Nara Smith and Ballerina Farm’s collaboration sparks online debate with tradwife conspiracy theories
Nara Smith, the TikTok creator famous for making sunscreen and cough drops from scratch, has been making headlines once again for taking a little trip to rural Utah—aka, Mormon country. On a farm that was quaint, idyllic and far removed from the troubles of city life, Smith linked up with Hannah Neeleman, also known as Ballerina Farm or ‘The Queen of Trad Wives,’ according to a controversial feature in The Times. The two spent an afternoon milking cows and enjoying a gorgeous, all-homemade brunch spread, which naturally stirred up some controversy on TikTok within hours…
In a TikTok video uploaded on 12 September, Smith shared: “After a crazy work week in New York we finally made it to Utah for a few days to hang out with some family and friends and we obviously had to stop by Hannah’s house for some brunch. We had a whole spread going on with some croissants, crepes, fruits, homemade Nutella, and jams. Daniel also made us some yoghurt the night before, which I couldn’t get enough of.”
A montage of clips showed Smith and Neeleman enjoying lunch, playing with each other’s children, visiting the farm’s new dairy, and posing for pictures together, of course.
“It was nice for all of us to sit down and catch up and talk about everything that’s been going on. Rumble and Slim needed to see how a cow was milked, so I gave it a try, and it’s a lot harder than Hannah makes it look. We were all so sad to leave but we know we’re gonna be back very soon,” Smith continued.
The video caused quite a stir online, with many netizens expressing their excitement over this unexpected crossover. Every 16 to 24-year-old with a phone will likely have watched at least Nara Smith, or Ballerina Farm video at this point. They serve as a portal to immerse oneself into a wholesome and familiar world of domesticity and tranquillity.
Of course, producing and curating this carefully constructed content is part of a full-time influencer job, which has made the ‘tradwife’ moniker both women have been bestowed with quite controversial.
Smith and Neelman have both previously clarified that they do not identify as tradwives, considering that Smith is also a model when she is not creating her content. In contrast, Neeleman also runs a farming business with her husband.
“I wasn’t aware that finding joy in cooking for my husband and kids would automatically mean that I just slave away in the kitchen. I don’t have a job and I have a whole production team at my house making that happen. To clarify, none of that is true. I’m a working mom juggling all kinds of hats and responsibilities,” the model and influencer stated in one of her recent videos.
@naraazizasmith 🤍 #traveling #dayinmylife #fypツ #momtok #toddlersoftiktok #marriage
♬ Backsound Puisi - Audiolist Productions
Yet, the controversy didn’t stop at contestation of whether the two should be classed as tradwives—spoiler alert, they shouldn’t.
Their Mormon religion and the fear that Smith was becoming increasingly engulfed in it also drew some negative attention.
Ex-mormon Alyssa Grenfell, who openly talked about her decision to exit the faith and coined the term ‘mormon face’, responded to the controversial videos in one of her TikToks.
“If you guys haven’t seen it yet, Nora Smith went to Utah and collaborated on some content with Ballerina Farm. Now if you’re not familiar, Ballerina Farm, very Mormon. Traditionally Mormon, generational Mormon. Nara was introduced to Mormonism by her model husband Lucky Blue Smith. Nara has said in the past that she’s just kind of learning about Mormonism. They’re not super strict.”
@alyssadgrenfell The Mormon church is business in the front, cult in the back 🫢 #exmormon #lds #utah #mormoninfluencer
♬ original sound - Alyssa Grenfell
“Honestly, seeing her collaborate with Ballerina Farm made me a bit nervous that she’s getting more sucked into this religion. And keep in mind, this is a religion that has historically taught that Black people shouldn’t be full members of the church. Also historically taught that having Black skin is literally a curse from god. I really love Nara Smith’s content. I think her relationship with Lucky Blue Smith is really beautiful and their whole vibe is amazing. Seeing her do this collaboration and seemingly get more swept up into traditional Mormonism just honestly makes me nervous.”
“Someone did a video about Nara Smith’s tea drawer [and] how it was all the Mormon approved drinks and that felt convincing to me she’s more bought in than she says,” one TikTok user commented under the video.
Someone else commented: “I think they have a lot more in common than Mormonism. They both have experience in the creative industry, enjoy making food from scratch, enjoy being mothers, and both do TikTok.”
Whatever the reason for their meeting and new friendship is, it would be reductive and patronising to assume that it was entirely based on the two most “controversial” things about them. Maybe Nara just really wanted to take some pictures at the farm she has admired in so many TikTok videos. Maybe this was all just an elaborate PR stunt because they knew the internet would have a meltdown the second they posted the footage. Or maybe they just milked some cows and talked about things completely unrelated to their jobs and online time, like keeping chickens.
