and extremism can be easily transmuted into fame, wealth and power. Tate is aware of the value he can offer politicians. In January he instructed his associates to call two Romanian rightwing politicians to tell them:, 'You will get a lot of votes when Tate says you took their side,' according to prosecutors who tapped his phone. Whereas this Romanian politician ultimately turned Andrew Tate down, the Trump administration apparently has fewer scruples. But the Tate-Trump alliance is about more than just votes, especially now Trump has won. The Trump administration and Tate are both promoting a conspiracy theory that USAid and the mainstream media have worked together to fabricate charges against Tate. By supporting him, the Trump administration is forging a new axis of disinformation to go after the press and the very idea of justice and due process. Before we get into that, let's remind ourselves of what exactly the Tate brothers are being accused of. Andrew Tate is a misogynist influencer and conspiracy theorist. The charges against his brother and him mostly relate to the webcam sex businesses they operated first in the UK and then in Romania. Tate and his brother are accused of either trafficking, raping, grooming or abusing at least 48 alleged victims in total. They have denied all charges. Four of these women are pursuing a civil case in the UK against Andrew for rape or physical abuse (Three of them had previously reported Tate to the UK police for sexual violence and physical abuse, but the Crown Prosecution Service decided against bringing charges in 2019). Both brothers are also being investigated for crimes of sexual aggression relating to at least two separate women by Bedfordshire police, who have obtained a European Arrest Warrant for them. In 2023 Romanian authorities formally charged the Tate brothers with rape, human trafficking and forming an organised crime group to sexually exploit women, naming seven alleged victims. Prosecutors allege Andrew Tate raped at least one of them repeatedly and coerced the women through threats of violence and financial ruin. In 2024 they filed a second indictment which mentions 35 alleged victims of trafficking, including one who was 15 years old at the time. Both Tate brothers deny all of these allegations, and have repeatedly characterised them as a coordinated attack by 'the Matrix'. Our work uncovered Andrew Tate's War Room Network, which trains men how to manipulate vulnerable women into sex work. Andrew Tate denies any wrongdoing and says he is prepared to defend his innocence. I have met many of these women. Their stories are horrific. Many have told me stories of violent strangulation. Andrew Tate texted one of them 'I love raping you'. When asked about this text in 2023 and 2024 Tate did not respond, but he has denied any accusation of rape. Rightwing pundits have been attempting to delegitimize the cases against the Tates for years. When they came forward with their allegations, many of the alleged victims were called misogynistic slurs by thousands of Tate supporters, liars by manosphere podcasters like Sneako and Fresh and Fit,' and 'paid actresses' in viral posts on X. Some also suffered witness intimidation and abuse. Tate's other lawyer, Joseph McBride, who worked with White House official Paul Ingrassia, publicly named one of the alleged victims (who was meant to stay anonymous) and discussed her 'body count' on the Fresh and Fit podcast, leading to online harassment. Another Tate ally, the self-proclaimed 'investigative journalist,' Sulaiman Ahmed, showed up outside one of the alleged victims' parents' house in Florida. The victims' legal representatives claim he was paid by Tate to silence her in a conspiracy that 'amounts to witness tampering.' Court documents from the second Tate indictment in Romania allege that after he was moved from jail to house arrest, Tate attempted to pay one of his alleged victims – a 15-year-old – 2500 euros to say 'only good things' about him to the Romanian authorities. The potential for witness tampering and interference is one of the reasons the Tate brothers have been placed under judicial control. Another is that they might try to escape Romania. (The streamer Adin Ross said Tate told him he at one point planned to leave Romania and 'never come back'.) Tate's team have denied the brothers are a flight risk. By pressuring the Romanian authorities to release the Tate brothers from judicial control, Trump's special envoy Grenell could be seen as hampering Romanian due process and multiple human trafficking investigations, not to mention breaking Article 41 of the Vienna convention which requires that diplomats don't interfere with domestic affairs in their guest country. If someone was accused of similar crimes in the US, they would almost certainly not be allowed to leave the country – and the administration knows this. So why support someone being investigated for human trafficking? For those of us following closely, all the signs of a coordinated disinformation attack on the media and the courts by the Trump administration, the Tates, and a network of far-right agitators and pundits are there. Tate's attack lines are parroted by the Trump administration and vice versa. On 3 February, Tristan Tate suggested a conspiracy theory on X that USAid could somehow be involved in the investigation into the Tates. Hours later, Grenell, Trump's special envoy, responded that Romania was the 'latest example' of how 'USAid programs were weaponised against people and politicians who weren't woke'. The implication that it is 'woke' to oppose the Tates is a new low for the 'Maga' movement. But this is simply the latest round of artillery in an information war in which Andrew Tate and Trump are natural allies. The day after Grenell's comment on X, Elon Musk boosted a post saying that 'USAid funds the BBC'. (The reality? USAid made a $1.9m donation to the BBC's media charity in India.) Andrew Tate was quick to jump on the bandwagon, replying to Elon: 'The real redpill as that all of these 'other' funders of the BBC are ALSO funded by USAID. ALL OF IT IS USAID. Propaganda arm of The Matrix.' (Tate hates the BBC because the documentaries I've made about him were commissioned there.) On 17 February, the conspiracy evolved, with Tate now claiming: 'It was Biden who locked us up in the first place. USAid-sponsored attack. UK foreign office heavily involved. They want me to serve time for tweets. None of the charges against me were ever real.' USAid. The legacy media. The Romanian courts. The Biden administration. Tate seamlessly weaves them all into one giant convoluted conspiracy that's bent on putting him in jail to prevent his wisdom from freeing young men. He does so with support from the Trump administration and Musk. (In January Musk, who reinstated Tate's account after buying Twitter, tweeted 'Great point' to an X post that read: 'The same government and journalists who accused the Tates of sex trafficking overlooked actual sex trafficking.' One of his 'department of government efficiency' employees appears to be a Tate fan.) Paul Ingrassia, the former Tate lawyer who is now a White House Liason for the Department of Justice, once wrote a sycophantic blog post about the Tates in which he never discusses the allegations or the case itself but audaciously accuses the media of using the Tate brothers as scapegoats to 'drown out' the 'real victims' and 'legitimate cases of sexual abuse and sex trafficking'. Ingrassia never responds to specific allegations or evidence, nor provides an argument as to why the allegations are 'bald-faced lies'. The facts are never discussed. The idea that someone could be accused of heinous sexual crimes and successfully delegitimize those allegations as a politically motivated sham is presumably appealing to Trump and his inner circle, many of whom have themselves faced allegations of sexual assault. Not once has an official in the Trump administration said anything about the 48 alleged victims who say they were either raped, trafficked, physically abused, or a combination of the above, one of whom is an American citizen. They deserve due process without interference. Judicial independence is protected by law in Romania, but in practice judges have been unlawfully influenced. They will hopefully carry out their investigation regardless of what Trump's cronies say. Ingrassia, in his excoriation of the supposedly anti-Tate media, wrote: 'The real victims are once again forgotten, lost beneath the howls and cries of those in command of the mainstream media loudspeaker, who drown out – and thereby, exacerbate – legitimate cases of sexual abuse and sex trafficking.' But this quote reeks of projection. It is true in reverse, as the loudspeaker belongs to 'Maga' and Tate. The challenge journalists now face is to be louder. Matt Shea is a film-maker and the co-author of Clown Word, Four Years Inside Andrew Tate's Mansophere
