Tammy Hembrow: Inside Instagram star’s massive year

It’s been a wild ride for Australia’s queen of Instagram – and with more than 10 million followers, Tammy’s 2020 is going to be even bigger.

It’s been a big year for Tammy Hembrow.

The Queensland influencer, who first rose to fame after documenting her post-pregnancy body transformation on Instagram, continues to make headlines – and is laughing all the way to the bank.
Despite her meteoric rise in the past 12 months, Tammy said that life “hasn’t changed too much”.

“In some ways, I get photographed a lot more when I’m out,” she told news.com.au. “I can tell now when someone is following me to the gym to get a shot.

“But other than that not really, I just live a pretty normal life with my kids, my sisters. I spend my time with them and then I’m at work during the week. It hasn’t changed too much.”

The model now has her own exercise app, Tammy Fit, as well as clothing line Saski Collection, countless endorsement deals and a podcast.

She has two children, son Wolf and daughter Saskia with her ex-fiance Reece Hawkins, who she broke up with in June 2018.

Tammy said it’s “definitely hard” juggling being a mum with her businesses but admits she’s in a fortunate position working for herself.

“No day is the same,” she said. “I’m lucky in that I can kind of work around my kids with my businesses because I do own them.

“But I’ll have last-minute shoots or meetings that come up and sometimes I’ll have to bring the kids with me.”

While her star skyrocketed last year when she made an infamous exit from Kylie Jenner’s 21st birthday party, Tammy continues to grab attention wherever she goes – here are some of her biggest moments from 2019.

Tammy’s been keeping busy this year.

‘HE’S JUST A FRIEND’: TAMMY LINKED TO KYLIE JENNER’S EX

Tammy’s run-in with the Kardashians continued earlier this year when the fitness model was linked to US rapper Tyga in late January.

Tyga, 30, had dated Kylie, 22, on and off for three year before they split for good in April 2017.

Tammy was spotted hanging out with Tyga while he performed at Sydney’s Rolling Loud festival, later joining him at his Brisbane concert as well.

Months later a song that featured a rap by Tyga made a sexually explicit reference to a woman named Tammy.

In January, Tammy was linked to Kylie Jenner’s ex Tyga. Picture: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Harper's Bazaar.

In the song Uno, Tyga rapped about the woman wearing “no panties” and having a “p**sy” that “deserve a Grammy”.

Speaking on her podcast Hanging With The Hembrows in December, Tammy confirmed the now-infamous lyrics were a reference to her but had been taken “out of proportion”.

“It’s not dissing me at all, but it’s also just a song. People are so crazy! Do you actually take rappers’ songs so literally?” she told sisters Emilee and Amy Hembrow.

“He’s just a friend of mine, and I feel like this is just like taken so out of proportion and crazy. People are just ridiculous.”

Tammy passed out after a big day at Coachella

‘COACHELLA WAS TOO LIT’

Tammy continued to make headlines in April when footage of her sleeping at Coachella circulated on Instagram.

The businesswoman attended Coachella with friends despite having a broken ankle. She headed to the festival on crutches, with Tammy revealing her father had warned her to drink plenty of water.

In a video shared online, the 25-year-old was shown slumped over in a chair, resting her head in her lap while she snored.

“Coachella was too lit for tamtam,” the video caption said.

The video was first uploaded to a hip-hop artist’s Instagram account before being deleted and shared on the viral Brown Cardigan page.

Tammy is yet to address the incident; however, her ex-fiance Reece Hawkins did appear to take a dig at her after the video first appeared online.

He shared a post on Instagram that simply read: “Karma.”

Tammy Hembrow with Jahkoy Palmer.

ON-OFF ROMANCE WITH CANADIAN RAPPER

After being linked to Tyga, Tammy began dating Canadian rapper Jahkoy Palmer in June, with the couple sharing a series of loved-up posts on Instagram.

But their relationship has been tumultuous, with the couple breaking up and getting together multiple times; however, they appeared to split for good in October.

Their break-up hasn’t stopped Jahkoy begging for Tammy back in several Instagram posts, including one in which he begged her to give him a chance to rekindle their “special connection”:

Unfortunately for Jahkoy, Tammy doesn’t appear to have been swayed by his appeals for a reunion.

Tammy Hembrow at the VMAs. Picture: Johannes Eisele / AFP

‘NO ONE KNOWS HER’

The biggest sign yet of her rising international stardom, Tammy attended the MTV Video Music Awards in August.

The mother-of-two looked incredible in a two-piece metallic outfit and long blonde hair but was mocked over a video she posted to her Instagram of herself on the red carpet.

Several followers pointed out how a woman next to her was holding a sign that read: “Tammy Hembrow Australia.”

“It’s good they have the sign so we know who she is,” one wrote, while another added: “No one knows her so they held up a sign.”

Tammy hit 10 million followers on Instagram in 2019.

SCANTILY-CLAD INSTAGRAM POSTS

Tammy hit 10 million followers in October and it’s not hard to see why when you look at her Instagram.

The mum looks seriously good in all her Instagram photos, posting shots of her in everything from revealing bikinis and very skimpy active wear.

Her posts were so revealing that at first glance some of her followers accused her of being “naked”.

Speaking on her podcast, Tammy admitted she did alter her photos but she didn't “go crazy” like other influencers.

She caused a stir with this picture of her in a ‘naked’ bikini.

“I know girls in LA that literally will sit there and they’re, like, changing their eyebrows … I’m like, woah,” Tammy said.

“The only thing I do is literally whiten my eyes a tiny, tiny bit and then sometimes some smoothing if the skin is breaking out.”

But Tammy said altering her body in photos was off limits.

“Definitely not,” she said. “Oh my gosh, it’s so annoying to me when I get people commenting being like ‘oh Photoshop fail’ … When people say I edit my body – I’m literally just on the side angle, that’s how my body looks.”

Hackers took over Tammy's Instagram account.

HACKERS THREATEN TO RELEASE ‘SEX TAPE’

In early December, Tammy’s fans were left scratching their heads after the Instagram queen’s account began promising to release a “sex tape” and spruiking free iPhones.

Tammy’s account was hacked and flooded with a series of bizarre photos, with one post promising to release “my full 46-minute sex tape” if 40,000 people downloaded a “free app”.

Rogue posts also claimed the Gold Coast influencer was giving away 1000 Macbooks and 2000 iPhone 11 pros and urged her 10.2 million Instagram followers to “claim yours now” by swiping up on the link.

However, neither the sex tape or free Apple products existed, with all posts now wiped from her account.

Tammy later addressed the incident, writing on Instagram: “Whoever hacked me last night u suuuuuck.”

PLANS FOR THE NEW YEAR

Despite her hectic 2019, Tammy has no plans of slowing down in 2020. She wants to continue to build on her app as well as launching a new line in Saskia Collection.

“We’re just really expanding and growing all my businesses and I just hope to continue that,” she said.

But Tammy told news.com.au that she would be squeezing in a “little bit of time off” over the Christmas break.

“We’re hoping to take a little bit of a holiday,” she said.