Kylan Darnell Reveals How Viral Bama Rush Fame Challenged 'Competitive' Relationship with Younger Sister Izzy

Zoey LyttleWed, March 4, 2026 at 6:33 PM UTC

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Izzy and Kylan Darnell at SiriusXM Studios in New York City on Oct. 30, 2025.Credit: Gary Gershoff/Getty -

Kylan Darnell went viral in August 2022 for documenting her experience rushing a sorority at the University of Alabama, and her little sister Izzy started posting the same content at the start of her freshman year in August 2025

Kylan appeared on a recent episode of the Post Run High podcast to discuss how RushTok social media fame has impacted her relationship with Izzy over the past few years

Izzy's path ultimately diverged from Kylan's, as the younger Darnell sister dropped out of sorority recruitment during the process and later told PEOPLE exclusively that she plans to transfer to another college

Kylan Darnell made her name on social media as the "Queen of Bama Rush." Last year, she watched her little sister Izzy step into the RushTok limelight as well, but the viral fame wasn't always a family affair.

On Feb. 23, Kylan appeared on the Post Run High podcast to discuss her experience garnering over one million followers while earning an undergraduate degree. Now in her final year at the University of Alabama, the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority sister remembers how her online presence initially created some distance between her and Izzy, now 19. She was still in high school when Kylan rushed in August 2022.

"I was getting to do all of like the influencer things, and my sister had to sit at home in high school and watch all of my success," she reflected while speaking to host Kate Mackz. Kylan also noted that she and Izzy have a childhood history of being competitive with each other.

Kylan and Izzy Darnell at Miami Swim Week on May 30, 2025.Credit: Romain Maurice/Getty

"There were pageants where we were against each other, and I would beat my sister, or she would beat me," said the older Darnell sister, who was once crowned Miss Ohio Teen USA. "We've always had a very tight-knit relationship, and we always competed against each other."

She explained that it was generally "really hard" for Izzy when Kylan moved away from home to start university, and she took responsibility for some of the tensions they endured as siblings.

"I got really immersed in like my friends and ... I was not the best oldest sister to her. I did not check in on her. I did not ask her how high school was. I was so into myself and so into my own life that I forgot to be a good older sister," Kylan admitted. "It really makes me upset now thinking about it."

She added, "There was a point whenever Izzy stepped online that I was so mad at her that I unfollowed her for the things that she was saying. It embarrassed me." Kylan noted that they've since mended their relationship and are on "great" terms now.

Izzy joined her sister at the University of Alabama in 2025, when she enrolled as a freshman and started documenting her sorority recruitment process like her sister did three years earlier. Unlike Kylan, however, Izzy shocked her followers when she announced that she dropped out of Greek Life. She dropped another bombshell in December 2025, when she revealed exclusively to PEOPLE that she plans to transfer schools.

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During the Post Run Podcast episode, Kylan discussed how her 2025 Bama Rush experience differed from prior years, namely because of Izzy's arrival and because their mom, Tonya Darnell, was regularly on campus with them.

Tonya Darnell with Kylan and Izzy DarnellCredit: Tonya Darnell/Instagram

"I was not a happy camper," Kylan said. "I haven't really said anything about this just because I do like to put out like the most positive thing online and always be a positive source, but ... I hated it, to be completely transparent."

She explained that having her family members around gave her "a lot of anxiety," especially since her sister approached rush and RushTok in a completely different way than Kylan. She recalled how Izzy quickly realized sorority life was not for her, and she didn't hide her feelings about the system.

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"She thought it was stupid, and so she would go online and she would be like, 'Sorority girls this, sorority girls that. I don't get it. I don't like it.' And I was like sitting beside her, and I was like, 'Dude, I'm one of those,'" Kylan said. "It was hurting my feelings a little bit, and it kind of made me feel, like, invalid."

Despite the discomfort those moments stirred up, she went on to say she and Izzy have talked and smoothed over those past tensions, and she praised Izzy as having "matured a lot since." Kylan also said they ended up using their opposite online personas as a way to play with their audiences.

"We did have a little bit of a fun time rage-baiting ... 'cause I was so perfect online and she wasn't, so like her being the villain sometimes is fun, but she really is a great girl, and all of her friends love her," Kylan said of her younger sister. "So she's been having a really, really great experience now."

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”