Chase Hudson, TikTok's Tongue-Out Heartthrob, Wants To Keep It 'Authentic'
By Jordyn Tilchen
“This is really cool,” 17-year-old TikTok star
Chase Hudson mentioned at the begin of our call. And if Hudson, who goes by Lil Huddy online, says that an interview with MTV News is cool, it is. That goes for most things in Hudson’s life now, from his order of wildly popular influencer companions to the bulky silver chains around his neck. Immediately after co-founding TikTok’s most popular collective, referred to as
Hype House, in December 2019 and deriving a whopping 19.4 million followers on his own TikTok account to date, it’s clear that Hudson’s more than just a business-savvy social media star; he’s a full-scale heartthrob.
“I don’t really imagine myself a heartthrob,” Hudson mentioned. Nevertheless that’s exactly what a heartthrob would mention. “I barely even imagine myself famous,” he added. His legion of teenage fans would argue otherwise.
Trista, 15, told MTV News that she can’t get enough of Hudson’s “bad-boy vibe,” which includes his black-painted fingernails and his metallic, pendant-laden jewelry. “He’s an icon,” mentioned 16-year-old Fedra. Still, Hudson insists he doesn’t feel like a celebrity at all, saying that moving into Hype Home, a mansion where 21 well-known influencers gather to collaborate on viral TikToks, combined with recent stay-at-home orders amid the coronavirus pandemic, means he “doesn’t leave the home that much.”
in the event you saw Hype House’s Romeo and Juliet-style balconies and palatial washroom (where the famed order films several of their dance challenges), you wouldn’t aspire to leave, either. Hudson developed the idea for the collective — which includes some of TikTok’s top influencers, like
Charli and Dixie D’Amelio, Addison Rae, and more — with co-founder Thomas Petrou. “We both had the same idea,” Hudson mentioned. “I was like, ‘Oh, I’ve wanted to do this for months, years.’ And he was like, ‘Well, cool! I’ve finally noticed somebody that has the same desires and hopes and dreams in life. Let’s make it happen.’ And then we went out and did it.”
Going out and just doing it — no matter how ridiculous or simplified that concept may seem — is what kickstarted Hudson’s career in the initial place. “In seventh or eighth grade, I began having a love of making videos,” he explained, adding that he and his companions randomly started playing around with the video app Dubsmash and later moved on to the platform Musical.Ly, which recommended users a location to show off their colorful personalities and create a substantial following. “I was like, ‘OK, maybe I may take a shot at this and visualize if women like me.’” Soon enough, the thirst comments started, and that’s as soon as Hudson determined to test out some solo offerings. “I began posting content by myself plus it got a lot of traction. I thought that was really cool.”
Although Hudson admitted that a persons vision he used to get is nothing compared to the dedicated following he’s accrued. “I had one video that got a couple hundred-thousand likes, which was pretty good at the time,” he mentioned. Nowadays, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a TikTok on his account with far less than 400K likes and 2.5 million plays.
Hudson, who grew up in the Central California city of Stockton, mentioned he has never felt this categorize kind of love and admiration before. “Growing up, I didn’t really get any of that appreciation,” he mentioned. “I never felt any of the love.” He did admit, although, that at the begin of middle school, he started to notice a number of females developing a crush on him. “That was the one time,” he mentioned, laughing. “The one time I got a little bit lickity-split of attention before going online.”
High school was much of the same. “I was very misunderstood,” he mentioned. And though he was “popular, in a sense,” Hudson mentioned there were a lot of people who weren’t very nice to him. “I was a very delicate kid and I have a very sensitive heart,” he mentioned. “So a lot of the stuff that people would mention, it broken me.” And right now, with millions of onlookers, Hudson’s had to face more negativity than he’s ever experienced before. Some of that was from his own doing. In March, the social media star took to TikTok to
apologize for a past video that surfaced of him using a racist slur. “What I mentioned was not right in any way and should not be used by my mouth or anyone else’s,” he mentioned. “I just wanted to apologize to each person in the TikTok community. I’m sorry. And I wanted to apologize to the Black community as well.”
