Months after news broke on the college admissions scandal, Olivia Jade Giannulli is back in the headlines with her return to social media. Scroll on to see the latest developments on the controversy-embroiled influencer.
For Olivia Jade Giannulli, her authenticity as an influencer is now under question.
The 20-year-old influencer is the daughter of fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli and “Full House” actress Lori Loughlin, both of whom are embroiled in the nation’s largest college admissions fraud scandal. In documents released in March by a Massachusetts district court, it was revealed that more than 40 adults — including Giannulli, Loughlin and fellow actress Felicity Huffman — are being charged in multiple states for taking illegal measures to get their children accepted into elite colleges, such as Yale, Stanford and the University of Southern California.
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While no students have been charged yet in this case, Olivia Jade Giannulli — who goes by Olivia Jade on her social media accounts — has come under fire for her image as an influencer, considering she has partnered with many brands for back-to-school merchandise and has talked freely about her lack of interest in attending college.
Jade finally returned to her social media on Dec. 1, posting a two-minute YouTube video titled “hi again” where she explained she cannot speak about her parents’ court case or about the college admissions scandal.
From her beauty partnerships and her list of controversies to her return to social media, here is everything you need to know about Olivia Jade.
Who is Olivia Jade Giannulli?
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Jade is the 20-year-old daughter of Giannulli and Loughlin. She has an older sister, 21-year-old Isabella Rose Giannulli, who also is an influencer. Both sisters attend the University of Southern California and are involved in the college admissions scandal.
How is she an influencer?
With 1.3 million Instagram followers and 1.9 million YouTube subscribers, Jade has created a successful career for herself in the fashion and beauty space. Her YouTube videos consist of day-in-the-life vlogs of her daily routine and travels around the world. She frequently posts makeup tutorials, including many how-to videos for a “college party” beauty look.
What brands has she partnered with?
In September 2018, Jade attended New York Fashion Week as a TRESemmé partner, posting a number of Instagram posts — some which have since been deleted — and a YouTube video featuring the brand’s hairspray. She’s also done paid partnerships with Sephora Collection, Philosophy and Marc Jacobs Beauty.
Most notably, Jade has used her college admissions as a way to partner with brands for back-to-school merchandise. In the first few months of her freshman year at USC, Jade had done brand partnerships with Smile Direct Club and Amazon Prime Student. These posts have also been deleted from her Instagram account.
Who has she collaborated with?
In addition to her partnerships, Jade has also collaborated with a few brands. In December, Jade embarked on her first collaboration with Australian fashion retailer, Princess Polly, for a capsule collection of streetwear-inspired clothing. In the same month, Jade teamed with Sephora Collection for a highlighter and bronzer palette. After news on the scandal broke, Sephora announced it would be discontinuing the palette and ending its partnership with Jade.
What other controversies has she been involved with?
The college admissions scandal isn’t the first controversy Jade has been involved with. In a now-deleted YouTube video from August 2018 titled “basically all the tea you need to know about me (boys, college, YouTubers),” she answered viewers questions on attending USC, among other things. When asked if she will be attending college, Jade stated: “I don’t know how much of school I’m going to attend, but I’m going to go in and talk to my deans and everyone and hope that I can try and balance it all, but I do want the experience of like game days and partying. I don’t really care about school as you guys all know.” Jade was criticized for her indifference toward getting an education and posted an apology video two days later.
In August 2017, Jade also came under controversy after posting a vlog of herself driving moments before getting into a car crash. She later deleted the video from her account.
Has she experienced any setbacks because of the scandal?
Along with multiple brands cutting ties with Jade, the influencer had her trademark for a beauty brand denied in March by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office due to improper punctuation and vague language. Undeterred by her parent’s legal trouble, Jade successfully reapplied the trademark the following month and received approval.
What legal trouble are her parents facing?
Jade’s parents have been charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, honest services mail fraud and money laundering as part of the scandal. Giannulli and Loughlin have both pled not guilty, however, if they are convicted they face a maximum of 40 years in prison each. The couple’s next court appearance is expected on Oct. 2.
Does Olivia Jade still attend USC?
Olivia Jade has not returned to USC since the scandal broke.
Has Olivia Jade returned to social media?
Jade had remained silent of social media since the scandal broke. She posted twice on Instagram, the first time a now-deleted image of her giving the middle finger to the camera with a number of media outlets tagged in the caption, and the second to wish happy birthday to her mom in July.
She finally returned to YouTube in December, posting a two-minute video titled “hi again,” where she explains she cannot speak about her parents’ court case or the college admissions scandal.
“It’s really hard for me to say this just because I know that it’s something that needs to be addressed,” she said. “I didn’t know exactly when I should come back to YouTube but the reason for that is just because I’m legally not allowed to speak on anything going on right now.”
She goes on to state that she struggled with the decision to return to YouTube considering that she can’t talk about the scandal, but ultimately decided to return because she misses filming her vlogs. She also states that she plans to take small steps to get back into posting more frequently.
“I’m not trying to like make this about me or how I’ve been because it’s not the point of this but I’m terrified to make this video and to come back,” she continued. “I want to start taking smaller steps in the right direction for people that have been dming and asking me. Moral of the story is I’ve missed you guys so much and I’m just really excited to start filming again and to start uploading.”
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