Alana ‘Honey Boo Boo’ Thompson Is 21! See Her Grow Up from Child Star to Aspiring Nurse
Alana ‘Honey Boo Boo’ Thompson Is 21! See Her Grow Up from Child Star to Aspiring Nurse
Brendan LeFri, August 28, 2026 at 10:15 AM UTC
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Alana Thompson in ‘Toddlers and Tiaras’; in 2026Credit: TLC; Alana Thompson/Instagram
Honey Boo Boo has come a long way from her pageant days.
The reality TV child star, whose real name is Alana Thompson, rose to fame at age 5 when her appearance on Toddlers and Tiaras went viral. “A dollar made me holler, honey boo boo!” she said in an interview for the show, and the phrase stuck as a nickname. From age 6 to 8, she starred in the TLC series Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, which chronicled her and her family’s life in their hometown of McIntyre, Ga.
In 2025, she narrated the Lifetime biopic I Was Honey Boo Boo, speaking out for the first time about her family’s highs and lows in the spotlight. Today, she is studying nursing at Regis University in Colorado.
“When I graduate I’ll be the only one in my family with a degree,” she told PEOPLE in a 2025 cover story. “I love that I’ve persevered past who people thought I was.”
As she celebrates her 21st birthday, see photos of Thompson’s journey from child celebrity to aspiring nurse.
01 of 11
Think Pink
Alana ‘Honey Boo Boo’ ThompsonCredit: Noel Vasquez/Getty
After her viral moment on Toddlers and Tiaras, Thompson wore her sparkly pink pageant dress to an appearance on Extra in January 2012.
02 of 11
Toddler in Tiara
June Shannon and Alana ThompsonCredit: JB Lacroix/WireImage
Later that year, the Thompsons became small-screen stars with the August 2012 premiere of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, starring a 6-year-old Alana, her mom June Shannon and their family.
03 of 11
Good Morning Gals
Honey Boo Boo and Mama JuneCredit: Fred Lee/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty
Ahead of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo’s final season, “Mama June” and “Honey Boo Boo” sat down with Good Morning America in February 2014.
04 of 11
A Parent-ly
Mike Thompson and Alana ThompsonCredit: David Livingston/Getty
Her father, Mike “Sugar Bear” Thompson, also appeared on the series, but today, the father and daughter remain estranged. “He wasn’t even at Alana’s graduation,” Alana’s sister and legal guardian at the time, Lauryn Efird, told PEOPLE in 2023. “She hasn’t spoken to him in a year now.”
05 of 11
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Frills and Thrills
Alana Thompson aka “Honey Boo Boo” on ‘Dancing with the Stars: Juniors’.Credit: Eric McCandless via Getty
Alana took to the dance floor in 2018 to participate in Dancing with the Stars: Juniors, partnering with Tristan Ianeiro and mentored by Artem Chigvintsev. The duo was eliminated in eighth place.
06 of 11
Sofa, So Good
Honey Boo Boo. June Shannon, and Lauryn Efird.Credit: June Shannon Instagram
In May 2021, Alana, Mama June and Efird sat down with Entertainment Tonight for their first interview together in two years.
07 of 11
Unmasked Singers
Mamma June, host Nick Cannon and Honey Boo Boo on ‘The Masked Singer’.Credit: FOX via Getty
Mama June and Honey Boo Boo appeared for one episode on season 6 of The Masked Singer, performing “Party in the U.S.A.” by Miley Cyrus as “Beach Ball.”
08 of 11
Senior Year Smiles
Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson with her nephewCredit: Lauryn Efird/Instagram
Efird celebrated her baby sister’s final year of high school in 2022, telling Alana (pictured with Efird’s son Bentley), “I’m so proud of how far you’ve come against all odds that have been thrown at you.”
09 of 11
Sweet Hearts
Dralin Carswell and Alana ThompsonCredit: Alana Thompson/Instagram
Thompson’s boyfriend, Dralin Carswell, moved to Colorado with her as she enrolled in Regis University’s undergraduate nursing program.
10 of 11
Cover Girl
Alana ThompsonCredit: Ari & Louise
“I just always told myself you know that you want to do something better with your life and bigger with your life than just being on TV, so you’ve got to get up and go, you’ve got to graduate so you can make it to college and be the nurse that you want to be,” she told PEOPLE in her 2025 cover story ahead of the biopic I Was Honey Boo Boo.
11 of 11
Staying Present
Alana Thompson in 2026Credit: Alana Thompson/Instagram
Set to graduate in the next year, Thompson currently works at a hospital in Denver and plans to pursue her dream of being a pediatric intensive care unit nurse.
Her mom, June Shannon, told PEOPLE in April 2026, “We have nothing planned for graduation, but Alana turns 21 in August. So we have Vegas.”
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
