Yoga mats double as beds. The bathroom is improvised. The address varies. This is the life that Leland Brown Jr., 28, and his girlfriend, Breanna Hubbard, 22, lead. Leland, who has a 7-year-old son who lives with his mother, was kicked out of the house by his father after refusing to look for a job. He even lived with Breanna’s family, but it didn’t work out. The American decided to go live in nature. Breanna went after him.
By documenting life in a tent in the woods of Philadelphia (USA), the couple became celebrities on social media. They became influencers, with millions and millions of views of their videos. Last winter, Leland and Breanna decided to live in a shipping container in a storage warehouse, at her mother’s suggestion. After all, they needed an “office” to make their viral videos. But the company discovered the irregularity and evicted them. The lovers returned to live in the tent, adding more fuel to the curiosity of their followers, interested in knowing what it’s like to return to the forest and face the challenges of the snow.
Leland and Breanna say they enjoy the “free” life outside of a conventional roof. For them, the style is more “flexible”. As it is “low cost”, the way of living does not force Americans to look for a job. He and his girlfriend now make money from social media posts. Leland boasts that the sacrifice is worth it for the independence that comes with it.
In the tent, cardboard is placed on the floor and fluffy rugs are placed. Leland and Breanna make the space cozy with pillows and blankets. Winter is often harsh in Philadelphia.
A charging station is used to power the couple’s phones and laptops, and they even have a ‘stove’ and frying pans where they prepare meals, as well as cleaning products for washing up.
“I’m very educated and intelligent, just like Breanna, but people tell us how to live because their perspective on life is different,” Leland said in a report in the Daily Mail.
The American comes from a middle-class family that has achieved the success of the “American dream”. His father is a chief engineer and director of a military and aerospace communications company.
Despite being kicked out of the house, Leland says he understands his father now:
“My dad is telling me I have to stay in the woods and make this work. He’s trying to teach me to be strong and survive.”
“I believe Leland has made it very clear that this is a choice he made and he stands by his choice,” his father wrote in an email. “If no harm is done to anyone, content development is a good method to share his approaches to how he wants to live his life, while also allowing others to follow his journey,” he added.
Breanna’s family tried to get her to return home, but she refused.
“I had to set out to be the best version of myself”, she philosophized.
