What You Didn't Know About Moriah Plath From Welcome To Plathville
"Welcome to Plathville" has been a hit for TLC since its premiere in November 2019, thanks to the show's stars, the Plaths, who, like the infamous Duggars, maintain quite the unconventional lifestyle, which, of course, makes for great TV. According to the network, the 9 Plath children were raised with strict religious parents in rural Georgia and "have never had a soda, don't know who Spider-Man or Tom Brady is and have never watched TV." You could say it's pretty ironic that a bunch of people who have never watched TV or who know who celebrities are, are now reality TV stars themselves.
Yet things have significantly changed for some of the older Plath kids, who have decided to leave their childhood home to live a modern life away from their parents' strict rules. Perhaps the most rebellious of the Plath brood is Moriah Plath, who has really come into her own since she moved off the family's farm and in with her brother, Micah Plath, to finally live life on her own terms.
Moriah has been an open book not only on "Welcome to Plathville" but on her social media, discussing her journey from a sheltered child into an independent young woman who continues to learn things about the "outside world" and has new experiences every day. Yet despite Moriah's willingness to honestly share her story as she goes, there still may be things about the reality star even fans don't know, so let's break it down.
Unlike her family, Moriah Plath is 'wild, crazy and free'
It's safe to say that Moriah Plath is finally living her life the way she wants after years of having to follow her parents' super strict rules. The "Welcome to Plathville" star has wasted no time finding ways to express her independence, including getting a tattoo that reads "black heart."
And a year later, Moriah doesn't seem to have any regrets. She took to Instagram to share why it's important for her to be able to get tattoos and how she even wants more, writing, "I know there will be objections but never once have I regretted this tattoo and it will always be my choice! ... at the end of the day this is MY life." It seems for Moriah, the tattoo is a symbol of her freedom to finally make her own choices. Moriah also decided to ditch her signature Plath-style blond hair and dye hers bright purple. She showed off her new look on Instagram with a photo caption that definitely sums up her whole vibe that reads, "Wild, crazy and free."
Moriah is also free to actually dress how she wants, too. In an episode, the teen explained how when she lived with her parents, "Jeans or any type of tank top was out of the question. Swimsuits were an absolute no." These days Moriah frequently shows off her shorts, crop tops, and bikinis on Instagram. As her sister-in-law, Olivia Plath once posted in her comments, "You do you, boo."
Everything changed when Moriah Plath moved out
It seems at age 17, Moriah Plath could no longer keep her parents' rigid lifestyle so the "Welcome to Plathville" star moved out of their home and got her own place with her brother Micah Plath. Her parents were apparently having trouble with her, as well. Moriah revealed on the show, "I moved out of the house slash got kicked out." She explained their reasoning, adding, "I had got to the point where I was just starving for freedom and didn't follow the rules my parents had set."
It seems that Moriah is happy with her decision to set out on her own. In August 2021, she told Fox News, "Can I just say everything [has changed]?" She continued, "I'm pretty sure we don't do anything that we used to do and we do everything that we weren't able to do." She also discussed how it impacted her love life saying, "It's definitely the best experience I've ever had being able to date somebody who understands me."
While Moriah took the plunge to move out at a relatively young age, there appears to be no truth to the rumors that she was emancipated. Fans speculated that when in October 2019, the teen posted about being "independent" on Instagram. Distractify reports that someone who seemed to be related named Barb Plath then commented on it about getting her birth certificate, to which Moriah replied, "Already have that... more like emancipation." However, it seems Moriah was just joking.
Moriah Plath is still going strong with her boyfriend Max
Moriah Plath may have been through a lot over the past couple of years, but it's pretty apparent that her love life is thriving. According to The Cinemaholic, Moriah met her boyfriend Max Kallschmidt in December 2019 but the two decided to start out as friends. Of course, a romance blossomed that next year, but their relationship got off to a rocky start. The two briefly split so Moriah could "work on" herself since she was having trouble opening up.
