SOME people think there’s no way out of a cycle of drugs, poverty and crime on your doorstep - but Lily Dee, who grew up on a tough council estate with drug abuser parents, firmly disagrees.
The 36-year-old recalls how she went from being asked to sell drugs and ditching school to making £5,000 a month and living on a posh estate where some of the neighbours reckon she doesn’t fit in.
But it hasn’t been easy for the Mancunian, known as the online, to move up the ladder - Lily reveals to Fabulous that she grew up seeing her parents become addicted to drugs.
In the past, Lily was forced to sleep in her coat to keep warm in the back of the garden if she ever tried to challenge the lifestyle her parents were living.
We had drug dealers putting petrol bombs through the windows
Lily Dee
She says: “Both of my parents were on drugs, it was very apparent, they did try and go to parents' evening and stuff, but there was a lot of drama and a lot of trauma.
“We had drug dealers putting petrol bombs through the windows sometimes.
“I experienced a lot of bullying at school, and a lot of police at the door.”
Lily remembers her dad countlessly being reported in the local newspaper for petty crimes, leading to years of bullying from her peers.
“I remember even as a child not wanting to live that life.
"My parents weren't bad people, they didn’t make the choice to have children and get addicted to drugs.
“As I got older, I became obsessed with being successful and making sure I would never go hungry again.”
And that’s not all, Lily reveals that when it was time for her to go out into the world she was advised to become a drug dealer herself by people on her estate.
“I was encouraged to sell drugs and go on benefits, but rebelled against the council estate lifestyle and travelled the world,” she explains.
“I wasn’t going to be a product of my environment.”
Lily went on to work as an entertainer while working across the globe, from Spain to Egypt, as a fire dancer and didn’t speak to her parents during this time.
She came back to the UK at the age of 30 and quickly fell into a relationship, but it wasn’t the happy ever after she hoped for.
Instead, her partner quickly turned abusive with mental abuse and physical assault, leading Lily to contact the police about the horrific relationship she was unable to get out of.
It only takes one wrong choice, one abusive relationship, to go right back into the thick of it
Lily Dee
But while the investigation was underway, he continued to attack Lily, damage her car and stalk her.
“It only takes one wrong choice, one abusive relationship, to go right back into the thick of it,” Lily recalls.
After the conviction, Lily gained a two year restraining order and was put in a refuge for vulnerable women halfway across the country while attending PTSD therapy to gain control back over her life.
“I was suicidal, I couldn’t work due to PTSD, I came from a council estate to travelling the world, I’d always worked,” she explains.
“I was moved to a shabby council house with no furniture, but I began to heal.”
Life for Lily was going well, she had gained a ‘shabby council house’ and began to move on - even starting a social media account to share tales of her experience growing up on a council estate.
It was the end of the lockdown in 2022 when her account started to blow up and life seemed hers for the taking - but unfortunately it wasn’t the end of her ordeal.
The restraining order had run out after the two year mark, her ex-partner had found her, and was making moves to find her in person.
Lily was forced to flee again, with the council moving her to a posh estate out of harm's way.
In a more secure space, Lily began to develop her skills and went to train as an aesthetic practitioner, hoping to open her own salon with the money she was making on social media and with her part-time job at Citizens Advice.
She claims she now makes on average £5,000 a month, equating to £60k a year, and on top of that now has her - paying homage to her council estate routes which has earned her an extra £2,000 in just two weeks.
But it was short lived, not long after training, Lily’s dad, , was brutally attacked in a park at 10am by a stranger and was left on life support.
He now has life-changing injuries, leading Lily to drop everything to support her dad.
“He doesn’t remember his old life, doesn’t remember he was a drug addict and doesn’t remember the attack,” she adds.
I get funny looks on the posh estate when I'm running around doing my council estate content.
Lily
Despite the traumatic series of events that have unfolded for Lily, she still keeps upbeat and wants to give back to her community.
Now, with a massive following of over 1 million followers combined on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, Lily hopes to use her money for good.
“I want to help my future, my dad, and in turn create a foundation for kids and help people who grew up like me,” she explains.
Now living on a posh estate - where council houses are next door to expensive, privately owned properties - she says some of her neighbours give her funny looks when she is filming her content or walking down the street.
“I get funny looks on the posh estate, especially when I'm running around doing my council estate content, you get the posh ones who are like she shouldn't be there,” Lily adds.
may have moved away from the life she grew up in but her posts often refer to her time growing up on a rough council estate adding comedic value and ranking the top ‘Council Estate Names’ or ‘Council Estate Dinners.’
Here, she shares what she would never do after growing up on one.
