The word influencer gets tossed around more than an NBA basketball, but sometimes it’s actually meaningful. Chances are you’re already following at least one social media influencer. It could be a singer, actor, athletic, comedian or activists who continue to push the envelope of what you can accomplish at a young age. Here’s 15 teen influencers who are making a name for themselves on social media.
What is an influencer?
Whether they’re a teen or not, an influencer is someone who’s able to impact how their audience makes decisions. And that influence is usually what brands pay for. Because of that, one of the ways kids could make money online is by becoming influencers on social media platforms and earning money from TikTok and monetizing their YouTube channels. They can receive financial compensation for advertisements, sponsored posts, and more. The best teen Influencers have a relationship with their audience that’s built on trust and admiration.
Influencers only share a portion of their lives with an audience
Even though influencers generally have the same definition, they aren’t all created equally. There are Instagram influencers, YouTube influencers, TikTokers, and other social media influencers that have larger followings than the population of some countries.
Whatever category or topic you can think of, there’s probably an influencer for that. Gaming? Yes. Makeup? For sure. Financial influencers? You bet. Sports, art, even unboxing products is a thing influencers are famous for. So whatever you’re interested in, you can usually find an influencer who feels just as passionately about that topic as they do.
But remember, an influencer is only sharing a small portion of their life. It’s easy to look at the people you follow and wonder why their own lives aren’t as exciting. What you see online is essentially the highlight reel—not always reality.
15 young influencers to follow
Here are 15 young influencers you should know about (in no particular order!):
1. Charli D’Amelio
Charli got popular on TikTok with her dancing, personality, and cute family. The 19-year-old now has millions of followers on every platform she’s on, with her largest following on TikTok. She still posts lots of dancing content, along with Get-Ready-With-Me posts and super fun vlogs with friends.
She’s gotten the chance to perform on Dancing with the Stars twice now and posts clips to her socials. Her dancing skills are no joke. Charli is a role model for anyone with a passion for dance or for people just looking for inspiration for their next outing with friends.
2. Lorenzo Greer
Lorenzo Greer, also known as Tekkerz Kid, has been honing his soccer skills since he was two-years-old. He became a child prodigy soccer player after years of practice and plays for the Brimingham City U7 academy. The 14-year-old got popular on YouTube sharing videos showing off his soccer skills and often shares pictures with soccer celebrities on his Instagram.
On Lorenzo’s YouTube you can find all things soccer. He posts soccer tutorials, reviews, skill compilations and so much more. If you’re into soccer or want to know more about how big soccer is in the UK, Lorenzo is your one-stop-shop.
3. Ryan’s World
Ryan’s World is one of the most fun channels on YouTube. Twelve-year-old Ryan and his mom, dad and twin younger sisters are always coming together to make the craziest videos, go on adventures and try out new things. With over 2000 videos uploaded, you are sure to not run out of Ryan’s World content any time soon. Ryan even has his own superhero movie coming out next year!
Checking out this channel is sure to leave you feeling like you can accomplish anything. Learn how to live life to the fullest with Ryan, he’s been doing it for over eight years!
4. Mari Copeny
Mari Copeny, also known as Little Miss Flint, is a 16-year-old activist in America. She lives in Flint, Michigan where there has been a water crisis for years. The city struggled to get clean water. Mari herself wrote a letter to former U.S. President Barack Obama asking him to do something about the city’s lack of clean water. President Obama read her letter and ended up visiting Flint to investigate the situation himself. He ended up giving the city $100 million dollars to help. This couldn’t have been possible without Mari Copeny’s letter.
Mari’s activism did not stop there. She continues to stand up for what’s right like raising money for less fortunate kids to have school supplies each year, marching for women’s rights, preventing bullying with help from the anti-bullying group Trendsetters Productions, and fighting to move away from single use plastic. Mari Copeny is an inspiration to all.
5. Jules LeBlanc
Jules LeBlanc is your online older sister and best friend. Her biggest following is on TikTok, but YouTube is where you can see her change throughout the years. She has been on YouTube for over 14 years, with one of her first videos showing off her gymnast tricks at only four. Jules gained the title Annie the Gymnast and posted multiple videos showing off her skills. As a teenager, Jules started focusing on music. She has multiple original songs, and her music videos have millions of views.
While Jules may not have put out a music video in a few years, she continues to share vlogs regularly—including her birthday, teaching her sister to drive and decorating for Christmas. She is so much fun to watch and anyone with an interest in social media could learn a lot from her YouTube channel.
6. Kyle Thomas
Kyle is one of the biggest British content creators on TikTok at only 19-years-old. He’s been posting since 2019 with his biggest hits being of animals he’s rescued. He now has his own animal sanctuary that he’s been posting about on his YouTube channel. Kyle shows us it’s always cool to show kindness to any animal no matter their size or species. He’s even released his own book titled Guardian of the Realm which is about him and his pet meerkat Mylo.
Beyond his kindness to animals, Kyle is also a funny guy, often sharing comedy sketches alongside his other content. He has also been known to post food reviews and dancing videos.
7. Autumn Peltier
Canadian influencer, Autumn is an Indigenous rights activist, water-rights advocate, Chief Water Commissioner of the Anishinabek Nation, and runner-up finalist for the 2022 International Children’s Peace prize. At 12 years old, she got the chance to sit down one-on-one with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to criticize the country’s clean-water policy. Now 19, she’s spoken at multiple conferences across the globe including one with the United Nations about the issue of contaminated water on Indigenous reserves.
Autumn was included in Elle Magazine’s 100 Women Change Makers and has partnered with brands like Hershey Chocolate to raise money for her community. When she was 15 she starred in the documentary The Water Walker, which followed her to the United Nations where she advocated for clean drinking water.
