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12 Years After 2YO ‘Side-Eyeing Chloe’ Became A Meme, Her Mom Breaks Silence: “We Were So Poor”
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12 Years After 2YO ‘Side-Eyeing Chloe’ Became A Meme, Her Mom Breaks Silence: “We Were So Poor”

12 Years After 2YO ‘Side-Eyeing Chloe’ Became A Meme, Her Mom Breaks Silence: Viral Meme Star “Side-Eye Chloe” Talks About Fame As Her Mom Reveals Decade-Long GuiltMom Of Meme Star “Side-Eye Chloe” Feels Guilt Over Fame: “It Was Insane”12 Years After 2YO ‘Side-Eyeing Chloe’ Became A Meme, Her Mom Reveals She Has ‘A Lot Of Guilt’Mother Of Viral Meme Star “Side-Eye Chloe” Opens Up About Guilt Over Daughter’s Fame“I Feel A Lot Of Guilt”: Mom Of “Side-Eye Chloe” Talks Struggles Of Viral Fame
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In 2013, 2-year-old “Side-eye Chloe” became a viral meme thanks to a photo of her looking severely unimpressed. A decade later, her mother confessed to feeling “a lot of guilt” over Chloe’s viral fame.

“I didn’t fully understand how big it would get,” Katie Clem said in an interview with People Magazine. “At the time, it seemed fun and harmless, but now, as Chloe gets older, I feel a lot of guilt about it.”

Losing control over the image of their toddler daughter made the parents uneasy, especially considering how fast and wild viral fame can be.

“The internet is forever,” Katie explained, adding how the possibility of Chloe’s privacy being compromised was a constant source of conversation between her and her husband. 

“Once it’s out there, you can’t take it back.”

RELATED:

    The mother of “Side-eyeing Chloe,” the two-year-old who became a meme sensation, broke her silence to reveal she feels “guilty”

    Image credits: chloeclem

    Chloe’s meme face was immortalized after she and her sister, Lily, were in their mother’s car on a family trip. 

    Katie then revealed that they were all heading to Disneyland—a dream come true for most kids her age. While Lily burst into tears with excitement, Chloe gave a bewildered, sideways glance so relatable it quickly became a meme.

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    Katie shared both of her daughters’ reactions on her YouTube channel, with Chloe’s exploding in ways they could’ve never imagined.

    Image credits: chloeclem

    “Lily’s was like a flash-in-the-pan kind of thing,” the mother recounted. “And because of the meme, Chloe’s was just insanely crazy.”

    Katie explained how she felt worried and unsettled after she started seeing her daughter’s face “everywhere.”

    She had almost no time to process what was happening when her family trips suddenly became uncomfortable, and people constantly pestered her to take a picture with the famous 2-year-old.

    Image credits: chloeclem

    “Chloe was 2, and people were coming up to her,” Katie recalled. “They were freaking out. They were taking pictures of her.”

    Even when traveling abroad, people followed them. The family recalled a particularly busy trip to Brazil, where they were “swarmed” by “hundreds of people.”

    “It was insane. She had billboards all over São Paulo,” she said.

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    Chloe’s popularity changed her family’s life forever, as they were able to improve their financial situation beyond what they could’ve imagined

    Image credits: chloeclem

    Despite the pressure they experienced, with fame also came riches. The family was able to monetize the famous picture of their daughter for commercial use, changing their lives.

    “That money literally helped us survive for a decade,” Katie said. “Every ounce of the money, aside from saving it and putting it away, was helping us get through our life. Rent, bills, food.”

    Image credits: chloeclem

    The Clem’s started receiving multiple sponsorships, going as far as to make deals with Google. They finally sold the rights to the image as a non-fungible token in 2021 for an enviable sum of $74,000.

    “10 years ago, we were so poor. This happened to us, and we’re like, ‘What? We can pay bills. We can upgrade our tiny apartment for the four of us.’ It was real-world issues,” Katie added, stating that now that many of their needs are covered, they’ve been able to save for Chloe’s future education.

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    Image credits: chloeclem

    Now, 12 years later, Chloe is 14 and in the middle of her adolescence. Her features have matured to the point where people rarely recognize her, much to the family’s relief.

    “It’s pretty weird,” Chloe said about the overwhelming fame of her toddler self compared to her current relative anonymity. “Sometimes it’s funny, but other times it’s just kind of strange.”

    Katie realized the fame was starting to hurt her daughters’ lives and scaled back on their exposure to allow them to lead everyday lives

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    Image credits: chloeclem

    Allowing Chloe and Lily to lead normal lives as teenagers was no easy task, as her parents had to voluntarily walk away from highly lucrative opportunities to safeguard their privacy.

