Antoine Stephenson
Dressed in a crisp crimson blouse, Tareasa M. Johnson takes my Zoom call in the law enforcement office she works from, a star-spangled banner in the corner of the screen.
Like millions of people, I first encountered Johnson seven months ago on my phone screen, hooked to her 50-part TikTok series which she titled "Who TF Did I Marry?"
For the uninitiated, Johnson (username: Reesa Teesa) became an instant TikTok sensation when she shared the story of finding out that her husband wasn't who she thought he was. From the driver's seat of her car, she told followers that she had just learned he wasn't a VP; he was a forklift driver. He had multiple forged Social Security numbers, and a previous charge of impersonating a police officer.
The posts — which amounted to eight hours total — changed her life.
The series and her ongoing content creation now account for "about 70%" of her income, Johnson told Business Insider.
Since the series blew up in February, Johnson said she's stopped going to grocery stores because one person would recognize her and it would quickly snowball into a frenzy. She's appeared on "Good Morning America" and the "Tamron Hall Show." She's signed with CAA, a top creative agency, and sold her story as an upcoming TV series to ABC. Later this week, she'll speak at the 2024 BodCon Conference about how to date with confidence in the digital age.
Still, she kept the same executive assistant role she had before she uploaded those fateful TikToks.
"That's the one thing that I am still holding onto, my 8-to-5 job," she said. "It's normal. I needed something to just keep me grounded." Beyond providing her with a familiar routine and coworkers as she skyrocketed to overnight fame, it also gives her a deep sense of security.
"It's important that I don't rely on social media to pay my bills," she said. "To me, that's not wisdom." While the financial success of "Who TF Did I Marry" allowed her to feel like she can "breathe," she said she's strategic when it comes to spending money.
Johnson said her current job gives her the freedom to travel to events when she needs to, which she said has happened every month since the series went viral.
She works normal full-time hours at her desk job in Marietta, Georgia and mostly does "the Reesa stuff," like posting brand deals, when she gets home at night a few times a week. "I try my best to manage my time properly," she said. "But yeah, it is crazy. I know it's crazy."
She's also the executive producer of the TV series she just sold based on her story. "The White Lotus" actor Natasha Rothwell is developing the show with her and will star as Johnson.
John Nacion / Getty Images
Johnson said she'll be involved in the writer's room, giving feedback on the adaptation's accuracy. "This is my baby and I'm hands-on with it," she said.
A pivotal part of "Who TF Did I Marry" was that Johnson said her ex, who she nicknamed "Legion," told her he paid $700,000 in cash for a house they wanted. Johnson later learned that he could not show proof of funds to the sellers, who rescinded the offer.
After the series blew up, and lucrative business deals started pouring in, Johnson said her first big goal was to finally be a homeowner and not worry about rent increases.
She described her new house as "modest." "I made sure to buy something that was smart for me," she said. "I'm not going to buy a seven-bedroom house with a three-car garage."
In Marietta, where the average home costs $468,000, Johnson wanted something she could afford even if she quit content creation.
Johnson's aware of how drastically sudden, accidental fame can change your life. "You get all this money starts flowing in and everybody has a hand out for something," she said.
But her life experience has also taught her to be wise with her money. "I know what it's like to live from paycheck to paycheck," she said. "I grew up with a mom who was on welfare, so I know what it is to literally have $2 in my bank account."
She said most of the content creation money has gone into her savings and that she limits shopping and eating out because they "can add up quickly." She values her full-time role because it comes with a steady income as well as medical insurance.
Johnson said she would only leave her job for another full-time, stable position — never content creation, which can be volatile and time-consuming.
Plus, it would suck the fun out of posting. Outside of sponsored content and media appearances, she only posts when she genuinely has something she wants to share. "I think that people would get sick of seeing me every single day," she said. "'Hey, get ready with me to go to work,' that's boring."
