{"id":5511,"date":"2024-06-28T19:30:03","date_gmt":"2024-06-28T23:30:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/womantowoman\/?p=5511"},"modified":"2024-07-01T14:34:38","modified_gmt":"2024-07-01T18:34:38","slug":"does-the-7m-tiktok-cult-exist-new-netflix-film-says-yes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/womantowoman\/2024\/06\/does-the-7m-tiktok-cult-exist-new-netflix-film-says-yes\/","title":{"rendered":"Does the\u00a07M TikTok Cult Exist? New Netflix Film Says \u2018Yes\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Does the 7M TikTok Cult Exist? New Netflix Film Says \u2018Yes\u2019 (Image courtesy of Pixaby \/ 1tamara2)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Religious cults \u2013 and cults in general \u2014 are dangerous. Yet, people continue to join them, and a new Netflix documentary points to the alleged 7M TikTok cult as an example.<\/p>\n

Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult<\/em>\u00a0offers a fascinating look at a purported religious cult and its alleged ties to TikTok dancers and the 7M Films talent management agency in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

TikTok dancers, a talent agency and a religious cult are an unlikely combination. But the Netflix documentary says a man named Robert Shinn is at the center of all three groups.<\/p>\n

Shinn pastors a small non-denominational Christian church and serves as CEO of the talent management company 7M Films in Los Angeles. And according to Dancing for the Devil, <\/em>he leads a religious cult that involves both organizations.<\/p>\n

As you might expect, Shinn denies cult-like behavior and insists there\u2019s no connection between his Shekinah Church and 7M Films. So, what exactly is \u201ccult-like\u201d behavior?<\/p>\n

