MrBeast, Addison Rae and Alex Warren all began as social media influencers. (Photo Illustration: Liliana Penagos for Yahoo News; photos: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic via Getty Images, Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images, David Becker/Getty Images)A jumble of young people in trendy athleisure outfits gathered in a living room in Feb. 2020 to watch an internet-famous magician do card tricks. This was a typical day for members of the Hype House, a group of mostly teenage social media-famous stars who lived and worked together to create as much content as possible. Two people in this particular video stand out, though: the scruffy guy shoving his camera into the magician's face, and the woman with the longest, blondest hair and the biggest smile.
They're Alex Warren and Addison Rae. You might not have been familiar with them then, but five years later, the two 24-year-olds are among the biggest pop stars in the country. Warren, who has honed his voice and his wife guy persona, is well on his way to having the song of summer with "Ordinary," an unavoidable track dominating TikTok posts, charts and radio airwaves. He's about to tour his brand-new album, You'll Be Alright, Kid, which was released July 18.
Rae, meanwhile, is the heir apparent to Charli XCX's Brat summer era, embracing both melancholy and party girl aesthetics with her June 2025 album, Addison. People just can't stop talking about the visually stunning 2010s aesthetic Rae, who is also on the cusp of a tour, has cultivated by surrounding herself with the era's pop icons, like Lana Del Rey, and how she has subverted irrelevance after her first single, 2023's "Obsessed," flopped.
What's so fascinating about Warren and Rae's breakout success is that they were among the most followed people on TikTok in 2020, when people - including their target audience of Gen Z-ers - were spending more time on their phones than ever. TikTok is now less of a phenomenon and more of a staple in the massive creator economy projected to have $500 billion flowing among platforms, influencers and audiences annually by 2027. According to a 2024 survey from Morning Consult, 88% of Gen Z respondents say they follow influencers, and many trust them more than traditional celebrities.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIf Warren and Rae had remained solely influencers, evolving online in accordance with trends in the usual ways young people do when they grow up, they would be financially successful, profiting from ad revenue on social media and brand deals. We've already seen them recover from their fair share of career missteps, like Warren's participation in the failed Netflix reality show about the Hype House, and Rae's performance in the social media-tinged, gender-swapped reboot of He's All That. They're both resilient and really good at commanding an audience online. They just wanted something more.
Making itGetting signed to a major label, landing a TV show on a popular streaming service or getting a movie made by a big Hollywood studio is the "pinnacle of acceptance," Paul Telner, head of programming at influencer marketing agency Viral Nation, tells Yahoo. Stars still benefit from having popular social media accounts as their home base, or "HQ," but they also want to "extend their brands" to be seen by audiences beyond TikTok, he says."Hollywood is Soho House, and we all want to get into it, see people, shake hands and be seen. That's the cool club!" he says. "[These influencers] want to be big stars and be accepted in that way, but there are levels [to fame] ... you don't need to be on TV to make it."For some creators, making enough money on social media that it becomes a full-time job is the dream. Others see themselves as their own companies with infinite potential, and posting online is just one potential revenue stream. Telner says traditional fame is appealing to some creators because it offers the opportunity to have a bigger production budget to "help bring big ideas to life."AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSince social media is so volatile - algorithms change, platforms rise and fall, even TikTok is still technically on the verge of a U.S. ban - traditional fame offers a "more structured ecosystem that can sustain careers," Chimene Mantori, founder of influencer management company Solace Talent, tells Yahoo."Building a presence outside of the platform they're known for isn't just smart, it's essential for brand growth and long-term sustainability," she says. "When your identity is tied solely to one format, it can limit how people see you and how far you can go."A handful of stars known for their television, movie and music careers got their start as creatives sharing their craft online, and then jumped at the chance for bigger budgets, more acclaim and wider reach.
Quinta Brunson was a BuzzFeed video star who's now the Emmy-winning actress and creator of her own network TV show, Abbott Elementary. Danny and Michael Philippou are YouTubers tur