In the end, it appears the couple worked through that rough patch, and in May 2021 they celebrated their one-year anniversary. Moriah couldn't help gushing about Max in an Instagram post where she wrote, "I simply couldn't do this life without you! ... I'm so thankful that you've stuck with me and we didn't give up when things got tough! ... I couldn't have dreamed of a better man [than] you!"
And Moriah doesn't just post Max on special occasions, her grid is full of photos of him with adoring captions, as well as all their adventures together. Max apparently feels the same way because not only did he gift her a promise ring for their anniversary (via Distractify) but he also frequently posts about their relationship on his page. In one post, he calls her his "best friend" and writes that he loves her. While young love doesn't always last, it seems these two could be the real deal.
Moriah Plath received guidance from her sister-in-law
Moriah Plath appears to have a special bond with her brother Ethan Plath's wife, Olivia Plath. The rebellious ladies both feel similar about the Plath family rules, with Olivia being very supportive of Moriah striking out on her own. Yet Moriah doesn't agree with her parents that Olivia is a bad influence on her. She revealed on "Welcome to Plathville" (via Showbiz CheatSheet), "I felt extremely bad for my sister-in-law getting the heat for how I behave," adding, "These are things I would have done whether she was there or not."
In fact, Moriah thanked Olivia for being there for her, writing in an Instagram post of them together, "Some don't realize I've been different from the beginning and was bound to change, only with you I've had guidance." As for Olivia, she's thrilled with how far her "little-not-so-little sis" has come. In a birthday post for Moriah, Olivia wrote to her, "you've added sparkle to my life since day one," adding, "I'm proud of the voice you've found, and mountains you've conquered."
People reports that Moriah even chose Olivia over her own parents when it came to who she wanted at her first concert. Since Olivia is estranged from Kim and Barry Plath, she wouldn't play in Moriah's band if they were there. However, Moriah decided, "My parents will just have to understand, 'cause I can't just go around being scared of what everybody else is going to feel like or be offended or hurt or whatever."
Moriah Plath is more talented than you think
Moriah Plath isn't just a reality TV star, the "Welcome to Plathville" star is also a talented musician who has some acting experience. It seems that music has been a part of Moriah's life long before she landed her role on TLC. In fact, the whole Plath family is apparently into making music since they had a family band that played Southern gospel music and traveled to different churches to perform, according to Soap Dirt. The family even released some music videos and from what it looks like, Moriah was the lead singer of the group.
Fans of "Welcome to Plathville" may also know that Moriah does more than just sing — she also plays guitar and writes her own songs. She even professionally recorded one she wrote and already performed her first gig, which was all documented on the show. Moriah still keeps some of her music in the family though, with a band that consists of her brothers Ethan and Micah Plath, as well as her sister-in-law Olivia Plath.
While it's clear Moriah wants to launch her music career, she's also done some acting. Before even taking on TV, Screenrant reports that Moriah appeared in a movie, playing a runaway teen in the 2018 Christian short film, "You Should Be There." With that and the family's 2016 documentary on their band, "Family, Unity, Harmony," it's understandable why Moriah seems very comfortable being on camera for someone who didn't grow up with those technologies.
Moriah Plath is passionate about fitness
Outside of music, Moriah Plath has another hobby that occupies her time and even helps her make money. The "Welcome to Plathville" star is seemingly very into fitness and has worked at a gym as a yoga instructor. According to Soap Dirt, Moriah's passion for yoga began the summer she stayed with her grandparents in Minnesota for a change of pace. Once she was introduced to the practice, the reality star was hooked and eventually got a job teaching yoga when she began living away from her parents.
While yoga and workouts are probably one of the many things that her parents, Kim and Barry Plath, don't agree with due to their conservative lifestyle, Barry did visit Moriah while she was leading a yoga class and somewhat attempted to do some of the moves.
