The pastor of a church that is now being described as a religious cult controlling TikTok stars has been pictured for the first time since the explosive claims.
Robert I. Shinn is the founder of 7M films and is also a pastor of Shekinah Church in California. He has gained newfound notoriety after the family of one of his biggest TikTok stars Miranda Derrick claimed he was keeping her against her will in a religious cult.
Miranda and her husband James are believed to be living in Los Angeles together though it remains unclear exactly where.
They spend much of their time at the 7M mansion, along with the group’s other dancers, filming TikTok content for Shinn and his son, Isaiah, who works as a director.
Robert I. Shinn is the founder of 7M films and is also a pastor of Shekinah Church in California. He has gained newfound notoriety after the family of one of his biggest TikTok stars Miranda Derrick claimed he was keeping her against her will in a religious cult
Miranda and James Derrick insist they are not in a cult and just do not want to speak with her family. Miranda’s family posted this tearful video on Instagram in February alleging that she had been brainwashed
Last month, Miranda’s family posted a tearful Instagram video online saying they had not heard from her since January 2021. They claimed she had been brainwashed by Shinn and her husband, along with other 7M dancers, and that her life was at risk.
Miranda has since released a video to insist she is safe, well and a part of 7M out of her own free will. She said she was not part of any cult, and that she simply does not want to have a relationship with her family.
However previous claims against Shinn and the Shekinah Church International raise questions about her story.
Former church member Lydia Chung sued him in 2009, claiming he brainwashed her and siphoned $4million from her.
‘This is a cult. This totally ruins people. You hear about the people who went to Vietnam—going through such a trauma, many people cannot function as a normal human being—this is what it does.
‘I don’t want to cause harm to anyone going to real churches,’ she told The Daily Beast last week.
On Sunday, Miranda and her husband encouraged followers to ask them questions for a ‘good vibes only Q&A on Instagram.
Shinn has been sued in the past by former members of the church who say he duped them out of millions of dollars while ‘brainwashing’ them
Shinn was in high spirits as he left the restaurant with the unidentified woman and her friends. He has not commented on the scandal
Shinn leaves Joey, an upscale restaurant in Los Angeles, with three unidentified women on March 15
Robert Shinn pictured in Los Angeles on Saturday around the time he was being accused of running a cult
Shinn is pictured with an unidentified woman. He went for an expensive lunch at the restaurant Joey in Woodland Hills
This is the home where Shinn is believed to live with his family. It is not the house where the 7M creators film their videos
The HQ of the Shekinah Church International in Tujunga, California. The church has been accused of brainwashing people before
Isiah Shinn, the pastor’s son, who also works for 7M films as a director
Isiah Shinn was pictured leaving work in a black BMW. He continues to post on social media despite the scandal
Miranda with her husband, left, and right, in a video dancing alone. Her family say she has been forced to cut her hair short and change the color to blonde
Miranda found fame on TikTok with her sister Melanie (left). Now, the 25-year-old is married to James Derrick and no longer speaks to her family
Shinn has not yet commented. He is also understood to go by the name Israel Shinn. He lives in a $2million home with his son in Hollywood.
In their video, Miranda’s family claimed that the change in her behavior began in 2021, after she joined 7M, and that she didn’t attend her grandfather’s funeral.
‘It’s been haunting us for over a year now. It’s definitely been the hardest year of my life,’ her 23-year-old sister Melanie said.
The pair found fame making dancing videos together during COVID-19 lockdowns. They often had their parents join them in the clips.
Friends of James also say that his behavior changed due to his involvement in Shekinah.
He has insisted that 7M is not religious, and that he and the other dancers are part of a ‘secular, for-profit organization’ run by people who ‘have faith in God.’
He also claims that Miranda’s family do not like him because he is a ‘poor black man from Compton’.