rewrite this title Hawk Tuah Podcast Returns With KSI as First Guest Following Past Crypto Controversies – Decrypt

Viral sensation Haliey Welch, better known as “Hawk Tuah Girl,” resurfaced this week with the revival of her Talk Tuah podcast, marking the first episode since December 2024.

“It’s been a hot minute since we’ve been back here,” Welch said.

Welch has been lying low since the launch and rapid implosion of a meme token bearing her nickname. 

The December launch of the Solana-based HAWK, which she promoted, soared to a $490 million market cap before plummeting 93% in minutes. 

“Welch has decided to part ways with the project attached to the meme coin $HAWK,” a spokesperson told Decrypt. “Welch and Memetic Labs LLC have mutually agreed to this separation, and she will no longer be involved with the support or marketing of the coin.”

The collapse triggered widespread backlash and led Welch to deactivate her social media accounts briefly. A February podcast episode was quietly published and just as quickly deleted.

Her first guest since her comeback was YouTuber KSI, real name Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji, who, like Welch, has a history of crypto controversies. 

Though neither directly referenced crypto, both alluded to their turbulent experiences in the public eye.

“I’ve been here for so long I’ve had my ups and my downs and my dooooooowns,” Olatunji said. “You’ve just got to roll with the punches and just stay consistent… In this [influencer] industry, people are going to use and abuse you,”

“I found that out the hard way,” Welch agreed.

Olatunji also remarked that there would always be haters. “It’s just noise,” he said.

That “noise” includes allegations dating back to 2021 that Olatunji promoted crypto projects like XCAD Network and Ethernity Chain to his followers only to allegedly dump tokens shortly after. He has previously denied this.

Welch, meanwhile, is still dealing with the aftermath of her own crypto fiasco. While she publicly acknowledged cooperating in a civil suit targeting the coin’s creators, it was recently revealed that she had also been under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission. That investigation has since been closed.

Still, legal scrutiny of the HAWK token continues. The ongoing civil lawsuit targets crypto launchpad overHERE, its founder Clinton So, influencer Alex “Doc Hollywood” Schultz, and the Tuah the Moon Foundation. Welch is not named as a defendant in the case.

Olatunji has been approached for comment.

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair