From Reality Kid to College Student: Honey Boo Boo Hits 20

Alana Thompson, aka Honey Boo Boo, has basically lived her entire life in the public eye. One minute, she was a tiny pageant kid cracking one-liners on Toddlers & Tiaras, and the next, she’s blowing out 20 candles while studying to work with newborn babies. That’s a pretty wild development, especially considering how complicated her childhood was.

Here’s the road from child star to college student, with all the messy family chapters in between.

From pageant kid to instant TV icon

Alana first appeared on Toddlers & Tiaras when she was around 5, but she wasn’t the quiet, well-behaved pageant stereotype. Alana was the opposite of what a kid her age should act like: loud, confident, and totally obnoxious. That energy turned into a full-on reality show in 2012 when Here Comes Honey Boo Boo first aired on TLC.

The show followed Alana, her mom, June Shannon, plus her sisters Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell, Jessica “Chubbs” Shannon, and Lauryn “Pumpkin” Efird. It ran for four seasons and gave viewers an up-close look at a family dynamic that was equal parts chaotic and entertaining.

Getting canceled isn’t fun

In 2014, TLC execs decided to cut the show after finding out that Mama June was involved with a convicted sex offender. That’s just bad publicity for both sides. For Alana, this abrupt ending meant her biggest platform vanished in a single instant. And that instability didn’t exactly disappear along with the cameras and the crew.

Back on TV

A few years later, Alana was back on screen again, this time being featured in Mama June: Family Crisis. The show primarily focused on June and the family, but didn’t censor or cut away from the darker stuff, especially June’s addiction struggles. One of the most heartbreaking storylines involved Alana’s sister Anna, who was dealing with cancer. Anna died in December 2023, and that loss hit the family hard. By then, viewers weren’t just watching reality TV arguments—they were watching real grief and real long-term consequences.