Miranda Sings is a fictional character created and portrayed by American comedian, actress, singer and YouTube personality Colleen Ballinger that first appeared on the Internet in 2008.Haden, Tyler. "Miranda Sings to Santa Barbara", Santa Barbara Independent, March 4, 2014, accessed February 25, 2015 Ballinger displays videos of the comically talentless, egotistical, misguided and quirky character on her YouTube channel. In these videos, the character sings and dances badly, gives inept "tutorials", recounts her daily activities, discusses current events that she often misunderstands, collaborates with other YouTubers, and rants about her critics, reading examples of hate mail directed at the character on social media; she responds to them with her catchphrase: "Haters Back Off!"
Inspired by early YouTube videos and rude classmates, Ballinger created the character as a satire of bad but arrogant singers who believe that posting their videos on YouTube will lead to them breaking into show business. As of July 2021, the Miranda Sings YouTube channel has more than 2 billion views and 10 million subscribers, and Miranda has accumulated more than 12 million TikTok followers and 6 million Instagram followers. The character also has an active presence on other social media platforms.
Since 2009, in addition to her internet videos, Ballinger has presented live comedy acts, in character as Miranda Sings, at first in cabaret spaces and later in theaters in New York, London, and other cities in the US, Canada, Europe, Australia and elsewhere; she toured regularly beginning in 2014. Her acts include Miranda's signature off-key singing of pop music hits and show tunes, with introductions focusing on the character's backstory. Her delivery is full of malapropisms, mondegreens and spoonerisms, and the acts incorporate interaction with audience volunteers, giving a "voice lesson" to, or singing a duet with, Broadway or other musical celebrities, reading hate mail, seeking a boyfriend, and singing while being stabbed through the neck in her "magic trick". One of Miranda's 2018 tour stops was filmed and released as a 2019 Netflix comedy special.
The character has appeared in television and web series and other media. Her first network television appearance was in a 2012 episode of the TV show Victorious. In 2014, she guest-starred in character on an episode of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee with Jerry Seinfeld and appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. In 2015, she released a New York Times #1 best-selling book, written in Miranda's voice, titled Selp-Helf."Best Sellers: Advice, How-To & Miscellaneous", The New York Times, August 9, 2015 (sales for the week ending July 25, 2015) Miranda is the main character in the Netflix original series Haters Back Off (2016–2017). Ballinger won a Teen Choice AwardHarwood, Erika. "Teen Choice Awards 2015: See The Full Winners List", MTV.com, August 16, 2015 and a Streamy Award for her Miranda videos."5th Annual Winners & Nominees", Streamys.org, accessed September 18, 2015
Description
YouTube videos Since 2008, Ballinger has posted more than 800 videos as the character Miranda Sings on the YouTube channel of the same name."Miranda Sings" most popular videos, Miranda Sings, YouTube, accessed May 22, 2019Ng, David. "YouTube sensation Miranda seduces Broadway", Los Angeles Times, May 11, 2009 The character is a satire of bad but egotistical singers who post internet videos of themselves singing in hopes of breaking into show business, despite the realistic or cruel comments of "haters" who comment on their videos. More generally, it is a satire of pretentious and untalented performers everywhere.Eggar, Robin. "She'd like to teach the world to sing". The Times, May 2, 2010, accessed March 6, 2012Seabaugh, Julie. "The Woman Behind Miranda, One of the Strangest and Most Beloved Characters on YouTube". LA Weekly, July 23, 2015 Miranda is supposedly a home-schooled single woman who lives with her mother, uncle and baby. She is narcissistic, infantilized, overconfident and has a relentless ambition to achieve show business fame.Velasco, Schuyler. "Interview: Miranda Sings", Backstage, August 3, 2010Loftus, Jamie. "Miranda Sings Is the Ultimate Expression of Ironic Teenagers", Inverse.com, November 2, 2016
In the videos, the Miranda character sings in a comically off-key, yet plausible, voice and covers pop music hits, show tunes and original songs. Sometimes she discusses current events, which she usually misunderstands, gives inept mock-"tutorials", rants about her internet critics or discusses the character's backstory.Sarinana, Leslie. "'Miranda Sings' is back … you’re welcome", The Prospector, January 17, 2017 She uses spoonerisms, mondegreens and malapropisms, is irritable, ludicrously self-absorbed, narcissistic, prudish and self-righteous, socially awkward, and has a defiant, arrogant attitude.Siegel, Ben. "Miranda shows that she’s very good at being bad", The Buffalo News, May 6, 2014 The Times describes the character as "self-obsessed and immune to criticism". Her videos "exhibit the near-tragic extent of Miranda’s idiocy."Bassett, Jordan. "Who Is Miranda Sings? Nine Things You Should Know About the Youtuber Who's Coming to Netflix", NME, January 18, 2016 As Robert Lloyd, writing for the Los Angeles Times put it, "the ferocious enormousness of Miranda’s self-regard, which blots out nearly everything around her, is inversely proportional to her talent."Lloyd, Robert. "Haters Back Off offers the funny origin story of Miranda Sings", Los Angeles Times, October 13, 2016 To viewers who take the videos seriously and offer criticism, she responds with the catchphrase, "Haters Back Off!",Keihm, Moira. "YouTube Personality Miranda Sings: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know", Heavy.com, January 17, 2016 telling these critics that they are "just jealous" and that "haters make me famous"."Miranda Sings! at Birdland", stubdog.com, February 4, 2010Rivera, Erica. "'The haters' defined YouTube sensation Miranda Sings", City Pages, August 4, 2015
