The Ballerina Farm controversy, explained

Ballerina Farm is a popular TikTok channel through which mom-of-eight “farmfluencer” Hannah Neeleman offers tips and tricks about how she manages her large family’s rustic lifestyle. Neeleman’s own family, however, has led some to think that Ballerina Farm is not what it seems to be.

According to Business Insider, the Ballerina Farm is one of many TikTok channels with millions of followers espousing a picturesque, back-to-basics lifestyle. As for Neeleman, she’s a Juilliard-trained former ballerina who won Mrs. American in 2023, Newscenter1.tv reported. Meanwhile, Vox says that Ballerina Farm existed in Utah before the Neelemans bought it in 2018 for $2.75 million, and their cast iron stove, alone, often featured in their TikTok posts, costs around $20,000.

Although a Juilliard education is spendy, it’s possible Neeleman attended the prestigious school from a humble background. It’s Daniel Neeleman — Hanah’s husband — and his family, however, where the bulk of Ballerina Farm’s criticisms are centered.

Daniel Neeleman’s father founded JetBlue airlines

The father of Hannah Neeleman’s husband, Daniel Neeleman, is David Neeleman, an airline magnate and founder of JetBlue and other airlines. For this reason, many say the idyllic lifestyle the Neelemans purport to portray on social media is too good to be true in light of Daniel’s family money. The Neelemans also sell meat and other rustic lifestyle items on their Ballerinafarm.com website, and are often aligned with the “tradwife” movement on social media linked to Christian beliefs. The Neelemans speak openly about belonging to the LDS church.

In 2022, Anne Helen Petersen wrote on Substack, compared to the hardscrabble lifestyle of many who truly live off the land, “When Ballerina Farm pretends their reality is reality, those people are erased.” Others add that Neelemans and others who live the life they seem to portray online likely still work hard despite facing much lower stakes.