Bethany Mota

**Bethany Mota** portrayed Brooke Keenan in *The Guardians*, *Guardians: Extinction*, and *Guardians: The Final Stand.*

## Life and Career

Bethany Noel Mota was born on November 7, 1995, to Tammy and Tony Mota in Merced County, California. Mota is of Mexican and Portuguese descent. She grew up in California and has an older sister named Brittany. She was homeschooled through most of her education but attended public school from third to sixth grade. Mota attended dance and acting classes briefly during sixth grade.

Mota was one of the most popular YouTube celebrities. Mota's first haul video was in June 2009. She began her YouTube channel in order to escape the stress of bullying and rapidly gained followers, which numbered 9.5 million in October 2015.*Business Insider* described her as "relentlessly upbeat and bouncy" and "a virtuoso of positivity". As hauling became more popular on YouTube, retailers began to use it for marketing, and Mota was offered free cosmetics and gift cards. Mota is ambivalent about promotional videos, but when she does feature free products, she clearly identifies the products that she has not purchased. In January 2014, *Business Insider* estimated that she made $40,000 a month on her videos. In order to cultivate her fan following, she purchases prizes and awards to give them to fans who promote her videos. Her fans are called "Mota-vators". Besides her fashion-related videos, she also maintains a more personal account, which she uses to discuss whatever interests her. In 2014, she was selected to be among the content creators in YouTube's first advertising campaign. Mota has also appeared on YouTube's web show *IMO*, an opinion show aimed at teenagers. She also interviewed President Barack Obama on January 22, 2015 as part of a Whitehouse initiative to reach out to a broader audience following his 2015 State of the Union Address.

She has partnered with J. C. Penney and Forever 21, and, in December 2013, she launched a clothing, perfume, and accessories line at Aéropostale, over which she retains creative control. She maintains a close relationship with her fans and incorporates their ideas into her fashion design. *Teen Vogue* called her style "laid-back-but-girly". New announcements are made first to her social media accounts, which Aéropostale credits with increasing interest among teenage girls. *The Salt Lake Tribune*described this relationship as unique, as both Mota and Aéropostale benefit in prestige from the deal, unlike traditional celebrity endorsements. As of June 2014, the retailer has yet to gain traction from these efforts. *Forbes* reports that the collection has delivered "high average prices and margins" but still underperformed.

On October 13, 2014, she released a single, "Need You Right Now", with producer-vocalist Mike Tompkins. The song debuted in the Danish top 40 record chart*Tracklisten* at number thirty. On February 10, 2015, the official music video was released on Tompkin's YouTube channel. On May 4, 2015, in an interview at YouTube's 10th anniversary's *YT Fan Meet Up*, Mota confirmed she is working on new music and possibly her debut studio album. In August 2015, Mota wrote her own song, "Be Who You Wanna Be", and uploaded it on her YouTube channel.