“Midnight Ballerina” Is TikTok’s New Favorite Term, Thanks to Huda From 'Love Island'

If you’ve recently come across the term “midnight ballerina,” it’s probably because you’re watching Love Island USA Season 7, and following the TikTok coverage after each episode airs.

However, despite what you might be thinking, “midnight ballerina” doesn’t refer to a woman twirling around in pointe shoes at midnight. But it does refer to a dancer, just a very different kind. Here’s what the term actually means and why it’s been gaining so much traction on TikTok lately.

“Midnight ballerina” isn’t exactly a new term — it likely originated from Cori Williams’s 2014 novel Midnight Ballerina, and based on the context of the book, it may just be the inspiration behind how the phrase is being used today.

According to the internet, a “midnight ballerina” refers to a stripper or exotic dancer. They tend to perform late at night, much like ballerinas, but with a different audience, hence the nickname.

In the novel, the protagonist’s dream of becoming a dancer doesn’t pan out as she hoped, and she ends up going down an unexpected path, taking on an unlikely profession working in a strip club.

With the term being a clever (and tasteful) way to describe a stripper, people are now turning to it as an alternative to the more traditional label.

So, the next time you hear someone throw around the term “midnight ballerina” — whether they’re describing someone or giving tips on how to get into the game, just know they’re talking about strippers, not actual ballet dancers.

The term “midnight ballerina” has been getting lots of attention lately, but it really picked up traction after Huda Mustafa appeared on Love Island USA Season 7. Fans are convinced Huda is a midnight ballerina, aka a stripper, even though there’s no solid evidence she’s ever worked in a strip club. Still, a few resurfaced clips have people second-guessing it, much like they are with the plastic surgery rumors.

While Huda’s doctor confirmed she had a rhinoplasty, she hasn’t admitted to getting a BBL, though fans are pretty convinced she’s had one. As for the stripper rumors, people are pointing to Episode 15, when she slides down a stripper pole and looks mighty comfortable doing it. Because her pole moves seemed almost second nature, fans started speculating that she might be a stripper in real life or had been at some point.

What really fueled the chatter was when Megan Thee Stallion showed up to host the twerk challenge in that same episode, and Huda stepped front and center with some jaw-dropping moves that, let’s just say, not everyone knows how to pull off on demand.

And then there was the lumberjack-themed game, also in the same episode, hosted by Paige DeSorbo, where Huda can be seen banging her booty down on Taylor, with some joking that they thought she was about to crack a rib.

While we don’t know if Huda’s ever actually stripped, whether as a hobby or for money, plenty agree that if she wanted to, she could easily step into the profession given her skills.