Senegalese-born TikTok star Khaby Lame recently surpassed Charli D’Amelio as the most known person on TikTok. The 22-year-old started releasing videos two years ago and is known for his humorous parodies, which mock over-the-top videos.
Having lived in Italy most of his life, Lame is currently learning to speak English; hence he rarely talks, and his videos mostly rely on visual humor. Clips of the TikTok star are accessible to users around the world.
Lame’s alarming rise in fame overtook that of TikTok Queen and most followed user, D’Amelio. She joined the social media platform in 2019, and by 2020, she had amassed around 100 million followers.
Khaby Lame Passed Charli D’Amelio’s Follower Count On TikTok
@khaby.lame If @50 Cent had to do a casting in the 19th century. 🤣 #learnfromkhaby #learnontiktok @tiktok @tiktokcreators
Lame just beat the D’Amelio as the most followed person on TikTok. The 22-year-old first created an account on the social media platform two years ago and has steadily climbed to the top. Before his TikTok popularity, he worked as a factory worker but lost his job during the pandemic.
@charlidamelio dc @claire
The social media personality rose to become the world’s famous TikToker on Wednesday after his 142.2 million followers (currently 143.2m) surpassed D’Amelio’s 142.1 million (currently 142.4m). He built up his followers by releasing humorous clips of himself making fun of influencers and their videos.
In his most recent video clip on TikTok, a follower pointed out Lame’s feat and referred to him as the “NUMBER 1” on the app. The comment read, “THE KING IS NUMBER 1 ON TIKTOK.” The Senegalese-born prankster is yet to comment on the milestone.
Khaby Lame Was Born In Senegal
Lame grew up in Italy with his parents; however, he was born in Senegal in 2000 and traveled a year after. After finishing high school, the TikTok star took a job as a machine operator in the northern city of Turin. However, he was laid off due to the ongoing pandemic in March 2020.
In a March interview with Forbes, the 22-year-old recounted the events that led him to make his first videos on TikTok, which shot him to fame. “The pandemic had just started, and I was bored with a lot of time on my hands, so I started making videos on TikTok,” he said.
Lame’s content mostly includes parody TikTok clips where he wordlessly displayed how unnecessary “simple” hacks were. Some of these include “easier” ways to clean the dishes, cut bangs, or turn a random household item into something else.
Making People Laugh Is A Passion Of His
During his Forbes interview, Lame proceeded to describe himself as a “simple person,” but one who always had ideas and inspiration and longed to make people laugh. He said, “I would describe myself as a simple person, but full of ideas and inspiration. Making people laugh has always been my biggest passion in life.”
According to the New York Times, the social media influencer’s success was tied to his “Everyman” quality which he displayed in his videos. The post read, “His work lacks the polished production value associated with the most famous TikTok stars of today… his ride has been entirely organic.”
Still talking to Forbes, Lame admitted that although his videos seemed simple enough, he always made sure to put some thought into everyone while making them. “Every day, I spend at least three hours looking for the right video to parody,” the TikTok star said. “I always try to be careful to not offend anyone with my videos, and I always prefer to joke with light-hearted parody.”
Lame Has 2.3 Billion Likes
Other than his millions of followers, Lame currently has around 2.3 billion likes across the scores of videos on his page. The social media giant has several million views per video, equipping him with a broad reach and making him one of the most famous young people worldwide.
To get him to the top position, Lame’s followers recently started trending the hashtag #KhabyToNumberOne. The movement yielded around three million followers in the past month for him, to D’Amelio’s one million.
When talking about his sudden popularity, the 22-year-old revealed that he never expected the outcome and was still shocked by it. “I started doing this for fun, and I never expected anything of this,” the TikTok star said. “My background and journey give me the strength to believe in my dreams and to move forward because, with commitment and perseverance, they can come true.”
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