TikTok Star Zoe LaVerne Shared Her Pregnancy News — Who Is the Father?
Published Feb. 23 2021, 10:53 a.m. ET
Several weeks after she first teased that she might be pregnant, TikTok star Zoe LaVerne Pemberton (who publicly goes by her first and middle name) shared that she is expecting her first child.
The 19-year-old has nearly 18 million followers on the video-sharing app, but many were first acquainted with her when she was accused of grooming a 13-year-old named Connor.
The controversy sparked many rumors, including ones about arrests or potential legal ramifications, and even a death hoax.
Now, the influencer is apparently starting her own family with her beau. She confirmed that Dawson Day is her baby daddy (and the two have already been on the defense with regards to the reaction that the pregnancy news sparked online).
Who is Zoe LaVerne's baby daddy? She's been dating Dawson Day since the fall of 2020.
In November of 2020, which was around the same time that the Connor controversy was publicized, Zoe began dating Dawson Day. Just a few months earlier, Zoe ended her three-year relationship with influencer Cody Orlove.
Like Zoe, Dawson is also a TikTok star, and he has more than 133,000 followers on the app. Prior to his relationship with Zoe, the 20-year-old dated Sarah Taylor.
The duo celebrated their three-month anniversary on Feb. 13, less than two weeks before the pregnancy news was shared.
Both Dawson and Zoe live in Indiana.
Zoe announced the pregnancy on her various social media accounts.
Since January of 2021, Zoe has sporadically discussed how she thought she was pregnant. She confirmed the news on Feb. 22 on several of her social media accounts.
On her Instagram feed, Zoe shared a black and white shot of her with Dawson, which was accompanied by two positive pregnancy tests.
"You are going to be such a great daddy!!" she captioned the pictures. "I love you so much! Thank you for changing my life so much and making me the happiest girl on earth."
The 19-year-old also posted a video on her TikTok account, which showed the two pregnancy tests again. The James Blake song "Godspeed" played in the background, and she captioned the post: "Surprise!! I'm so excited."
Unsurprisingly, there were many critics of Zoe's baby news, and some wondered if Connor was really the father of her baby. Zoe addressed the skeptics via her Instagram stories.
"This is the father of my child," she wrote over a picture of Dawson. "Stop saying otherwise. How would that make any kind of since [sic]. Connor is 13. Nothing else happened besides a kiss. Stay in your own business!!"
She later hinted that she received messages about the pregnancy in general.
"The amount of people that have the guts to talk s--t about an unborn child is so upsetting and heartbreaking," she wrote in another post. "Really shows the generation we are in... and how a lot of you weren't raised right!!"
Dawson also took to Instagram to both celebrate the pregnancy and take down the haters.
"Well... we're expecting! We couldn't be happier. & for the idiots talking s--t, I am the father. Zoe and Connor didn't do anything to have a baby. That's impossible. And if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all. That's disgusting and a real low blow to talk s--t ab[out] an unborn child. It's sickening," he wrote. "Please send positive vibes only!"
Zoe did not share how far along she is, or when her due date is.
