“The reason I'm taking a break is that for months I have watched a very popular content creator use my ideas. She has continuously used my ideas to get views. That would be fine except in SA we don't get paid for views, and where she is [Germany] they are paid for views. She has been making money by stealing my content,” Onezwa said in an emotional video.
She said she felt robbed of her hard work.
“I'm very disheartened and heartbroken because she's making a lot of money in views, and I am lucky to get a brand collaboration in three months. I feel like it is no longer worth it for me.”
She gave the example of a video she recently made for boba tea which Nara created a day after hers.
“Recently I made a boba tea and I was very proud of that video. The next day, she made a boba tea video. You might say it may be a coincidence, except it happens very often.
“People comment on my videos, saying I am the South African Nara Smith. How am I the South African Nara Smith when she's stealing my content?”
When Nara was confronted on social media about copying Onezwa's boba tea idea, she denied it.
“This one [boba tea recipe] I just Googled! But usually, I come up with a lot of them,” she said.
Here is Onezwa's boba tea:
WATCH | ‘I Googled the recipe’: Nara Smith on ‘stealing’ Onezwa’s content
Image: Onezwa Mbola/Instagram/Nara Smith
TikTok star Nara Smith has dismissed claims about stealing content creation ideas from South African chef and influencer Onezwa Mbola.
Nara and Onezwa have thousands of followers on social media with many people intrigued about their home-grown food recipes.
Social media creator Onezwa was part of MasterChef season four in 2022 and made a name for herself by sharing videos of her hearty meals that many South Africans enjoy.
Her cooking style has, however, constantly been compared to Nara, which sparked a recent outburst from her. In a series of tearful videos on her Instagram Stories, Onezwa accused Nara of stealing her content ideas, gaining millions of views and profiting from them.
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“The reason I'm taking a break is that for months I have watched a very popular content creator use my ideas. She has continuously used my ideas to get views. That would be fine except in SA we don't get paid for views, and where she is [Germany] they are paid for views. She has been making money by stealing my content,” Onezwa said in an emotional video.
She said she felt robbed of her hard work.
“I'm very disheartened and heartbroken because she's making a lot of money in views, and I am lucky to get a brand collaboration in three months. I feel like it is no longer worth it for me.”
She gave the example of a video she recently made for boba tea which Nara created a day after hers.
“Recently I made a boba tea and I was very proud of that video. The next day, she made a boba tea video. You might say it may be a coincidence, except it happens very often.
“People comment on my videos, saying I am the South African Nara Smith. How am I the South African Nara Smith when she's stealing my content?”
When Nara was confronted on social media about copying Onezwa's boba tea idea, she denied it.
“This one [boba tea recipe] I just Googled! But usually, I come up with a lot of them,” she said.
Here is Onezwa's boba tea:
Here is Nara's boba tea posted after Onezwa's video:
The accusation sparked a heated debate on social media, with many users showing support for Onezwa while others defended Nara, arguing the content ideas were not similar:
Image: Screenshot
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