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    Image credits: chloeclem

    For instance, when Lily was around 7 years old, Disney reached out, interested in featuring her in a TV show. Katie was then faced with a difficult decision but ultimately chose to turn the opportunity down in fear of her daughter being negatively affected by the experience.

    “I just knew that was not the direction I wanted for my children. And then through personal experiences raising them, I am so incredibly grateful that I listened to my instinct and didn’t go that route,” she explained.

    Image credits: Trilly Mac

    The family then gradually reduced their presence on social media, uploading less and less videos on their YouTube channel.

    Speaking to People Magazine, Katie explained that her biggest fear was exploiting her daughters, forcing them to create content not for fun but for money.

    Image credits: ExaFM

    “Once they got a little bit older, I forced them to do things, and I could tell they were bored. I could tell they were tired, and I’m like, ‘Okay, we’re done.'” she said.

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    Image credits: knowyourmeme

    Nowadays, Katie puts her daughters first, making sure that any content they do put out there comes from a genuine place, and not from the pressure to go viral or generate revenue.

    “The mom I am today is not the same mom I was back then,” Katie stated.

    “Adorable, then and now!” Netizens were delighted to see the famous meme girl all grown up and leading a happy life

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    Abel Musa Miño

    Abel Musa Miño

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

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    Abel is a journalist at Bored Panda. Born in Santiago, Chile, he holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication and a diploma in International Relations. In his spare time, you can find him tinkering with his motorbike, playing with his dog, or reading a good novel.

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    Abel Musa Miño

    Abel Musa Miño

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

    Abel is a journalist at Bored Panda. Born in Santiago, Chile, he holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication and a diploma in International Relations. In his spare time, you can find him tinkering with his motorbike, playing with his dog, or reading a good novel.

    Donata Leskauskaite

    Donata Leskauskaite

    Author, BoredPanda staff

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    Hey there! I'm a Visual Editor in News team. My responsibility is to ensure that you can read the story not just through text, but also through photos. I get to work with a variety of topics ranging from celebrity drama to mind-blowing Nasa cosmic news. And let me tell you, that's what makes this job an absolute blast! Outside of work, you can find me sweating it out in dance classes or unleashing my creativity by drawing and creating digital paintings of different characters that lives in my head. I also love spending time outdoors and play board games with my friends.

    Read less »

    Donata Leskauskaite

    Donata Leskauskaite

    Author, BoredPanda staff

    Hey there! I'm a Visual Editor in News team. My responsibility is to ensure that you can read the story not just through text, but also through photos. I get to work with a variety of topics ranging from celebrity drama to mind-blowing Nasa cosmic news. And let me tell you, that's what makes this job an absolute blast! Outside of work, you can find me sweating it out in dance classes or unleashing my creativity by drawing and creating digital paintings of different characters that lives in my head. I also love spending time outdoors and play board games with my friends.

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    PFD
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Blows my mind that people would even recognise her tbh - even at the same age, let alone a couple of years later. I know I'm a bit faceblind but it makes me wonder what life is like for normal people. Is it usual to be able to recognise a kid from a single picture?

    Uren Bugwandeen
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    trips to Disneyland, Brazil..... The moms definition of poor isnt what I understand it to be. We picked up coins wherever we saw them and every few months my gran would use those to get us bread and maybe a can of tinned fish. We learned to be Frugal and if we wanted a holiday (locally), my dad had to work weekends for overtime. We were poor but happy

    Lee451 Henderson
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If they were on a trip to DisneyWorld I sincerely doubt that they were "poor"

    Bruce Scheiman
    Community Member
    4 days ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    All those trips were after she became famous, not before. That's why everybody was wanting pictures with her.

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    PFD
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Blows my mind that people would even recognise her tbh - even at the same age, let alone a couple of years later. I know I'm a bit faceblind but it makes me wonder what life is like for normal people. Is it usual to be able to recognise a kid from a single picture?

    Uren Bugwandeen
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    trips to Disneyland, Brazil..... The moms definition of poor isnt what I understand it to be. We picked up coins wherever we saw them and every few months my gran would use those to get us bread and maybe a can of tinned fish. We learned to be Frugal and if we wanted a holiday (locally), my dad had to work weekends for overtime. We were poor but happy

    Lee451 Henderson
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If they were on a trip to DisneyWorld I sincerely doubt that they were "poor"

    Bruce Scheiman
    Community Member
    4 days ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    All those trips were after she became famous, not before. That's why everybody was wanting pictures with her.

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