The character displays eccentric facial traits such as unusually active eyebrows and a crooked smile described as a "side smirk".Collier, Cody. "YouTube Gives Fame to Miranda Sings", Guardian Liberty Voice, Clark County, Nevada, June 29, 2014 Her head is cocked to one side, and her pronunciation quirks include an emphasis on the use of a prominent hard 'g' (in such words as 'singing' and 'song'). In place of lyrics that she cannot remember, the character "scat" sings.Video of Miranda scat singing in "Favorite Things", Broadwayworld.com, May 2009 She wears bright red lipstick drawn beyond the borders of her lips, her hair pulled up at the temples to expose the maximum amount of forehead, dresses in mismatched out-of-style clothing (such as a men's shirt buttoned to the neck with red sweatpants), and often dances stiffly to the music she is performing."Music/Cabaret Miranda Sings", San Francisco Chronicle, October 4, 2009; Bond, Nick. "Haters Back Off – Miranda's Coming", Star Observer, October 30, 2013Liberty, John. "YouTube star Miranda Sings to make Michigan debut, readies for haters", Kalamazoo Gazette, Mlive.com, December 1, 2011 Miranda's views of society and morality are politically incorrect, and she displays a strong prudish aversion to anything risque, which she calls "porn"."The Gay Test: Miranda Sings", TheGayUK, August 17, 2012, accessed December 9, 2013Walgrove, Amanda. "Miranda Sings Covers “Starships,” Performs Magic and Introduces MirandaCon at VidCon 2013" , WhatsTrending.com, August 5, 2013 Since 2013, Miranda has collaborated on videos that other YouTubers display on their channels.Examples include "Teaching Miranda How to Make Slime" and "Teaching Miranda How to Twerk", Its JoJo Siwa; "How to Stop Parents from Comparing Kids (ft. Miranda Sings)", Superwoman; "I Dare You (ft. Miranda Sings)", Nigahiga; "7 Second Challenge With Miranda Sings | Zoella", Zoella; "Mini Miranda Meets Miranda Sings", Eh Bee Family; "Cutting Open Stress Balls w/ Miranda Sings", Joey Graceffa; and "The Photobooth Challenge (ft. MirandaSings)", Tyler Oakley, all accessed July 22, 2019 People magazine featured a Miranda collaboration with Tyler Oakley and Bethany Mota.Gavilanes, Grace. "Tyler Oakley and Bethany Mota Become Miranda Sings in the Most Epic Makeover Video Ever", People magazine, August 27, 2015 Her YouTube audience was relatively modest until early 2013, when her audience reached 150,000 subscribers,Ballinger, Colleen. "Present for My Fans!!! 150,000 subscribers", YouTube, March 8, 2013 and began to expand rapidly.Urgo, Jason. "Miranda Sings: YouTube Progress Graphs", Social Blade, accessed December 23, 2014
In 2018, Ballinger became pregnant with her first child, and Miranda announced her own pregnancy on YouTube.Lee, Josh. "Miranda Sings Just Found Out She's Pregnant, and Her Reaction Is Hysterical", WeTheUnicorns.com, July 4, 2018 Ballinger created a story arc on Miranda's channel in which the character claimed to be the "virgin Miranda", with a virgin conception; she mentioned this soon afterwards on Live with Kelly and Ryan.Belanger, Jeremy. "Colleen Ballinger, aka Miranda Sings, reveals behind-the-scenes details of viral pregnancy video", Yahoo!, July 9, 2018 After Ballinger gave birth in December 2018,Crabtree, Erin. "‘Miranda Sings' Star Colleen Ballinger Gives Birth, Welcomes First Child With Fiance Erik Stocklin", Us Weekly, December 11, 2018; and Ballinger, Colleen. "He's Perfect", Twitter, December 10, 2018 she tweeted about it from Miranda's account.Hohman, Maura. "YouTube Star Colleen Ballinger – AKA Miranda Sings – Welcomes Baby: 'He's Perfect'", People, December 11, 2018 Since then, Miranda has incorporated footage of the baby into her videos, focusing on how he inconveniences her, is trying to murder her, is "dumb", and is a "cannobel" because of his quest for her breast milk.Ballinger, Colleen. "My Baby Is Killing Me", Miranda Sings, YouTube, January 14, 2019; and "Update on my Dumb Baby", Miranda Sings, YouTube, April 10, 2019
Live comedy act, early years Since April 2009,"Photo Flash: 'Miranda Sings' at Birdland's Cast Party", BroadwayWorld.com, April 29, 2009, accessed May 23, 2012 in addition to her internet videos, Miranda Sings has performed her one-woman live comedy acts at first at cabaret spaces and later theatres in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, London, Toronto, Amsterdam, Sydney and other cities in the US, Canada, Europe, Australia, and elsewhere.Blank, Matthew. "'Miranda Sings Christmas Spectacular,' With Lauren Kennedy and Frankie Grande" , Playbill, December 20, 2011; Sparks, Abbe. "Mirfandas Infiltrate Highland Park from across the country for Midwest Premiere of Miranda Sings Live!" , Chicago Tribune (Highland Park local), November 22, 2010Miranda Sings Australia schedule , November 2009; Newcastle Herald, November 26, 2009, p. 45; Michelin, Lana. "How (not) to sing great" . Red Deer Advocate, January 14, 2011; Bell, Matt. "Marketing Lessons from 'Miranda Sings'", Standing (inn)ovation, November 14, 2013Dessau, Bruce. "UK Tour Dates for YouTube Star Miranda Sings" , Beyond the Joke, September 4, 2014; DeSimone, Evan. "Miranda Sings Kicks Off Ten Date UK Tour", NewMediaRockstars.com, November 5, 2014 In 2009, BroadwayWorld.com called her "the hottest, freshest and oddest breakout star in the musical theatre/cabaret scene"."'Miranda Sings' Returns to Rrazz Room October 9". BroadwayWorld.com, October 2, 2009, accessed July 23, 2010