In the age of social media, it’s easy to get lost in the never-ending timeline of perfectly edited photos and beauty filters — but TikTok star Miranda Rae is hoping to change how her viewers see themselves.
Miranda Rae is a TikTok creator with over 8 million followers. She’s built up a dedicated fan base thanks to her cheerful personality and quirky sense of humor, as well as chronicling her seemingly never-ending carousel of hair colors.
In fact, one of her first viral videos focused on her hair. In an exclusive interview with Dexerto, she revealed that she’s dyed her hair over 25 times… Something she’s not likely to stop doing anytime soon.
“One thing about me is that I absolutely love changing my hair,” she told us. “One of my first videos to really go viral was a slow motion video of flipping my hair and since then, I’ve had so much fun experimenting with color and styling.
“In the last four years, I think I’ve dyed it over 25 times. Adding bold colors is always so fun for me! Something about having these colors in my hair makes me feel most like myself.”
Miranda says that her hair has a big influence on her day-to-day style. Since she changes her hair color so often, she’s constantly tailoring her looks to match, lighting up that creative spark that her fans love so much.
“For me, my style is heavily inspired by my hair,” she explained. “Because I change my hair so often, I love building looks around whatever my hair is doing at that time, so when my hair is loud and colorful, I might style myself more eccentrically, but when it’s more natural, I might style myself in a more elevated way. Fashion is all about having fun and being creative, so I always love trying new things!”
However, she’s also extremely candid about her struggles with her body image and an eating disorder. Miranda opened up about this side of her content, saying it wasn’t something she was keen on sharing at first, but was inspired to speak out after realizing how other creators’ transparency gave her comfort in her darkest hours.
“In the beginning, I was really hesitant to be so transparent about my ED journey, but in the back of my mind, I always remembered how other creators’ vulnerability and authenticity helped me so much when I was going through my most difficult times.
“Of course, it can be challenging to be so transparent, but ultimately I wanted my fans who might be struggling with their own issues to know that they’re not alone and that there is hope for recovery.”
By being open about her mental health, Miranda hopes to provide some comfort to her 8 million followers and show them that they’re not alone in their struggles — that even someone as glamorous and internet-famous as her can have bad days, too.
“I think talking about mental health is so important, because so often when you’re dealing with something difficult, it can feel like you’re totally alone,” she told us. “I was always comforted when someone I looked up to was going through the same things as me. Now, I want to be that same comfort for my fans.”
Thanks to her efforts, she’s managed to make a big impact in her fans’ lives. In turn, she says their positive responses to her transparency has given her the encouragement she needs when things get tough.
“Since coming forward about my story, the response has been overwhelmingly supportive, and I’m so incredibly thankful,” she admitted. “Even though I originally started posting about my ED online to help others who might be struggling, I think the incredible love and support I’ve been shown has also really helped me in my own journey!”
Miranda Rae is no stranger to the critical eye of the internet. As a creator with millions of online fans following her every move, she’s well-acquainted with just how mean anonymous netizens can be.
“I do feel that, and it’s an unfortunate part of the world we live in,” she told us. “I think there will
always be challenges and double standards for women, but I’m hopeful that will change as time goes on.”
It’s an uncomfortable reality that many women in public-facing careers endure. But thanks to her supportive fans and her willingness to openly discuss her own struggles, Miranda is using her colorful hair and bright personality to add a little more light to the world around her one video at a time.