How Do You Recognize a Cult?<\/strong><\/h3>\n \u201cMost cults are extremely small and very deliberately try to stay under the radar,\u201d according to international cult expert Steve Eichel. \u201cUnless they commit a crime, unless they do something that draws attention and criticism to them \u2013 we generally don\u2019t know about them.\u201d<\/p>\n Eichel estimates that as many as 10,000 cults exist in the U.S. but admits that keeping track of them isn\u2019t easy. There are, however, certain characteristics that pinpoint cults.<\/p>\n The Cult Education Institute\u00a0says cults\u2026<\/p>\n \nAre authoritarian and offer no accountability<\/li>\nUse deception to recruit members<\/li>\nHave zero tolerance for criticism<\/li>\nAre very secretive about their finances<\/li>\nInstill an unreasonable fear of outsiders in their members<\/li>\nConvince members that there is no legitimate reason for leaving the group<\/li>\nAbuse members<\/li>\nInstill the idea that members are never \u201cgood enough\u201d<\/li>\nConvince members that their leader is always right<\/li>\nInstill the belief that the leader is their only source of \u201ctruth\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nWhy Do People Join Cults?<\/strong><\/h3>\n**** A\u00a0Teen Vogue<\/em> article<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 What Is a Cult and Why Do People Join Them? \u2013 <\/em>quotes sociologist Janja Lalich as saying, \u201cMany people join cults because they are looking for a sense of purpose in their lives or because they want to belong.\u201d<\/p>\n She explained that cult leaders target people who don\u2019t fit into society and then exploit underlying problems in their lives. Mental health issues, struggles with substance abuse and feelings of insecurity make people easy targets.<\/p>\n Cult leaders convince potential followers that they will become part of something bigger than themselves when they join their group.<\/p>\n New followers \u201clower their defenses and are more likely to accept the stranger aspects of their new communities,\u201d Lalich explained.<\/p>\n As followers cut ties to other sources of social and financial support, they develop an \u201cus-vs-them\u201d mentality that makes leaving the cult difficult, she said.<\/p>\n Dancing for the Devil\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n The Netflix documentary Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult<\/em> follows sisters Miranda and Melanie Wilking, who had a TikTok channel with more than three million followers and a number of lucrative brand partnerships. But in 2019, everything began to fall apart, according to\u00a0The Independent, <\/a><\/em>a news outlet.<\/p>\n That April, Miranda connected with a fellow dancer named James \u201cBDash\u201d Derrick for a dance video that led to romance. They married in 2021.<\/p>\n At some point, Derrick introduced Miranda to his videographer, Isaiah Shinn, who introduced the couple to the Shekinah Church and his father, Robert Shinn. The elder Shinn is a doctor-turned-preacher-and-businessman \u2013 and allegedly \u2013 a cult leader.<\/p>\n By 2021, Melanie was noticing that her once-close sister was distancing herself, the publication said. When the girls\u2019 grandfather died in Michigan in early 2021, Miranda said she needed \u201csomeone closer to God\u201d to approve a trip home for the funeral. Ultimately, she decided not to attend.<\/p>\n By 2022, the girls\u2019 family began to suspect that the Shekinah Church and 7M Films constituted a cult. In February, they attempted to contact Miranda on Instagram Live. Their plea went viral, and Miranda responded with a statement to The Cut,<\/a><\/em>\u00a0an online publication.<\/p>\n She insisted that \u201cno one is forcing me to do anything\u201d and said she was free to leave the Shekinah Church and 7M Films whenever she chose.<\/p>\n A Family\u2019s Agony<\/strong><\/h3>\n \u201cThe Wilking family is featured in the documentary, and their interviews provide agonizing insights into what it\u2019s like to grapple with the sudden absence of a loved one who\u2019s fallen under the influence of a charismatic leader,\u201d Netflix said. (See the trailer here.<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u201cI think audiences will be surprised by how easily regular people can get sucked into cult-like groups and how devastating the impact can be on families, friends, and communities,\u201d the film\u2019s director Derek Doneen said.<\/p>\n Doneen noted that Shinn\u2019s church encouraged members to donate money and break away from their families from the beginning, according to The Independent. <\/em>He also claimed that Shinn\u2019s \u201cbrand of manipulation and control is typical of many other cult leaders.\u201d<\/p>\n Other Dancers Speak Out<\/strong><\/h3>\n*********** ** Dancing for the Devil<\/em> includes interviews with several dancers who say they fled the alleged 7M TikTok cult. These former members told Netflix they are currently working from the outside to take it down.<\/p>\n ** \u201cThis series is about exposing the wrongdoers and setting the story straight, all with the hope of helping those still under the control of the church,\u201d according to executive producer Jessica Acevedo.<\/p>\n ** Robert Shinn denies any ties between Shekinah Church and 7M Films, but Netflix alleges that he treats 7M as an extension of the church.<\/p>\n ** \u201cSeveral dancers who have since parted ways with 7M say that Shinn exercised an extreme amount of control over them, from how their dance routines should look to financial decisions, mandating that they turn over a large portion of their earnings to the church,\u201d Netflix said.<\/p>\n ** ***********\u201cOn a personal level, the dancers were also encouraged to cut ties with the family and loved ones who were not part of 7M and Shekinah.