Alana Thompson—yep, the little girl who once shouted “A dolla makes me holla!” and stole America’s heart on Toddlers & Tiaras—is no longer the glitter-covered pageant queen we remember. She’s 19 now, a college freshman with big goals and even bigger life lessons behind her. And for the first time ever, she’s telling her story—raw, real, and in her own voice.

Born August 28, 2005, in a small rural Georgia town, Alana’s childhood was far from the fairytale her pageant persona suggested. Raised by her mom, June Shannon—better known to the world as “Mama June”—and surrounded by sisters with different dads, money was tight, and family life was messy. The cameras arrived early, and Alana quickly became a pint-sized TV icon. But behind the catchphrases and costumes was a little girl growing up under a microscope.

By 7, she had her own show, Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, which catapulted her family into fame. But when the show was abruptly canceled in 2014 due to disturbing allegations involving Mama June’s personal life, Alana’s world shifted again. Even after the cameras stopped rolling, the drama didn’t.

The years that followed brought even more public chaos—Mama June’s arrest for drug possession in 2019, custody battles, financial struggles. By 2022, Alana was legally in the care of her big sister, Lauryn “Pumpkin” Efird, who became more of a mom than June had been for a long time. Court documents confirmed Mama June’s limited role—daily phone calls allowed, but visits were Pumpkin’s call. And June was ordered to pay $800 a month in child support.

Through it all, Alana kept going. She joined Dancing with the Stars: Juniors in 2018 (and admits it was terrifying), watched her family reunite briefly for Mama June’s wedding in 2023, and stayed grounded as she graduated high school that same year. But by 2024, she was back in the headlines—this time, accusing her mother of taking the $35,000 she’d saved for college.

Still, she didn’t let it stop her. That fall, Alana packed her bags and headed to Regis University in Denver to study neonatal nursing. “I want to work with little babies,” she told PEOPLE. “I don’t want to have no babies though. That’s my motto.” Classic Alana—honest, blunt, and still herself.

She’s also been dating Dralin Carswell since 2021, a relationship that’s sparked criticism due to their age difference. But Alana’s made it clear—she’s not here to impress strangers. “I don’t care,” she told Entertainment Tonight, standing firm in her own choices.

Now, she’s taking full control of her narrative with the upcoming Lifetime biopic I Was Honey Boo Boo, hitting screens in May 2025. She’s not just featured—she’s narrating it herself.

“This film tells my story, the real one,” she wrote on Instagram.

It’s not just about the fame or the scandals. It’s about a young woman who grew up in front of the world, stumbled, got back up, and is learning who she wants to be—outside the spotlight, outside the nickname, just as Alana.

She may have been Honey Boo Boo then, but now? She’s something even more powerful: herself.