Aussie influencer defends herself after followers accuse her of not having a real job

An Australian influencer has been forced to defend her lavish lifestyle after fans questioned whether she actually has a ‘real job’.

Instagram star Madison Woolley courted criticism in recent weeks after she uploaded a string of YouTube videos documenting her back-to-back long lunches at some of Sydney’s most expensive restaurants.

Over the course of four lengthy videos, Madison filmed herself clinking glasses and dining with friends at exclusive venues including Catalina, where she spent $210 on food and a bottle of wine.

Hours after visiting Catalina, she attended Darling Harbour nightspot Zephyr Bar for drinks and cocktails with a girlfriend, before going out for crab pasta in Bondi with another group of pals.

She also knocked back $36 caviar vodka shots at Mimi’s in Coogee, and splurged $40 on a bowl of edamame at an upmarket Japanese restaurant.

In between her lavish meals, Madison treated herself to several beauty treatments, including hair and eyelash extensions and a visit to a nail salon.

Lavish: The Instagram star courted criticism after she uploaded a string of YouTube videos documenting her back-to-back long lunches at some of Sydney’s most expensive restaurants

Out of office! Fans criticised her hedonistic lifestyle, prompting Madison to defend herself in a YouTube vlog last week

Fans soon began to criticise her hedonistic lifestyle, prompting Madison to defend herself in a YouTube vlog last week.

The video showed Madison talking to the camera while driving home from a lunch at Catalina as she insisted her life isn’t as blissful as it seems.

‘While it may seem like all I’m doing is going out for lunches – and I definitely have been going out for more lunches during the week – but that is not all that’s going on behind the scenes,’ she said.

Working hard or hardly working? The video showed Madison talking to the camera while driving home from her luncheon at Catalina, insisting that her life isn’t as blissful as it seems

‘I promise I’m still working. I feel like a lot of people probably watch this and feel like, ‘Wow, she actually does nothing with her days, except for go out for lunch’. Which, granted, I recognise I have been doing a lot of. And I’m very grateful for the opportunity to do that with my job, like, the flexibility of my job.’ 

Madison insisted that, after spending the afternoon wining and dining at Catalina, she intended to put her nose to the grindstone. 

‘Heading home now, going to finally do some work, so that I don’t get people saying that I don’t work at all, because I do. You just don’t see it right now on the vlogs,’ she said, rolling her eyes.  

Defence: Madison insisted that, after spending the afternoon wining and dining at Catalina, she intended to put her nose to the grindstone. ‘Heading home now, going to finally do some work, so that I don’t get people saying that I don’t work at all, because I do,’ she said 

She appeared to contradict in the video, however, after telling her fans that she ‘hasn’t really been doing that much work’ since lockdown ended last month.’ 

‘My past few vlogs have been like, lunches and dinners, and I feel like I haven’t really been showing my work. But in actual fact, I haven’t really been doing [anything].’     

Elsewhere in her video, Madison complained that she was feeling burned out by her taxing, long luncheon-going lifestyle, and that she craved some alone time. 

‘In actual fact, I haven’t really been doing [anything]’: She appeared to contradict in the video, however, after telling her fans that she ‘hasn’t really been doing that much work’ since lockdown ended

‘[As incredible as it is] doing all these like fun lunches and celebrating and being out and having all these bookings it is quite draining mentally. Yeah, it’s just like emotionally and mentally a little bit draining having like back-to-back things and not really spending time with myself,’ she lamented. 

‘And I’m the type of person who like really loves my alone time i love being alone and I like being  by myself. So yeah i feel like it’s like i need to schedule in some time at some point to just hang out one-on-one with myself.’ 

Madison’s video has since been heavily criticised by the Outspoken podcast, with hosts Kate, Amy and Sophie Taeuber branding her behaviour as ‘tone deaf’. 

Backlash: Madison’s video has since been heavily criticised by the Outspoken podcast, with hosts Kate, Amy and Sophie Taeuber (all pictured) branding her behaviour as ‘tone deaf’

Flashy: ‘I totally understand why people want to get out and about after lockdown but this does seem a little bit extravagant. She has been out for the past two weeks, it seems, every night,’ Kate said of the eyebrow-raising video

‘I totally understand why people want to get out and about after lockdown but this does seem a little bit extravagant. She has been out for the past two weeks, it seems, every night,’ Kate said of the eyebrow-raising video.     

‘I think where she went wrong was where she said it was ‘taxing and draining’ to go to lunches, and trying to persuade the audience that behind the scenes she was doing a lot of work when it was quite evident that she wasn’t,’ she later said. 

The hosts also claimed that Madison’s constant and detailed updates about her expensive outings were in poor taste, given that many Australians are barely managing to put dinner on the table after their finances were decimated during lockdown. 

Not impressed: The hosts also claimed that Madison’s constant and detailed updates about her expensive outings were in poor taste, given that many Australians are barely managing to put dinner on the table after their finances were decimated during lockdown