Who is Emilie Kiser? Tiktok star breaks silence after son Teddy’s life jacket video sparks backlash

TikTok influencer Emilie Kiser has responded to mounting criticism after a video showed her 16-month-old son Teddy briefly without a life jacket during a family boat trip, acknowledging that her family “should have done better.”

The footage drew particularly intense scrutiny because Kiser and her husband, Brady Kiser, lost their three-year-old son Trigg in a drowning accident in 2025.

Addressing the controversy on social media on July 28, Kiser said Teddy should have remained in his life jacket throughout the boat ride and acknowledged how quickly an ordinary moment around water can turn dangerous.


“Our child should have been in his life jacket for the entirety of that boat ride, not even for the few moments that he was out of it,” she wrote. “We are painfully aware that in a matter of seconds, your entire life can change, and we should have done better.”

Mallorca boat video puts Emilie Kiser back in spotlight

The controversy began after a now-deleted video from a family holiday in Mallorca circulated online.

The clip featured Kiser, Brady, fellow influencer Madi Curtis, her husband Campton Curtis and their children spending time on a boat. At one point, Teddy could be seen sitting aboard the vessel without a life jacket.

While the toddler was not shown swimming, the brief scene was enough to prompt questions from viewers about safety precautions for young children on boats and around open water.

The discussion soon spread across social media, with much of the reaction shaped by the Kisers’ devastating experience just over a year earlier.

Kiser says she understands why viewers were angry

Rather than dismissing the criticism, Kiser acknowledged the concerns and thanked people whose comments came from a genuine desire to protect her child.

She also addressed the more emotional response to the footage, saying she understood why Trigg’s death had made the video particularly difficult for some viewers to see.

“It comes from the belief that Trigg should still be here, and we share that same belief more than can be expressed,” Kiser said. “He was only three years old, and should have lived a lifetime more.”

Her response made clear that the family continues to grapple with the loss while learning how to navigate parenting and water safety in its aftermath.

Trigg Kiser died after backyard pool accident

Trigg Kiser died in May 2025 following a drowning accident at the family home.

According to previously reported accounts, the three-year-old entered the backyard swimming pool while Emilie was away from the house. He was rushed to hospital following the incident and remained under medical care for six days before he died.

The tragedy attracted widespread attention because Kiser had built a large online following by documenting motherhood and everyday family life.

Since Trigg’s death, conversations surrounding the family have frequently intersected with broader discussions about child supervision, swimming pools and water safety.

Water safety has become part of Kiser’s public message

In the period leading up to the first anniversary of Trigg’s death, Kiser returned to TikTok to speak about the circumstances surrounding the tragedy and the lessons she wanted other parents to take from it.

She described her son’s death as the result of a “preventable accident” and urged families to remain constantly alert when young children are around water.

Kiser also indicated that she intended to continue talking about water safety when she felt emotionally able to do so.

That history explains why the Mallorca footage generated such a strong response. What might otherwise have been viewed as a fleeting moment in a holiday video instead reopened a painful conversation about the family’s loss and the precautions parents should take around water.

Who is Emilie Kiser?

Emilie Kiser is a TikTok creator and lifestyle influencer who built her online following through videos about motherhood, beauty, routines and family life.

Her husband, Brady Kiser, and their children have regularly appeared in her content, making the family familiar to millions of social media users.

The couple are currently expecting their third child. Since Trigg’s death, however, Kiser’s online presence has also become closely associated with grief, parenting after loss and awareness about the dangers water can pose to young children.

Her latest statement suggests she does not intend to treat the boat video as a controversy to simply move past. Instead, Kiser acknowledged the lapse and said her family would continue learning from an experience that has permanently changed their lives.