Convention Highlights
Michelle Khare and other iconic fitness gurus Monroe Capri and Makaela Ingemi kicked off the morning with a quick workout for guests.
Creators from the TikTok for Black Creatives, TikTok Latinx Creatives, and TikTok Trailblazers programs including Robert Lucas of @thesweetimpact (Cake Artist at The Sweet Impact), Jonny Morales, and Drew Afualo (Baba Yaga) joined TikTok Director of Creator Community Kudzi Chikumbu for an insightful discussion celebrating community through content creation, the importance of crediting originators, and how to build an authentic brand. Drew said, “It’s been surreal getting all this press. I got emotional seeing my family name in the New York Times. More than anything I’m thankful to be a representative for other Polynesian women.”
Top creator podcasts recorded live from VidCon today included “Drama Mama” with BENOFTHEWEEK, Mythical Kitchen show “A Hot Dog is a Sandwich,” and “Violating Community Guidelines” hosted by Brittany Broski and Sarah Schauer.
At the Wellness in the Digital Age panel, Spencewuah, Chris Olsen, Alexandra Nikolajev (Senior Lead, Creator Content and Partnerships Marketing at Pinterest), Jessie Paege, and Elyse Myers spoke about boundaries and dealing with others’ opinions. Elyse said, “know who you are before interacting with other people’s opinions of you. If people say something that does not align with who I am, I verbally say ‘I do not receive that’ and I don’t allow it to stay with me.” She also discussed how to recognize when it’s time to unplug stating, “when I sit down to make a video and I feel drained, I don’t record. I don’t create from a place of being on the edge of burnout.”
In a panel sponsored by Amazon Prime, five creators, Plastique Tiara, TheRealRahulRai, Kelsey Darragh, Hillary Star, and WhoKae opened up about insecurities they’ve faced, growth they’ve experienced, and how their north stars have guided their decision making.
VidCon pitted siblings against each other for a gaming challenge with Kirsten Titus, Erika Titus, Mya and Myka Montoya (Montoya Twinz), Alexa & Alicia (The Montes Twins), and Famous Birthday’s Founder Evan Britton participating.
In the “Coming Out” panel presented by the It Gets Better project, Chris Olsen, Tyler Gaca (Ghosthoney), Beck Canote (SVP, Strategy at Electric Monster), and Abigail Thorn discussed coming out and expressing their queerness online. Chris noted, “TikTok made me embrace my queerness more than I realized.”
“The Modern Museums” panel highlighted artists who utilize the web to bring their talents to the masses and how social media has given them the opportunity to showcase their art in new and innovative ways.
Some of the most popular creator families – Hope, Hasley, & Halle Pitman (The Pitman Sisters) and The Scotts (Kristy & Desmond) – discussed the ups and downs of creating with their loved ones.
Washington Post’s TikTok team Dave Jorgenson, Chris Vazquez, and Carmella Boykin explained how they’ve adapted to an app with a growing appetite for news and how they work to stop the spread of misinformation on TikTok.
A variety of top creators and companies including Discord participated in the Creator Keynote to share what they have seen on their journeys, words of wisdom, cautionary tales, and more. Those who participated this year include William Osman, Kyle Exum, Dr. Courtney Tracy (@the.truth.doctor), Michelle Khare, Amanda Rach Lee, lejonnytran, Jon Cozart (PAINT), MKBHD (President at JMMS LLC), and Kenny Layton (Head of Entertainment Partnerships at Discord).
In the “Bed Wars: Animators vs. Minecrafters” panel, fan-favorite gamers including illymation, CaptainPuffy, Ranboo, and Kelsey Dangerous went toe to toe, attracting a crowd of nearly 2K attendees.
Spotify presented The Night of Music, headlined by SZA, bringing together featured creators, dancers, and musicians for one of the biggest shows of the weekend. Hosted by Michelle Khare, the not to be missed event featured Kira Kosarin, Charlie Curtis-Beard, Merrick Hanna, Elliana, Cost n’ Mayor, Kurt Hugo Schneider, lejonnytran, Georgie (soupytime), and Ayzha Nyree.
Paramount+ hosted screenings of Star Trek Prodigy and iCarly for fans to unwind after a day of running around the expo hall.
VidCon closed out the event with its annual TWIX® Prom.