\u201d<\/p>\n Targeting TikTok Dancers?<\/strong><\/h3>\n*********** ** Several dancers who left the so-called 7M TikTok cult said Shinn \u201creworked his church\u201d to target famous Tik-Tok dancers and \u201ctake advantage of their vulnerability as aspiring artists who had moved to LA to chase their dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n ** Business Insider<\/em>\u2019s story notes that Dancing for the Devil<\/em> \u201cpaints a surprising picture of how content creators can potentially be taken advantage of while trying to build their brands and find success.\u201d<\/p>\n ** ***********Former members make several other allegations against Shinn. They say\u2026.<\/p>\n \nShinn received most of their income in the form of tithes and fees.<\/li>\nThey were encouraged to cut ties with friends and family not involved in 7M Films and Shekinah.<\/li>\nThey were forced to attend lengthy late-night Bible study sessions.<\/li>\nShinn was \u201coverall abusive.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nThe Netflix Interviews<\/strong><\/h3>\n************* ** Melanie Wilking has a central role in Netflix\u2019s documentary, as she talks at length about her sister Miranda and the Shekinah Church. Neither Miranda nor her husband appear in the film.<\/p>\n ** But Melanie discusses attending several services with her sister. Those services ended for her when a church member insisted that Melanie attend a service on a moment\u2019s notice.<\/p>\n ** \u201cI\u2019ve gone to different churches growing up and no one ever is like \u2018You have to be there, now!\u2019\u201d Melanie said.<\/p>\n ** TikTok dancer Aubrey Fisher shared his experiences with the church as well, saying he began attending in its early days. And he claimed that Shinn created 7M Films shortly after learning about Fisher\u2019s huge following on TikTok.<\/p>\n ** Fisher left Shekinah Church and 7M Films in 2022 but continues to make dance videos on Instagram and TikTok.<\/p>\n ** Dancer Kylie Douglas also appeared in Dancing for the Devil, <\/em>saying that Shinn \u201ccreated a culture of paranoia among his followers. She said that she felt she couldn\u2019t even fully share her thoughts with Fisher in case they somehow got back to Shinn.\u201d<\/p>\n ** She left the Shekinah Church at the same time Fisher left because of Shinn\u2019s \u201cworrying behavior\u201d and claims the church is a cult.<\/p>\n ** Dancer Kailea Gray joined Shinn\u2019s church with her boyfriend and future husband Kevin \u201cKonkrete\u201d Davis, but they left it in 2022 after allegations against Shinn and the church surfaced. \u00a0The couple continues to perform, and Konkrete has even toured with Beyonce\u2019.<\/p>\n ** Another dancer who joined Shekinah and 7M is Nick \u201cRainO\u201d Raiano, according to Business Insider<\/em>. Raiano\u2019s parents said he slowly cut ties with them, and when they started receiving texts again, they suspected their son wasn\u2019t writing them.<\/p>\n ** *************Raiano still appears to have connections to the church and 7M. He \u201chas deleted his Instagram and TikTok accounts. His main YouTube channel has also disappeared, although his old account with one video is still available,\u201d Business Insider <\/em>reported.<\/p>\n**** Updating the Story<\/strong><\/h3>\n*************** ** ***************A recent story by The Independent<\/em> updated readers about Miranda Wilking Derrick and Robert Shinn. The news outlet reported that Miranda re-established contact with her family and began dancing with her sister again.<\/p>\n However, the reunion appears to have been short-lived. Several days ago, Miranda announced that she and her husband have received death threats<\/a>\u00a0since Netflix released Dancing for the Devil<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cBefore this documentary, my husband and I \u2013 we felt safe. Now that this documentary is out, we feel like our lives have been put in danger,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n She explained that the couple has been followed and received hate mail and death threats. And she blames her family.<\/p>\n \u201cI have been getting together with my family for the past couple of years, privately, to work on our relationship\u2026. And this documentary has made it very difficult to continue doing that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Miranda also slammed the film as \u201ca one-sided story\u201d and denied that she\u2019s a \u201cvictim.\u201d<\/p>\n As for Robert Shinn, the pastor-businessman has filed a lawsuit against several former church members claiming defamation and trade libel.<\/p>\n His lawsuit was followed by a countersuit filed by a group of former 7M dancers. That suit accuses Shinn of fraud, forced labor and trafficking, according to The Independent. <\/em><\/p>\n No criminal charges have been filed, and the case has not yet gone to trial.<\/p>\n What\u2019s next? Only time will tell.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Religious cults \u2013 and cults in general \u2014 are dangerous. Yet, people continue to join them, and a new Netflix documentary points to the alleged 7M TikTok cult as an example. Dancing for the Devil: The 7M TikTok Cult\u00a0offers a fascinating look at a purported religious cult and its alleged ties to TikTok dancers and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4662,"featured_media":5514,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1857,1869,1866,1860,1854,1863],"class_list":["post-5511","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-7m-tiktok-cult","tag-cult-warning-signs","tag-dancing-for-the-devil","tag-miranda-and-melanie-wilking","tag-netflix-documentary","tag-robert-shinn"],"yoast_head":"\nDoes the\u00a07M TikTok Cult Exist? 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