Teen influencer Danielle Cohn spoke openly about her abortion after becoming embroiled in controversy. Here's how the social media star rose to prominence online.
Margot Harris
- Influencer and musician Danielle Cohn, who boasts 18.2 million TikTok followers and 1.8 million YouTube subscribers, has become an online sensation thanks to her lip-syncing videos and controversial social media presence.
- Since the social media star rose to prominence in 2016, fans and critics have speculated about her age and expressed concern about her sexualized social media presence.
- Cohn made headlines in July when she made a video addressing a leaked audio clip that revealed that she had an abortion earlier this year.
- Since posting the video, Cohn has received support from fans who "respected" her decision and transparency, but others remained concerned about her age and relationships.
- Cohn's mother, Jennifer Archambault, has described the situation as "painful," and she hopes her daughter can heal out of the spotlight.
With 18.2 million TikTok followers, 4.7 million Instagram followers, and 1.8 million subscribers YouTube, Danielle Cohn has established herself as a rising star in the influencer space. As a public figure, the teenager, who lives in Los Angeles with her mother Jennifer Archambault, is no stranger to controversy — Cohn's critics frequently voice their concern for her wellbeing, and some question whether the influencer is as old as her social presence suggests.
Here's a timeline of her career and controversial rise to fame.
Cohn's father reignited speculation about her age after posting an explosive Facebook status and YouTube video.
On September 16, 2019, Cohn's father, Dustin Cohn, took to Facebook to address the speculation about his daughter's age. In the since-deleted post, he claimed that she was 13 years old — not 15, as her social media profiles suggested at the time.
"I have decided to set things straight about my daughter Danielle Cohn," the post read. "For years I have done the diplomatic thing while dealing with my daughter being online in a way I didn't approve of and trying to have it handled out of social media because I figured the system would work and keep my daughter safe."
Cohn added that he'd voiced concerns about his daughter's social media exposure in the past, to no avail.
"We found Pinterest boards with her photos and I told her mom I worried about pedophiles," he wrote. "The pictures now have gotten worse and worse. I am finally saying something on social media because people need to be held accountable."
Cohn's friend, Blake Lyons, commented on the post with a photo of what appeared to be Danielle Cohn's birth certificate. The document listed her date of birth as March 7, 2006 (meaning, if the paperwork was legitimate, Cohn would have been 13 at the time).
Insider was unable to confirm whether the birth certificate in the photo was, in fact, Danielle Cohn's, as Florida birth records are confidential per Florida statutes.
The certificate, however, does appear to match what a Florida birth record would have looked like in 2006. The document includes the signature of the state registrar in 2006, C. Meade Grigg — and the lower-right-hand corner of the paper features a Florida Department of Health logo consistent with the logo used in 2006 (one that has not been in use since 2013).
In June of 2020, Cohn addressed his daughter's age again, briefly creating a YouTube channel in which he posted several videos on the subject. In one clip, he presented his daughter's birth certificate, promising viewers that he'd "show it again" to prove that she was 14 years old (and not 16, as her updated social media profiles suggest). The YouTube channel, however, is no longer available.
Cohn and Archambault denied the claims about her age — and Cohn repeatedly spoke out against her father.
In response to her father's YouTube video, Cohn posted a video of her own titled "The Truth About My Dad."
In the video, Cohn described her parents' "toxic" relationship and detailed her father's behavior throughout her childhood, which she says included excessive drinking and violent behavior.
Cohn added that she believes her father "is not a good person," describing an alleged incident in which he kicked the entire family out of his home (he then responded with another YouTube video in which he claimed that he's "never" forced his children to leave the home).
Archambault stands firm in her claims that Danielle is now 16 years old.
"Danielle is 16," she told Insider. "She's addressed it herself on many YouTube videos but, unfortunately, we have a lot of people that want to ruin her career or make something out of nothing so that they can get attention or followers."
As for critics' concerns about the apparent age gaps in Cohn's relationships, Archambault isn't worried.
"Honestly, as long as my daughter is happy and healthy that's all I care about. Everyone always has something to say — I think just because it's Danielle that's what makes it a problem, because I see other influencers with bigger age gaps and no one ever talks about it or attacks them for it," she said.
Concerns about Cohn's wellbeing resurfaced when leaked audio suggested that the teenager had recently had an abortion.
In July of 2020, audio of a conversation between Cohn and Archambault leaked online, sparking more discussion about Cohn's safety.
In the clip posted to the @2helpdanicohn2 Instagram account, which has since been removed, Archambault can be heard calling Cohn "cold-hearted" and voicing regret for "allowing" her daughter's past behavior.
"I allowed you to have an abortion," she said. "I allowed so much that I shouldn't have allowed, and it's allowed you to be the person you've become."
In follow-up audio clips, Archambault suggested that Cohn go live with her father.
In response to the leaked audio, Cohn posted a video titled "The Truth About My Abortion" in which she discussed the situation at length.
The audio, she confirmed in the 31-minute video, was real, and she'd had an abortion in January of 2020. She said that she'd been manipulated into having sex and did not initially recognize her lethargy and appetite as signs of pregnancy.
"As much as this is really embarrassing for me, and something that I don't want to talk about, it has come to the point where I have to. And I do have to tell my story," she said.
Cohn added that anyone who was faced with a similar decision shouldn't feel embarrassed by their choice, as "it's not a bad thing to do."
Ultimately, she said, she felt "alone" throughout the process, as she didn't tell her family the news.
"I couldn't tell my family. I didn't want them to be disappointed in me," she explained.
Some commenters said they "respected" Cohn for coming forward about her decision, but others voiced concerns about her age, wondering how old she was at the time of the pregnancy and abortion.
The leak of the private conversation, Archambault says, was a painful betrayal.
The infamous audio, Archambault revealed to Insider, was recorded by her best friend of five years.
"I was just really hurt that someone we loved and trusted would do this to us and hurt Dani this badly," she said, adding that the teenager felt compelled to make the video and "be honest" with her following after the clip leaked.
"This was definitely not the way she wanted it to come out. Eventually, she would've come out with it, but it's still so new and she's still grieving," Archambault said.
Ultimately, Archambault is proud of her daughter for using her platform to discuss the issue.
"I wish I could've protected my daughter and kept this from happening, 'cause no parent wants their child to have to go through something like this," she said. " But things like this happen, unfortunately, and I'm happy Dani was able to share her story in hopes to prevent other young girls from having to deal with the same pain and heartache she's had to deal with."
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