MadameNoire Featured Video

Many of us can honestly admit that we cruise the Internet in search of a laugh, a petty post or some combination of both. And when the latter is needed, we usually find ourselves on Joanne The Scammer’s popular Instagram page. The blonde wig-donning, chinchilla-wearing character gives us life as he causally scams people or verbally rips his past lovers a new one with his high sadity “better-than-you” accent.

And while we find Joanne hilarious, it has crossed our mind: Who’s the man behind the laid bob wigs?

Well, The Fader but an end to our curiosity with an in-depth interview with 25-year-old Branden Miller, the creator who plays the beloved internet sensation. During their conversation, Branden opened up about his personal life and, if we’re being honest, he’s way more interesting than Joanne.

Here’s what we learned:

For The Majority Of His Life, Branden Believed He Was White

Adopted by white parents, Branden Miller grew up believing he was Caucasian by default. It wasn’t until he was 17 that a family friend told him he was adopted. Then he learned that his mother was Puerto Rican and his father, Black. Unfortunately, Branden doesn’t know any more information about his parents.

He Used To Be An Adult Film Star

Before the birth of Joanne The Scammer, Branden used to pay his bills by doing adult movies. Once people started to make requests for Joanne to appear at parties and photo shoots, Branden decided to let go of the sex industry.

He Nearly Overdosed On Ecstasy

Two years ago, a friend gave Branden a crystal of ecstasy and because he didn’t want the “unselfconscious high” to end, he kept swallowing more of it until he had a frightening, near-death reaction. Although he survived the incident, Branden suffered from bouts of depression and anxiety afterward.

He’s Not Really A People Person

Branden told The Fader’s Patrick D. McDermott that he finds people to be “really cheesy” and he doesn’t get along with them.

Branden Has Been Scammed In Real Life

This past May, a person posing as a Twitter employee swindled Branden out of his account information, stating that it was needed in order to get him verified. The scammer got his account info but wanted more. After the scammer asked Branden for $500, Branden told the scammer, “I’m busy with wine forgery right now babe. Can we chat later?” This apparently made the scammer upset and all of Branden’s tweets were deleted. After the incident, Branden got his account verified by Twitter.

To read Branden’s entire interview with The Fader, click here.

Comment Disclaimer: Comments that contain profane or derogatory language, video links or exceed 200 words will require approval by a moderator before appearing in the comment section. XOXO-MN