Three months after the launch of Hype House, the first house made up entirely of Tik Tok creators in Los Angeles, it seems things are falling apart. In a YouTube video, co-founder Daisy Keech claimed two other co-founders, Thomas Petrou and resident e-boy Chase Hudson, shut her out of the business, and Forbes reports that the 20-year-old officially filed suit against the pair in federal court.
While lawsuits about TikTok are somewhat new, Keech's side of the story is not. Not unlike Taylor Swift's battle with Big Machine Records, Keech is now speaking out about the difficulties of navigating the business world as a young woman.
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In her video, Keech outlines how the Hype House came together, claiming the idea formed in the fall of 2019. In order to secure the now-infamous house, Keech says she and Hudson offered up $18K each, Petrou invested $5K, and two other co-founders, Alex Warren and Kouvr Annon, together invested $5K. These claims are echoed in her official suit.
However, when the house began getting press, including in The New York Times, Keech says Hudson and Petrou neglected to mention her role in the house's formation.
"I had no idea to speak up and say that I was a co-founder," Keech said in her video about the New York Times interview. "I assumed Thomas and Chase would have given the other co-founders, not just myself, the other co-founders credit. Out of integrity, that's just what you do."
But Keech claims it extends beyond an issue of credit. As time went on, she found herself locked out of not just their email and social media accounts, but also potential deals. Her suit cites "agreements with various brands such as Bang Energy, Chipotle, GOAT, Flight House, Beauty Blender as well as with a musical artist named 'Mosey'" that she believes earned the house and creators income that was withheld from her. There is also a dispute over the trademark.
"The first thing I've learned is to listen to red flags," Keech says at the end of her video, later thanking Petrou for teaching her how to stand up for herself and be "an example for younger women in the business world.
Now, Forbes writes, Keech is starting her own content house, launching in a few weeks when she hopes the pandemic has eased: clubhouse. According to Forbes, this house his almost twice as big.