But it's not just yoga that Moriah appears to be into. She frequently posts herself at the gym or doing workouts on her Instagram, all while showing off her abs, making it clear that whatever she's doing, it's definitely working. In one post, she even mentions how her brother, Ethan Plath, is her workout buddy, writing, "Trying to reach 7 pull-ups in a row... not quite there yet. Video credits to my gym buddy @ethan.plath." It's clear that Moriah not only works hard to stay in shape but that fitness is something she's passionate enough about to fill her Instagram grid with, which may in turn inspire her fans to keep a healthy lifestyle.
Moriah Plath doesn't agree with how her parents raised her
Moriah Plath doesn't just have a problem with how strict her parents are, she also has issues with how they raised her. On an episode of "Welcome to Plathville," Moriah and her brother, Micah Plath, called out their parents for not preparing them for the modern world. It appears that Micah spoke for himself and Moriah when he said, "It's kind of hard to prepare your kids for the modern world when you're trying to keep them from [it]." Moriah added, "you can't live in a bubble, you got to just learn to deal with it."
And Moriah has no plans to follow in her parents' footsteps when it comes to having children of her own. The reality star told Fox News, "Hell no! I'm not going to have anywhere near 9 kids." She took another dig at her parents, adding, "When you have so many to take care of you can't nurture them how they should be nurtured. You can't give them what they need financially, emotionally. I just don't want that."
Yet, Moriah doesn't want to only focus on the negative. She wrote in an Instagram post, "There's always so many things we can find wrong with how we were raised... and so much room for anger, but that's not where I want my focus cause that'll only pull me backwards when I want to move on!" She even found a bright side, adding, "One thing I am very grateful for from my childhood, is the love I formed for the outdoors!"
Moriah Plath doesn't let the trolls bring her down
Moriah Plath may finally be doing things her way, but with that has come some criticism. And we don't just mean from her parents but also fans of "Welcome to Plathville." Some have even taken it as far as bullying her online. One incident, in particular, was when she posted a photo of herself at the gym during the height of the pandemic in March 2020. InTouch reports that someone commented on the photo, "Stay the F home. Why are you going to the gym when the rest of the planet ... are staying home?" While it appears that Moriah usually ignores the haters, she clapped back to this one, writing, "Yes! You're right, we should stay home. [That's] one of the many reasons I chose a photo from December."
When trolls aren't commenting on Moriah's actions, they're criticizing her appearance. In a post celebrating her 19th birthday, several Instagram users commented things like "Ouch. That makeup," or "take it easy on the makeup." Others have made fun of how she dresses, with someone commenting on a photo, "You look like a hooker with no class the way you dress."
In August 2021, Moriah took to the gram to defend herself, captioning a selfie, "I'm not perfect, we're not perfect, no one is... we're human and we're gonna make mistakes! But that's how we learn!" She continued, "It's not always easy going and growing through life putting all of my growing process on tv for everyone to see!"
Moriah Plath is quite different from her sisters
"Welcome to Plathville's" Moriah Plath doesn't seem to be as close with her actual sisters as she is with her sister-in-law, Olivia Plath. When it comes to her older sister Hosana Plath in particular, Moriah explained to Us Weekly, "She got married at a young age and moved off with her husband and started her life somewhere else." She hinted that it's been a strain on their relationship adding, "Sometimes we keep in touch to some extent, but it's also, like, she's across the country ... it would just be a hassle and she doesn't want to be on the show."
Then there's Lydia Plath, who while close in age to Moriah, couldn't be more different. Unlike Moriah, she revealed on the show (via Showbiz CheatSheet), "I experience the outside world just enough to know that I don't want to be like that." Moriah seems proud to be unlike her sisters and pointed that out when she commented on an Instagram photo of them alongside another ultra-conservative family. According to InTouch, Moriah wrote, "I can't control what my sisters do they also can't control what I do, so I will be found across the country from all that."
Yet, Moriah appears to have a soft spot for her younger siblings. She shared a video of herself with her little sister, Mercy Plath, where she wrote, "#Sisters I miss you Mercy! And all of my siblings back home... thinking of y'all." Perhaps one of her younger sisters will even follow in Moriah's footsteps one day.