Ms. Muffin: The creator of several viral 'prank' videos speaks out
theGRIO REPORT - For those who figured out that Pugh’s videos are staged, one very logical and frequent criticism is that she is putting people in danger and wasting police and EMT services...
Real dangers of fake scenarios
For those who figured out that Pugh’s videos are staged, one very logical and frequent criticism is that she is putting people in danger and wasting police and EMT services. After all, she had to literally run from the police with her pretend boyfriend for the domestic violence stunt. The two young men who attacked the boyfriend were also part of her cast as well as the woman who filmed with her camera phone. What if a non-actor on the train had joined in the fight and caused or received serious injury? The woman who took off her coat was a regular citizen who was willing to risk her own safety. Pugh was pleasantly surprised by her bravery.
And for the Coney Island boardwalk birth stunt, several police officers and EMTs responded to the scene. Pugh was actually taken in an ambulance to a hospital. Once the EMTs determined that she was not giving birth and not even pregnant, they asked her to wait at the hospital and be examined by mental health professionals. Pugh managed to leave the hospital and once again evade authorities with the help of her fellow cast members.
“I did not want to break character, so I had to wait until the very last minute to admit everything. Once they heard what I was doing, they were thinking like ‘what’s wrong with this girl?’” said Pugh with a laugh.
Not everyone finds that scenario to be humorous. One commenter on the Coney Island birth video said: “As someone who’s in the health care profession, you’ve crossed the line with this one. It is highly disturbing that you find humor in this. I’ve seen so many EMTs and cops get into serious car accidents responding to real emergencies. This is utter disrespect to professionals. I see in your earlier comment that “it’s what you do”, what you do is dangerous – it doesn’t benefit the world, it just makes you feel relevant. Find a better hobby. I’m not trying to be mean, just show you the severity of your actions. You could have gone to jail for such a stupid act.”
Pugh’s response was “ohhhh wellll lmaoooo thats your opinon hunny thanxs for checking out my video and showing me much love.”
“I’ve never been arrested and I don’t care what people say. I don’t live my life other than how I want to. I do take risks. Most pranksters are risk takers, but for me I’m also putting a message with my videos,” Pugh told theGrio.
The future
Pugh started doing videos at 17 years old and now at almost 19, she’s trying to figure out how to get to the next level. It’s not easy for the teen. She dropped out of high school when was found out she was pregnant at 16 and she had intentions of obtaining her GED. That never happened and now she’s unemployed and looking to eventually take the Test Assessing Secondary Completion, the new high school equivalency exam.
The Brooklyn native said she gets by on child support, occasional help from her parents and temporary city jobs. “It’s been hard. I don’t make money from the videos. Sometimes I only have a single ride fare to shoot them. Hopefully, the videos go somewhere. I try to make them as real as possible. As far as work, I’m willing to do any job– not a commission job though. I need a guaranteed check. Oh and no fast food job,” said Pugh who has dreams of being in movies and working with Tyler Perry.
The mastermind behind many viral videos of the past year is an unemployed teen mom from Brooklyn who is looking to use comedy to spread awareness. Does it change how you view the videos now that you know a little about the creator and that the scenarios are not real?
Do the conversations sparked by Pugh’s videos outweigh the very real dangers of her stunts?
Follow Demetria Irwin on Twitter at @Love_Is_Dope and connect with her on Facebook.
