How Danielle Colby life’s Success Begin After ‘American Pickers’

We all know Danielle Colby as the woman behind Antique Archaeology’s office, as the Queen of Rust, and above all, as an important part of the History Channel’s smash hit American Pickers.

Danielle Colby is not only all of these things, but she is also an artist, a dancer, an activist, a filmmaker, a mother, and an enthusiast. She is someone devoted to women’s history, to a well-done tattoo, to the art of the striptease, to entomology, and all things vintage.

Danielle Colby is someone who, at 46 years old, is only getting began living life to the most. From the charmingly every day to the boundary-pushing, we have gathered up some of the most surprising information about Colby’s very diverse and vibrant life. It turns out, American Pickers is only the start of her success.

Who is Danielle Colby?

Danielle Colby is an American reality TV star and a burlesque dancer who is recognized for featuring in the reality television series ‘American Pickers’ on the History Channel. She was a former roller derby player and had competed in many contests before giving up the sport due to injuries. As a dancer, she has her burlesque group named ‘Burlesque Le Moustache’, which has nine dancers, including Colby herself. She has also established her own burlesque academy called ‘Dannie Diesel’s Bump ‘n’ Grind Academy,’ which is based in Chicago.

She has a lively personality, known for her flamboyance and striking tattoos, which have more profound implications and are not just for their “cool looks”. She owns a clothing company named ‘4 Miles 2 Memphis’ as well. She is also involved in many charitable ventures, largely helping women who have been victims of sex trafficking and harassment.

The Early Life of Danielle Colby

Danielle Colby was born in Davenport, Iowa, on December 3, 1975, to Sue Colby. She has a sister named Carbomb Betty. She spent a critical time of her childhood living in Chicago.

The Career of Danielle Colby

Danielle Colby is a woman of diverse skills and interests. She has tried her hands in various fields and has succeeded in most of them. She was a roller derby player and represented the Big Mouth Mickies during her youth. She had won a local championship while playing for her team, which she managed as well. However, some injuries pushed her to give up the sport.

Colby became a fundamental part of the American reality television show ‘American Pickers,’ created by her long-term friend, Mike Wolfe. After Wolfe managed to sell the show to the History Channel, he invited Colby to take charge of the office of Wolfe’s business, ‘Antique Archaeology’, from its office. The show was all about Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz travelling all around the country to collect ancient items to sell them to interested buyers. With the show’s growing fame, it was called the top-rated non-fiction series of 2010, Colby began to get full attention.

She saw a Chicago burlesque performance featuring dancer Angel Cecelia Helene Walker and the standup comedian Margaret Moran Cho. The idea made Colby fall for it, and she finally determined to form her own burlesque troupe. Her burlesque team, ‘Burlesque Le Moustache,’ consists of nine performers, including herself. She took the stage name “Dannie Diesel,” which she felt is a moniker that really goes well with her personality. She also owns a retro clothing company named ‘4 Miles 2 Memphis’ in Iowa. She has encountered numerous ups and downs in her life as an entrepreneur, but she believes that the financial result of her endeavors is not as important as what she does. It is more vital for her is do something that differentiates her from the masses and establish her as a creative individual.

Personal Life of Danielle Colby

Danielle Colby is currently experiencing a joyful marriage with her long-time husband, Alexandre De Meyer. Alexandre is a French artist and graphic designer who worked at the Michelin Museum. The pair got married on February 14 2015, and are currently spending their days in Chicago.

This is Danielle’s second marriage as she was previously married. Danielle has not shared anything about her former husband; there are contradictory reports on the internet. Some site names the person as Robert Strong, a British man, while others named Kevin Colby. If we closely look at details, her mother goes by the name Sue Colby which means Colby is the surname Danielle received from her parents rather than her first husband.

If we go by the summing-up, Danielle’s first husband might actually be Robert Strong. Danielle and Robert were married by 2004 and experienced the parentship of two children. Reportedly, the couple called things off as Robert was incompetent to handle Danielle’s fame.

Net Worth of Danielle Colby

As we all know, Danielle came in 299 episodes of American Pickers from 2010 to 2020. Having enjoyed a prosperous television career for over a decade, Danielle made an incredible net worth. Danielle displays no hint of slowing down as she is expected to return for the 22nd season of American Pickers. Besides her achievements on the TV show, Danielle earns from the antique collection, endorsement, and several business ventures. As of July 2021, Danielle has an approximated net worth of $1.5M to 2M.

