by Sugar babies on TikTok is filled with different videos showing off lavish lifestyles.
Videos of sugar babies flaunting their opulent lifestyles have become quite popular on TikTok.
They can make the job appear simple while ignoring the hard work and risks involved.
These myths, according to experts, are dangerous for women pursuing a sugar-baby profession.
TikTok user @nikitagonzalez_ posts images of her jet-setting lifestyle using quick-cut montages.
She pans the camera over stacks of cash, fancy shopping bags, and Louis Vuitton accessories in one of the videos. She then uploads excerpts from her five-star trip to Disneyland in the following post.
According to text overlay on the footage, implying she didn’t pay for any of it, her sugar daddy “flew me out” and purchased her the items “because he upgraded me to be his mistress,”
The influencer is one of many who use the #sugarbaby hashtag, a popular TikTok feature that has garnered over a billion views.
While sugar-baby relationships can be found in both genders, the hashtag is dominated by young women who provide emotional or sexual favors to mainly older, wealthier men known as sugar daddies in exchange for money or access to a luxurious lifestyle.
They promote shopping sprees, opulent lifestyles, and luxurious vacations on TikTok by sharing information, advice, and aspirational video montages.
Although the videos are viral, the genre does have its skeptics
Experts and several senior sugar babies are concerned that TikTok influencers are spreading false information about sugar dating.
They’re concerned that the films, which skirt over essential aspects of the trade, could harm young women who learn about the lifestyle through social media.
Sugar babies claim that some TikTok videos portray an unrealistic lifestyle picture. Brook Urick, a 29-year-old marketing consultant and former sugar baby from Nevada, believes that sugar-baby TikTok videos frequently feature opulent vacations and bouquets of roses wrapped in $100 bills create unrealistic expectations only “the top 1%” of sugar babies realize such a lifestyle.
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Urick told Insider, “There aren’t many males out there that have that kind of disposable wealth.”
“Unless you’re the most handsome person on the planet, your chances of getting a lifestyle like that are limited to none.”
Dash Priestley, a Georgia-based entrepreneur and former sugar baby told Insider that while the TikTok sugar baby videos mirror her own experiences, she wants young women to know it’s not the norm.
“It’s all about your personality and how you handle yourself.
The majority of women do not work at that level, “Priestley stated.
“The sugar baby TikTok world is more about clout than it is about information.
This isn’t how things work in the real world.”
Sugar baby depictions on the internet muddle the boundaries between legal and illicit sex labor.
In their videos, sugar influencers frequently claim that they have purely virtual relationships with a sugar daddy who lavish them with money and gifts without seeking sex in return.
Sugar dating without sexual interactions, according to Priestley, is uncommon.
“Sex will undoubtedly come up in the talk.”
You’ll need to know how to avoid it and address it if it arises. “She told Insider that she now teaches sugar infants how to use these methods.”
Sugar babies, she argues, need to acquire “manipulation” and “teasing” strategies to make non-sexual relationships work.
“It’s a real game. You must determine how to play your cards, “she stated.
Sugar babies have been the subject of scholarly research by Srushti Upadhyay, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Buffalo in Buffalo, New York.
“Sugar dating and sex work are two different things,” she explained to Insider.
“It is based on how it’s advertised, what’s being discussed, and how well you comprehend it.
Sugar babies work hard to distinguish themselves from sex work, “she stated
Prostitution is illegal in the U.S., except for ten counties in Nevada. Most states penalize both the sex worker and the customer equally, so openly exchanging money for sex would put sugar babies at risk of prosecution, according to the research charity ProCon.
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Urick believes TikTok exaggerates the possibility of becoming a sugar baby without a sexual component.
She estimates that just about 10% of sugar-baby relationships are without sex.
Experts say it’s unusual for sugar-baby relationships to be without sexual interactions.
“It’s effortless to fabricate information about what’s really going on.
That is the bleak side of the situation. Because if you’re having sex for money, you don’t want to put it on TikTok; there’s a lifestyle of shame and concealment, “she stated
Due to the legal consequences, Upadhyay believes that sex discretion is a crucial skill for young sugar infants to learn.
“Sugar babies can find themselves into legal problems if they don’t understand the legal ramifications of negotiating these hazy borders,” she said.
Even the TikTokers are concerned about the current trend
Summer Saito, a 23-year-old sugar baby TikToker from Hawaii who frequently posts videos about the money she makes via platonic meets with older men, stated, “To be honest, a lot of sugar babies on TikTok that promote such opulent sugar daddy lifestyles come from pure luck.”
“Many people might attempt the lifestyle and get nothing out of it. It’s quite hit-or-miss.”
People may be lured to join without recognizing the skills and labor necessary.
“Sugar dating is a challenging lifestyle to handle even without sex,” according to sugar babies.
Many TikTokers who are sugar babies advocate the lifestyle to get quick money.
They brag about getting money and presents from sugar daddies they’ve never met in exchange for texting.
In actuality, successful sugar babies put in a lot of emotional labor to keep being compensated.
Priestley told Insider, “It’s so much labor and energy, especially when you’re trying to avoid sex.”
“If you want a man to look after you, you have to work hard to earn respect without giving anything away.”
Taylor B. Jones, a Georgia-based dating coach and former sugar baby believes that the art of successful sugar dating necessitates a great deal of inner work.
“It’s all in your head.”
“Do you think you’re valuable enough to have someone wanting to help you?” she said.
“You have to put forth the effort and own your values.”
Sugar dating, according to Upadhyay, is all about having a hustle mentality.
“You have to work hard just to get into the sugar industry.”
You must create profiles, speak with potential sugar daddies, and negotiate,” she explains.
“It’s a lot of emotional work, and it’s also time-consuming.” Sugar daddies, on the other hand, have their expectations, which sugar babies must endeavor to achieve.”
Urick is concerned that TikTok will give young women the wrong impression.
She’s worried that they’ll overlook the emotional toll it takes, as well as the risks of abuse, coercion, legal problems, and reputation damage that come with working in the sugar industry.
“There are young women who see financial signals in this lifestyle,” she remarked.
“This opens the door for these sugar babies to be exploited.”
Jones acknowledged that the lifestyle is more complicated than it appears on the surface.
She told Insider, “I wouldn’t want a female to negotiate this lifestyle alone.”
Sugar-baby TikTok has the potential to be a force for good
Despite her worries, Upadhyay has high hopes for TikTok, the sugar baby.
“In terms of networking and mentorship, there is a lot of promise.
Some sugar babies have been able to find mentorship and have even risen up the ranks as a result of their relationships, “she stated
“You could consider it networking, which is an important aspect of any job.”
Many sugar babies have recently begun to combine their glitzy movies with fraud warnings and safety suggestions for new sugar babies who are just getting started with the lifestyle.
It’s a harbinger of good things to come, according to Saito.
“I’ve seen a couple of helpful accounts that have given wonderful advise and safety recommendations that would significantly assist someone just getting started — and I’ve had marketers send me items to trial, sugar daddy sites reach out to promote their sites, and reporters contact out to get in an interview,” she says.
“It has its advantages.”
