A TikTok influencer famed for preaching the benefits of eating raw meat has been accused of using steroids by another internet personality who claims to have seen leaked emails from the man himself detailing what drugs he uses.
Brian Johnson – better known by his online pseudonym ‘Liver King’ – rocketed to internet fame late last year when he began posting fitness videos, often shirtless, that showed off his rippling physique and peculiar eating habits.
Johnson, 45, has since amassed a massive following as well as multimillion-dollar empire, all while attributing his physical and financial success to his liver-eating lifestyle – billed to the millions who subscribe to his beliefs as ‘ancestral living.’
Now, however, Johnson’s authenticity has come into question, after leaked emails allegedly sent last year appear to outline the internet star’s extensive steroid cycle – as well as his plans to push his body and eventually amass a cult following of more than a million backers.
Brian Johnson – better known by his online pseudonym ‘Liver King’ – rocketed to internet fame late last year when he began posting fitness videos that showed off his rippling physique and peculiar eating habits
Now, however, Johnson’s authenticity has come into question, after leaked emails allegedly sent last year appear to outline the internet star’s extensive steroid cycle – as well as his plans to push his body and eventually amass a cult following of more than a million backers
Johnson went on to make good on those alleged plans, earning millions of dollars and paying subscribers by encouraging them to follow his all-natural, ‘ancestral’ diet plan.
Preaching the caveman diet as gospel on platforms such as Barstool Sports and Impulsive with Logan Paul, Johnson would also go on to start his own business – a shop that sells grass-fed beef liver in capsule form, ranging from $30 to $65 a bottle.
In the video, Derek – a sort of fitness watchdog with more than 1.4 million subscribers – shared emails allegedly sent by Johnson that laid out an extensive hormone regimen costing him $12,000 per month.
The emails, Derek claimed, were sent to an unnamed bodybuilding coach in mid-2021, before Johnson had launched his Liver King brand and surfaced as the CEO of shop that charges $30 to $65 a bottle for capsules containing grass-fed beef liver.
In these messages, a user with an email address attributed to Johnson lays out plans to gain a million social media followers within a matter of months through intense exercise – aided by three daily injections of human growth hormone (HGH).
The email, allegedly sent last year from an address linked to Johnson, detailed the unsettling intake.
In it, the sender thought to be Johnson laments about hitting a workout wall now that he’s in his mid-40s, and asks for guidance in an artificial effort to close that gap.
The hourlong video was posted Monday by fitness personality Derek (at right), who is famed for unmasking fellow bodybuilders as PED users. The clip contained bombshell accusations regarding Johnson’s rise to fame – and outlines his supposed steroid usage
‘I’ve been working out for 35 years,’ the initial correspondence reads.
‘I know how to eat, train, rest and recover (I even have a hardshell hyperbaric chamber at my house)… but… as I’ve reached my mid-forties, it’s getting harder.’
The sender, whose identity has yet to be confirmed, goes on to complain that ‘the back fat f*cking kills me.’
Less than a year later, Johnson would ascend become the musclebound, raw-meat eating figure we know today, releasing content that saw him tout his appearance as ‘all natural’ and the result of following ‘tenets’ of sleep, eat, move, shield, connect, cold, sun, fight, and bond
In that span, Johnson – who has 1.7m followers on Instagram and 3.5million on TikTok – has posted hundreds of videos showing him feast on raw liver while touting extreme workout techniques billed as that of a modern caveman warrior
Derek would then recount, in detail, an earlier 2021 email allegedly from Johnson in his own inbox, in which the soon-to-be Liver King expresses interest in acquiring HGH to improve his physique.
Less than a year later, Johnson would ascend become the musclebound, raw-meat eating figure we know today, releasing content that saw him tout his appearance as ‘all natural’ and the result of following his ‘nine ancestral tenets’: sleep, eat, move, shield, connect, cold, sun, fight, and bond.
In that span, Johnson – who has 1.7m followers on Instagram and 3.5million on TikTok – has posted hundreds of videos showing him feast on raw liver while touting extreme workout techniques billed as that of a modern caveman warrior.
These performances helped bolster the internet figure’s online business, Ancestral Supplements, where users can buy capsules containing beef organs, fish eggs, bone marrow, and other exotic animal products touted as the key to his success.
These performances helped bolster the internet figure’s online business, Ancestral Supplements, where users can buy capsules containing beef organs, fish eggs, bone marrow, and other exotic animal products touted as the key to his success
The revelation regarding Johnson’s alleged steroid use comes as a slew of skeptics, including Joe Rogan, have accused the influencer of misleading fans when it comes to his all-natural approach.
On his podcast in July, Rogan called out the social media sensation, saying that while he was sure Johnson stuck to a strict diet and trained hard, he was sure of him taking steroids.
‘The Liver King drives me nuts because that guy is on steroids,’ the podcaster said earlier this summer.
‘He’s got an ass filled with steroids, is what he’s got… that is not a natural body.’
The comments spurred a response from Liver King weeks later, during an appearance on Mark Bell’s Power Project.
The revelation regarding Johnson’s alleged steroid use comes as a slew of skeptics who have accused the influencer of misleading fans when it comes to his all-natural approach
The spot saw Johnson emphatically deny Rogan’s statements, calling the claims ‘dangerous,’
Speaking to Bell, a former professional wrestler, Johnson asserted: I don’t touch this stuff [steroids], I’ve never done this stuff. I’m not going to do this stuff.’
He added that he ‘would love the opportunity to talk to [Rogan] face-to-face,’ to educate him on the intricacies of his ancestral regimen.
Earlier this year, during one of many appearances on the Barstool Sports podcast Pardon My Take, hosts Eric Sollenberger, Dan Katz, Jerry O’Connell, Kirk Herbstreit casually accused the then fully-fledged star of taking performance-enhancing drugs.
Johnson replied, ‘I’ll be honest, I take PEDs: I prioritize, execute and dominate every f**king morning.’
Earlier this year, during one of many appearances on the Barstool Sports podcast Pardon My Take, hosts Eric Sollenberger, Dan Katz, Jerry O’Connell, Kirk Herbstreit casually accused the then fully-fledged star of taking performance-enhancing drugs.
Johnson, who often appears in interviews and his own content shirtless, replied, ‘I’ll be honest, I take PEDs: I prioritize, execute and dominate every f**king morning’
Derek’s detailed allegations look to confirm those suspicions, though the emails shared in the expose have yet to be proven legitimate.
Johnson did not immediately respond to a DailyMail.com request for comment Tuesday, but has issued statements to both Rolling Stone and The Daily Beast in which he neither confirmed or denied the allegations.
‘In a weird way, I’m grateful for the recent events that have shed light on this complicated-as-fuck topic,’ Johnson told The Beast.
He added that he has ‘humbly’ requested to appear on an unnamed ‘mainstream podcast… to discuss his lifestyle.’
‘I model, teach and preach a simple, elegant solution called ‘Ancestral Living’— The 9 Ancestral Tenets — so our people no longer have to suffer, so we can collectively express our highest and most dominant form!’ Johnson said. ‘This is my fight!’
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