Bio Facts of Danielle Colby

Controversy and Rumors about Danielle Colby

Being a burlesque dancer was not so simple for her. She was into controversy and rumors for being a burlesque dancer. Rather than appreciation, Danielle got into criticism for adverse remarks most of the time. She was asked to remove her post while showing her thoughts and opinions fearlessly on social websites that are not mainstream. Similarly, she was also into rumours regarding her bond with her best friend, Mike. However, she said that mike is her best friend for over ten years.

Danielle Colby as a Philanthropist

It is not all shimmer, tattoos, and rusted antiques for Colby. She’s also an enthusiastic philanthropist who has bestowed her time, money, and publicity to more than a few charities, organizations, and foundations. Currently, the one dear to her heart is Batey Girls. Batey Girls is part of the Batey Rehab Project and proposes to give economic opportunities for girls and women in the Dominican Republic at high risk of sex trafficking and domestic violence. 

 While the Project works on various fronts, such as housing and education, Batey Girls especially makes helping easy for the curious onlooker. As Colby promotes, one can buy one of the beautiful and locally-mined jewellery pieces the group’s participants make and thus encourage a brighter and more sustainable future for a, particularly at-risk population. Colby’s website and social media accounts are all prominently decorated with the group’s colorful logo and a link to their website — one that’s surely worth the click.

Danielle Colby as a Documentary Filmmaker

Danielle Colby is an appraiser, a performer, an athlete, an artist, a mother, a philanthropist, and an all-around eccentric. What more could Colby likely include in her life? Well, it seems like there is one more area she intends on succeeding in the world of documentary filmmaking and women’s history. As a devoted feminist and history-minded geek, this is not unexpected, but it certainly has directed to some exciting work. 

Colby’s biggest accomplishment so far is serving as executive producer on Tempest Storm: World’s Oldest Exotic Dancer, a documentary examining the life of the titular entertainer. The storm has been connected to everyone from JFK to Elvis Presley, blew up her life when she committed to a then-controversial interracial marriage and spends much of the film looking to reunite with her estranged family. Colby positively continues when describing her part in the production, both as a historian and as a fellow dancer. “Thank you for paving the way for the rest of us B Grrrls,” she gushed on her Facebook page, “I can’t wait to perform with you in Vegas soon!”

Danielle Colby is Passionate About Bugs

Here’s one aspect of Colby’s multitudinous interests you’d likely never have imagined: she’s attracted by bugs. She has massive tattoos of a fly on her forearm, done by Chewie, a tattoo artist working out of Alex in Tattooland in Moline, Illinois. When questioned in 2010, Colby poured over her work — Chewie also did her knuckle tattoos, which read “HOLD FAST,” and the plan was for her work to go much more significant. “She’ll be finishing my left arm,” Colby said, “which is all entomology. I love bugs.“

Years later, quite a lot of skin on her left arm remains revealed and often obscured, but the gorgeously inked fly remains. As she is most well-known for her part in a show centred around finding worth and value in the unlikely refuse of a vast nation, it seems only appropriate that she finds fascination in bugs and has one of the most underappreciated, the simple, settable house fly, inked into her skin.

Danielle Colby is a Devout Punk Fan

It comes as no wonder that Colby — tattooed, notably rebellious, and very much engaged to living life her own individual way — is a fan of alternative music. But the random American Pickers fan might not recognize just how loyal she is to all things punk, rock, and counterculture and that she has got the merch and knowledge to prove it. Colby has been snapped wearing shirts promoting Against Me!, a now-legendary punk band headed by frontwoman Laura Jane Grace remembered most for their raucous live shows and take-no-guff lyrics set against howling guitars. 

Colby has also cited the British Celtic punk band the Pogues as not just one of her favorite bands but an enormously important part of her life. “I got to see the Pogues and that was hands down one of the most amazing experiences of my life,” she told Yuppie Punk in 2010, naming them “one of the very first bands I ever fell in love with.” She has also devoted herself to the Flaming Lips, Butthole Surfers, Guttermouth, the Dead Kennedys, and a number of punk’s other most famous and revolutionary names. The Queen of Rust isn’t just familiar with antiques and automobiles — she’s a regular patron of the mosh pit as well.

Final Words

No matter where she is or what she is doing, the beauty of her life is her children and home. Her Instagram is continuously loaded with snapshots of her comfortable home life, from kooky Halloween costumes to a simple look at dinner time. During a life that extends across medium, genre, aesthetic, nation, and indeed, time itself, it is apparent that her children and her home are a grounding influence she loves intensely. And luckily for her kids, between her knowledge of history and go-get-’em attitude, she’s one of the role models to have in the house.