Mia Khalifa, born on February 10, 1993, is a Lebanese-American media personality who gained widespread attention. She launched her own line of jewelry in 2023. This article delves into various aspects of her life, from her career to her personal views.
Early Career and Controversy
Khalifa came to widespread attention after the release of a scene from Bang Bros in which she wears a hijab during a threesome with Julianna Vega and Sean Lawless. The scene brought Khalifa instant popularity, as well as criticism from writers and religious figures, and led to her parents publicly disowning her. Alex Hawkins, vice president of marketing for xHamster, said, "The outrage it caused in the Arab world ended up being a bit of a 'Streisand effect'. Suddenly, everyone was searching for her. According to data from Pornhub, from January 3 to 6, 2015, searches for Khalifa increased five-fold.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Khalifa said the controversial scene was satirical and should be taken as such, claiming that Hollywood films depicted Muslims in a far more negative light than any pornographer could. Among those who publicly defended her was British-Lebanese author Nasri Atallah, who stated, "as a woman, she is free to do as she pleases with her body.
In January 2015, Khalifa signed a long-term contract with Bang Bros' parent company, WGCZ Holding, who also own the largest free porn site XVideos. The contract required her to perform in multiple films each month. However, two weeks later, Khalifa had a change of heart and resigned. The negative attention she received from her global attention prompted her to leave the industry: "It was an eye-opener for me. I don't want any of this, whether it's positive or negative-but all of it was negative. I didn't think too much into it about how my friends and family and relationships were suffering." In a July 2016 interview with The Washington Post, Khalifa stated that she had only performed in pornography for three months and had left the industry over a year before, changing to a "more normal job". She said, "I guess it was my rebellious phase. It wasn't really for me.
Transition to Mainstream Media
After leaving the adult film industry, Khalifa transitioned into mainstream media. She has used her social media presence to support professional sports teams from the Washington, D.C., area. She and Gilbert Arenas hosted Out of Bounds, a daily sports show on Complex News's YouTube channel, from October 2017 to February 2018. Khalifa then co-hosted Sportsball with Tyler Coe on Rooster Teeth. In May 2021, she made a cameo appearance in Bella Poarch's music video for "Build a Bitch", along with other internet celebrities such as Valkyrae, Bretman Rock, Larray, and ZHC.
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Khalifa was featured in the Fall/Winter 2023 campaign for the London-based fashion label Aries as well as a photo book that was released the same year, titled Mia by Aries. The founder of the brand, Sofia Prantera, considers Khalifa to be her muse, stating "I felt immediately inspired by Mia's 'Punk' attitude. She is strong but extremely humble, and under her glossy appearance here is a tough young girl who has had to fight her way through so much adversity.
Personal Life
Khalifa married her high school boyfriend in February 2011. They separated in 2014 and divorced in 2016. In 2019, she married Swedish professional chef Robert Sandberg; they separated in 2020. She has a tattoo of the opening line of the National Anthem of Lebanon in Arabic and a tattoo of the Lebanese Forces Cross, which she said was to "show solidarity with [her] father's political views" following a 2012 bombing.
Controversies and Activism
Khalifa has faced controversies related to her political views. Following this, Playboy ended its podcasting deal with Khalifa, calling her comments "disgusting and reprehensible". Khalifa later tweeted: "I'd say supporting Palestine has lost me business opportunities, but I'm more angry at myself for not checking whether or not I was entering into business with Zionists. In 2018, the musical duo iLoveFriday released a diss track called "Mia Khalifa", in response to a fake tweet posted by a user impersonating Khalifa.
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