Haliey Welch Tells All About ‘Nasty’ Question That Made Her the ‘Hawk Tuah Girl’ — and Forced Her into Hiding

Chances are you’ve heard of “Hawk Tuah Girl,” but do you really know the person behind the viral meme?

Meet Haliey Welch, the spunky 21-year-old Internet phenom who skyrocketed to fame after uninhibitedly offering a quirky sex tip in response to a “nasty” question asked during a man-on-the-street interview in Nashville in June.

The question posed? “What’s one move in bed that makes a man go crazy every time?” Welch’s response? “You gotta give ’em that ‘hawk tuah’ and spit on that thang!”

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Welch looks back on the quip that instantaneously secured a spot in the pop culture conversation — a one-liner that’s taken her life from a Tennessee town with “not a single red light” to the opposite, Hollywood.

“It’s been hella hectic,” Welch says of the whirlwind she’s experienced in the last three months since the video she appeared in was first uploaded by creators Tim & Dee TV on Instagram. It has amassed 18 million views to date.

The increased attention and “Hawk Tuah Girl” nickname were especially jarring for Welch, who was born and raised in the small town of Belfast, Tenn., with a population of 844 residents and “cow fields everywhere.”

“In Belfast, there’s not a single red light,” Welch says with pride. “You have maybe a few stop signs, but you don’t have a red light. We have a gas station, a dollar store — and let’s see, what else do we got? Oh, a post office!”

Welch’s fame is the textbook definition of overnight success. Once the video was posted, two days after filming downtown on the night she attended the CMA Music Festival with her friend Chelsea, she noticed all of her group chats “blowing up” when she woke up to report to her job the next morning.

Her place of employment? A spring factory. “You know, like a spring. Boing!” Welch clarifies when asked. “I was over in shipping … so I’ve just put however many in a box a customer orders and then we ship them out.”

But once the “Hawk Tuah” video racked up the views, Welch racked up a team. She quickly found a lawyer and management, ultimately leading to her departure from the spring factory (and her 3 a.m. wakeup times).

“We talked about doing a lot of traveling and I couldn’t take off work for it,” she explains. “That’s the only reason I quit, because I enjoyed my job.”

But before packing her suitcase and hopping on her first-ever airplane ride to kickstart the next chapter in the spotlight, Welch admits she “hid for two weeks” after her suggestive catchphrase went viral. “I was embarrassed to death to come out of my house,” she says.

Welch still lives with her paternal grandmother, who has raised her since she was a baby. “I’ve lived with my granny since I was 9 months old,” she says. Her mother is out of the picture, “and then my dad, he’s still here, he just lives in his own house and we’ll see each other a few times a week.”

The relationship Welch has with her grandmother is special — and according to her description, they share the same humor as well. “That’s exactly where I get my mouth from … It comes from her,” she says with a laugh.

Given the sexual undertone of the video that caused Granny’s granddaughter success, you’re probably wondering what her initial thoughts were when “Hawk Tuah Girl” went viral.

“So she didn’t see it … actually, I hid it from her for a little while,” Welch admits.

“But when I finally explained it to her, I had to tell her three different times before she understood it,” she continues. “And she was like, ‘Oh, spit on it!’ And I was like, ‘Don’t say that to me!’ But yeah, it’s kind of funny.”

Welch’s mother hasn’t tried to reach out amid her daughter’s fame, though she says she wound up telling her dad. “He’s like, ‘That don’t surprise me,’ ” she remembers her father telling her. Welch’s two older brothers — in classic sibling fashion — “think it’s funny.”

Family aside, Welch has attracted quite a diverse fanbase ranging from the average social media scroller to A-listers, having shared the stage with Zach Bryan during one of his concerts and joining Shaquille O’Neal in the DJ booth.

Her Instagram alone has 2.5 million followers, a massive number for someone who didn’t have an activated social media account for “mental health reasons” prior to the viral moment. “I had no interest in being on there,” she admits.

Welch is aware of the negativity that comes with her newfound stardom, like those who believe she only has 15 minutes of fame. “Most of them that comment hateful things under my stuff, it says ‘Follow back,’ ” she quips. “That’s kind of self-explanatory.”

Above all, Welch is adamant about using her mega platform for good — which is why she started a foundation called Paws Across America, a charitable endeavor she’s passionate about. The fund was created to bring awareness, advocacy and financial assistance to animal charities within the United States.

“I didn’t ask for this and I’m grateful I have it, so I want to help others too,” Welch says, adding, “I’m taking really good care of granny … I got her a new vacuum cleaner yesterday!”

Now, Welch is head down on her latest venture: the Talk Tuah podcast. Each episode, which is streamable on Spotify, will feature conversations with a different celebrity covering topics like “dating advice” and “girl talk,” she shares.

Welch says she’s also had talks about expanding her presence onscreen — tossing around ideas like reality TV or a documentary of sorts — but as of right now, her main focus is the podcast (which is currently ranked No. 3 on Spotify’s Top Comedy Podcast chart). “I’m sure that’ll come later on,” she says of the other ideas.

“It’s a lot, but it’s fun,” Welch admits when reflecting on the last three months and all that’s happened since she stumbled upon strangers who unexpectedly uprooted the life she was living in her small Tennessee town.

But as for whether she plans to relocate to Hollywood one day for good? “Girl, uh-uh,” Welch says.

“Do you hear how quiet it is in here?” she asks, while Zooming in from Granny’s house in Belfast. “I like that. That’s my peace of mind.”