Hudson’s public apology was met with mixed reactions. In some ways, though, the reactions against this video and other, more general critiques of Hudson have forced him to embrace who he is aware he is, and not what the perception of him online might propose. “No one’s suggestion matters however your [own],” he mentioned of what he’s learned from the criticism. “You shouldn’t be focusing on what other people have to mention about you. You know yourself, you know your true colors, and if folks are telling you what are so you know you aren’t, it doesn’t matter because you know yourself.”
Even with that knowledge, a platform as large as Hudson’s can be very intimidating. Mostly, he feels a lot of pressure to get everything right. “It puts that thought in the back of your mind, like, ‘Oh, shit. People would be saying this. I don’t aspire to do this wrong,’” Hudson mentioned. “It’s just a lot of insecurity.” Hudson cherishes the companions who’ve routinely had his back, even before he had his sights set on climbing the social ladder. “Being the popular kid, I didn’t really care to be that guy,” he said.
Hudson’s disinterest in being the popular guy may have backfired, though. Right now, millions of fans drool over Hudson’s sometimes-broody, sometimes-bubbly content, which includes everything from lip-syncing videos to collaborative dance TikToks with other well-known Hype Home members. “I think it’s the personality,” he mentioned whenever asked why he believes millions of young people have taken a liking to him and his videos. Once it comes to looks, he mentioned he’s not quite sure what the hype is about. “Whether they find me attractive, I don’t know. I’ve never been in their position.”
Hudson’s “e-boy” look, which refers to the neo-emo aesthetic that blossomed on TikTok and is defined by flashy jewelry and disheveled hair, is piece of the appeal. Fedra’s particularly enamored by his “his smile” and “his eyes,” nevertheless she also loves his fashion, which is something he’s exceedingly enthusiastic about. “I love sweatpants along with a hoodie, yet I [also] like dressing up and looking good.” Lately, you might have found an abundance of Von Dutch hats appear in his TikToks, a trend Hudson adopted from rapper Lil Skies. “I got one, and then I got 10.” And just like that, Von Dutch hats, which entered style purgatory at some point in the early 2000s, are cool again.
“It’s something about putting a spin on your style and [taking] bits and pieces of inspiration and turning it into something that’s your own,” he mentioned, listing A$AP Rocky and Travis Scott as some of his biggest fashion icons. Hudson’s also been finding inspiration in ripped flannels, Justin Bieber’s Purpose tour phase, and Harry Styles. “Harry Styles is a legend.”
Although Hudson’s entire vibe transcends outfits, attitude, and content. Even the slightest gestures play into what makes Hudson a modern heartthrob. “I have a habit of sticking my tongue out,” he mentioned. “It’s a TikTok thing, I think. Maybe females like it. I don’t know.” There’s also “the wink, [and] something about looking up and down. They love that. It makes no sense to me.”
Whether he is aware it or not — or plays coy about not understanding — Hudson keeps it up and continues to give his followers what they want while pursuing what he wants, also. “I like making edgy content,” he mentioned. “I like looking cool. I like showing off my outfits and listening to dark music that goes as well as it.” And although those types of videos don’t necessarily perform the perfect compared to his Hype Residence collabs and off-the-cuff dance videos, they’re his way of staying true to himself. “That’s sort of what I began off doing,” he mentioned. “My content really goes off what my mood is, whether it’s happiness, sadness, or anything in between.”
“At the end of the day, you wish to act like yourself, not somebody else,” he mentioned, imparting opinions to aspiring social media stars. “Make it you. Make it authentic.”
This attitude is what keeps fans glued to his videos. “He’s so sweet and funny and looks like so much fun to be around,” Trista mentioned. Fedra agrees, saying that Hudson’s “very different from other guys on TikTok.” With that in mind, Hudson’s already looking for other creative outlets to express himself, with sights on a jewelry line and original music. In a fitting move, he also recently signed with IMG models. “I did something with Fendi not also long ago,” Hudson mentioned, leaning all of the way into his dreamy status. “I’m just getting started.”
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