8. Gamer Girl
Karina, aka GamerGirl, is a 16-year-old Canadian content creator with a focus on video games. She’s been posting since 2016 and has millions of views. GamerGirl first got popular posting Roblox and Minecraft gameplay and tips videos. Karina continues to post gaming content and is a role model for many kids who enjoy gaming. On top of posting videos, she also streams live on YouTube. Her content leaves you laughing and makes you feel like you’re playing along with her.
While Karina stills post a lot of Minecraft videos, she has recently posted videos like playing Overwatch 2 for the first time, hilarious outtakes from Lethal Company, one of the most popular indie developer games currently, and Detroit: Become Human. Whether you’re interested in what these games have to offer or just looking for a fellow player, GamerGirl likely has the video for you.
9. Genesis Butler
Genesis Butler is a 17-year-old Afro Indigenous teen fighting for animals, humans and the planet. At six-years-old, Genesis made the decision to become vegan. She was one of the youngest people to ever give a TED talk. Her talk was called “A 10 Year Old’s Vision for Healing the Planet” and focused on how animal agriculture negatively impacts the environment.
Now 17, Genesis founded Genesis for Animals, an organization that raises funds for farm sanctuaries. She has worked with lots of organizations to promote a vegan diet and positive global change. Named one of BBC’s top 8 activists changing the world, Genesis continues to speak for those without a voice.
10. Marley Dias
Marley Dias is another one of America’s youngest activists and a current student at Harvard University. In the sixth grade, Marley started a campaign called “#1000BlackGirlBooks” to collect 1,000 books with a Black girl as the protagonist. The goal was to then donate these books to other Black kids in different schools across the country. Her campaign showed the world that there was not a lot of books written with a Black female lead, and fought for representation of her fellow Black girls. Her campaign went viral and she has now collected over 13,000 books.
Marley’s activism didn’t stop in the sixth grade. She’s continued to fight for representation and women’s rights. She’s written her own book titled “Marley Dias Gets It Done: And So Can you”, is an Ambassador of the National Educational Association’s Read Across America and has hosted and helped produce Netflix’s Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices. Marley has appeared on multiple television programs like Ellen, The Today Show and CBS This Morning. She is the youngest member of Forbes 30 under 30 list. Marley is a huge inspiration to us all, and proves to us that we are capable of anything, no matter how young or underrepresented we may be.
11. Niana Guerrero
Seventeen-year-old Niana Guerrero is a dancer and lifestyle creator. She has been dancing most of her life and took to YouTube in 2017. Niana got popular uploading dance covers with her older brother. While her YouTube channel has a whopping 15.5 million subscribers, her biggest platform is TikTok with nearly 42 million followers. Niana is the most followed TikToker in the Philippines.
Niana has won multiple awards such as TikTok Superstar, Entertainment Champion and Dance Creator of the Year in the Philippines. She’s done several dance collabs with celebrities like Sabrina Carpenter and Tate McRae. Her dance videos have also been liked by members of popular Korean boy band BTS. Whether you’re looking to get inspiration to start dancing or just looking for the next TikTok trend, Niana’s page is the one to follow.
12. EvanTube
Evan has been making YouTube videos since he was six-years-old and has gained over 4 billion views on his channel. Evan became popular making toy review videos. As he got older, Evan started doing popular challenges alongside his sister, making react videos, sharing gameplay, and vlogging with his family. His content has always been fun for people of all ages.
Evan has recently been applying to colleges to become a film director, so he may not be posting as frequently, but the quality of his videos is only going up. One of his most recent uploads was his very own short film so look forward to more Evan original short films to come.
13. Gavin Magnus
Gavin Magnus is a singer, rapper, and actor with a massive social media presence. He hosted on Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network before blowing up on YouTube and TikTok. Gavin started making content at the age of 11 and has grown up with his audience. He shares vlogs, pranks, dances, music videos and challenge content on his channel.
Now 16, Gavin is on our list of influencers to follow because of his fresh, young music that other teens can relate to. He’s got nowhere but up to go as an artist, so tag along for the ride.
14. Coco Pink Princess
Coco, aka Coco Pink Princess, has been a fashion icon much of her life. At six-years-old she already had over 58 thousand followers on Instagram and was featured in a VICE Life video. Coco gained her love of fashion from her parents who run a vintage clothing store in Japan’s most fashionable district, Harajuku. Now at 13, Coco has gone on to become a big name in Tokyo fashion.
Coco has modeled for lots of big brands like Gap, Adidas and Gentle Monster. She’s created multiple clothing pieces in collabs with local brands and has even worked as a stylist. Coco is a massive inspiration for anyone interested in fashion.
15. Desmond Napoles
Desmond, also known as Desmond is Amazing, is an 2SLGBTQ+ icon, advocate, model, author, host, performer and designer. This 16-year-old manages to do it all while still attending high school. Beyond raising awareness about the issues facing the LGBTQ+ community, they also promote sustainability in fashion.
Desmond has walked the runway multiple times at New York Fashion Week, has been a part of several high profile collaborations and has published their own book “Be Amazing: A History of Pride”. Their motto is, “Be yourself, always,” which is very fitting for their goal of wanting everyone to express themselves freely and without fear.
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This article offers general information only and is not intended as legal, financial or other professional advice. A professional advisor should be consulted regarding your specific situation. While the information presented is believed to be factual and current, its accuracy is not guaranteed and it should not be regarded as a complete analysis of the subjects discussed. All expressions of opinion reflect the judgment of the author(s) as of the date of publication and are subject to change. No endorsement of any third parties or their advice, opinions, information, products or services is expressly given or implied by Royal Bank of Canada or its affiliates.
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