Brooke Hogan has a clear message for those criticizing her online.
Recently, the “About Us” singer found herself responding to some of her Instagram followers who criticized her May 20 post dedicated to her late father, wrestling icon Hulk Hogan. Some labeled the heartfelt tribute as a “thirst trap,” a notion Brooke was quick to dismiss over the weekend.
On May 22, she addressed the backlash with a follow-up post, clarifying her intentions. “Trust me, if I wanted to give you a thirst trap, you would have gotten one,” she asserted, making her stance unmistakably clear.
Brooke explained that the initial post, which included a beach photo highlighting her bikini-clad rear, was a genuine expression of vulnerability as she mourned her father. “Shame on anyone for demonizing it,” she stated, defending her right to grieve in her own way.
In her extended caption, Brooke also touched on the public’s perception of her relationship with her father, hinting at deeper issues surrounding their portrayal in the media.
“I am human. My father was human. And you people have the nerve to act like you’re experts on ANY topic or know anything about my experience with him?” she wrote of the wrestling legend.
“Go back under your bridge, trolls,” she concluded her post.
Brooke explained in the slideshow of her post that the bikini photo was one that she “quickly” took over her shoulder and doubled down on it being emblematic of her childhood growing up as a “little Florida girl.”
“I know he loved me, and I loved him. I think more than anyone ever did,” she wrote of Hulk. “But in the last few years… I think he lost sight of this.”
“I am not obligated to explain to ignorant people who haven’t walked in my shoes – how I lost my dad – before I lost my dad,” Brooke wrote.
The “Hogan Knows Best” alum said she stands by the decisions she made about distancing herself from her father but that it “doesn’t stop” her from missing him.
Brooke’s initial post featured her spending “some time with my thoughts, my daddy and the ocean he loved so much” — even likening him to “King Triton holding his Little Mermaid.”
“The tears were endless today,” she said.
While the tribute featured a slideshow of images and videos of Hulk throughout the years, many followers focused on the bikini shot that led the slideshow.
“First picture was totally necessary to remember your father, right? Jesus Christ,” one person wrote. Another asked, “why would u start this post with a pic of your ass?”
Hulk died in July at the age of 71. His cause of death was determined to be a heart attack and it was revealed that he’d been secretly battling leukemia.
The WWE icon’s relationship with Brooke had been estranged in recent years, with her skipping his funeral and him leaving her out of his $5 million will.