In November of 2020, 16-year-old Charli D’amelio reached 100 million followers on TikTok. Despite the many celebrities that have TikTok accounts, a high schooler from Connecticut surpassed their follower count by millions.
The chances of becoming “famous” these days are bigger than ever before. It seems as though Hollywood is become saturated with celebrities that started through TikTok. TikTok is a video-sharing app that has gained exponential growth and popularity in the last two years with now 689 million users. It is most popular with teenagers and young adults.
The great part about TikTok is how diverse the content is. You can find TikToks on news, politics, human rights issues, comedy skits, dancing, singing and much more. It is a great platform to display your talents and creativity. Evidently, the talents displayed on this app have opened doors and opportunities for all of the creators with a high following.
Talk shows are beginning to replace stories of what we would consider being traditional celebrities to now constantly reporting stories on TikTok stars like the D’amelio sisters, Addison Rae, Chase Hudson and many more.
Not only are they being recognized in the media, but they have also been given many business opportunities. For example, Charli D’amelio has collaborated with brands like Dunkin’ and has her own drink on the menu called “The Charli.” Her sister, Dixie D’amelio, was given a music record deal just through the influence of Charli’s major success on TikTok. Charli has been rewarded generously through her work as she had a net worth of 8 million in 2020.
But, it doesn’t end there with just brand deals and a music career. The D’amelios announced the start of their highly anticipated show on Netflix that is supposed to show the day in the life of the sisters and their parents. Then, on April 17th, the D’amelio sisters attended the highly publicized boxing fight between YouTuber Jake Paul and Ben Askren. They even put the belt on Paul when he won the fight which many people were not happy with.
Then we have Addison Rae, a 20-year-old from Louisiana who has also been brought great success and opportunities from TikTok. She has had brand deals with SHEIN, Fashion Nova and American Eagle. In 2020, she launched her own makeup line called “Item Beauty.”
She now pursued a career in both acting and singing. She recently released her single, “Obsessed” and is also the main character in the upcoming Netflix original called “He’s All That.” In 2020, Addison’s net worth was $5 million.
She later became close friends with Kourtney Kardashian, who is from arguably one of the most famous families. Her friendship with the Kardashians has exposed her to fame even more. Addison has also appeared several times on the current season of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.”
Despite the great success that TikTok has brought these teens, they have also experienced a lot of backlash and hate on the app. A huge issue that a lot of TikTok content creators face is cancel culture. The intentions with cancel culture are supposed to be a productive way to hold other’s actions accountable.
However, it has gotten to the point where people are “canceling” these big TikTok stars for things that are objectively trivial. Many creators have expressed how cancel culture and bullying on the app has negatively affected their mental health.
Charli did an interview on her mental health state with fellow TikTok star Avani Gregg’s talk show. “And I get into these, like, really, really bad places, and it’s scary for me,” D’amelio said. “I’m not myself, and I don’t know what takes over, but it’s just so much built up that I’m trying to get out all at once, and it’s really tough. Especially when you feel like everyone has an invitation to say anything about you.”
It is important to remember that these TikTok stars are young people who are still learning and maturing. We should all make a conscious effort to put an end to bullying and toxic cancel culture.
