Pokimane hits back at TikTok backlash over money bouquet flaunt

A prominent female streamer has defended a video showcasing her extravagant birthday gift, amid criticism from fans accusing her of flaunting her wealth.

Pokimane, the popular Twitch personality, has addressed criticism following her TikTok post showcasing an extravagant bouquet of dollar bills gifted to her on her birthday.

Earlier this week, Pokimane celebrated her 28th birthday and to mark the occasion her assistant surprised her with a lavish bouquet crafted from dollar bills.

The popular streamer shared the moment with her audience in a brief TikTok clip captioned: “Guess who got this for my birthday lol”.

Although numerous viewers appeared to love the extravagant gift and shared in the birthday wishes, some fans expressed disapproval of Pokimane showcasing the cash.

“It’s really tiring seeing so many celebs, streamers, so detached from reality and [not] reading the room,” one said.

“I’ve never got flowers… especially the money kind,” another commented.

A user took to the comments section to express their frustrations with the influencer.

“Probably not smart to upload this with people blocking celebs… hate to rally the world to block you, too,” they wrote.

Pokimane responded to their comment, saying she “understands” their feelings and that she “hopes people can see this was meant as a joke.”

Many more joined in the debate writing “All eyes on Rafah”, the phrase which has surged in popularity in recent months, serving as a rallying cry to draw attention to the assaults on the city in Gaza.

Renowned Twitch streamer is the latest internet sensation to be called out for flaunting wealth online. Picture: Supplied.

This comes as the term “digitine”, short for “digital guillotine,” gained popularity following the 2024 Met Gala.

The popular phrase is being used on social media as a call to unfollow or block celebrities criticising them for not using their platforms and privilege to help people in need, in particular the Israel-Hamas conflict.

In particular Haley Kalil, an influencer best known as Haleyy Baylee faced backlash for her video where she attended the Met Gala in floral attire, lip-synching to a line from Kirsten Dunst’s Marie Antoinette film, “let them eat cake.”

Baylee said she wanted to capture the elegance of the 1600s and 1700s period of fashion and pay homage to her obsession with Bridgerton. Picture: Supplied.

Baylee, who did not attend the Met Gala as a guest, but interviewed celebrities before the event, has since deleted the original clip.

“Haley: For your ignorant decision to attend the $75,000 ticket Met Gala and recite ‘Let them eat cake,’ while you have done nothing with your 10 million follower platform as people are starving or dying, we sentence you to the digitine,” one TikTok user wrote.

Baylee defended her video saying the audio clip she used from “Marie Antoinette” was a popular trending sound on TikTok at the time, and that she had not intended to cause offence by using it.

“I need to apologise. I am so, so, so sorry that I chose a sound that you guys could ever possibly feel was malicious in nature. If I had thought for even one second that the sound would be received that way, I never ever, ever, ever, ever, ever would have used it,” she said.

“The sound choice truly had no deeper meaning. I never would have chosen a sound on purpose to highlight wealth disparity or elitism,” she said.