Social media is inevitably becoming a major part of our society. While this has many downfalls, the younger generation now has a new platform and space where they can express their creative side and make content to share, some even making money from posting regularly or becoming an ‘influencer’. In South Dublin, ten social media stars have moved into a mansion known as the G.O.A.T (Greatest of All-Time) House, Ireland’s first and only TikTok house. Since their first Instagram post on Thursday, the house has amassed over 13k followers.
Their first post captured the group of house members standing in the garden of their new home. The modern and sophisticated home with floor to ceiling windows is that of a rich and expensive mansion, something 20-year olds wouldn’t normally be able to afford. Jake Browne and Thomas Browne founded the TikTok house. The pair are household members alongside Nia Gallagher, Lauren Whelan, DJ Marty Guilfoyle, couple Andrea Camila and Lewis Kelly, Ryan Mar, Shauna Davitt (Shauna the Sheep), and Leila Ecker.
Among the ten TikTok famous stars in their late teens and early 20’s, they have over 8 million followers between them.
“The idea is to combine our followings across all platforms and share our audiences so that we will grow,” Guilfoyle told Spin 1038, “It can come off as a TikTok house, but it’s definitely more of a content house because we do have other goals than TikTok.” Guilfoyle went onto explain that he is using this as an opportunity to find out what Generation Z is interested in, in terms of music and social, as four of the house members are 19 years old.
While the G.O.A.T House focuses on TikTok, it is not the first content house in Ireland. Bel Eire was founded earlier this year by several TikTokers and was hailed the ‘Irish Hype House’. Jacob Donegan, Jennifer Lee, and Joseph Murray were reportedly among the original set of housemates. Bel Eire was intended to co-create Irish content and promote positivity online. However, the TikTok account no longer appears to be active when searching for it on the popular app – so whether or not the group is still creating content together remains uncertain.
With social media and TikTok stars on the rise, content homes are becoming increasingly popular. According to the New York Times, “several generations of YouTubers, Vine stars and streamers have lived and worked together since 2009 – but Gen Z TikTok stars have embraced them to an extent that their predecessors did not”.
These households allow social media stars to collaborate and bring their platforms together. The influencers can combine their following which can ultimately lead to more cash for brand-partnerships and sponsored content. The G.O.A.T House is presumably modelled on the Hype House, a cohabitating space in the US, formed in 2019 by TikTok star Lil Huddy and YouTuber Thomas Petrou. When they first started, this was reportedly named House of Olympus and housed a dozen influencers who were required to produce TikTok and social media content every day.
The Hype House fell into drama when former member Daisy Keech slammed the founders for not giving her credit when she secured the rental with $10,000 of her own money. Keech went on to start her own influencer content house named Clubhouse, in Beverly Hills. An abundance of collaborative houses exists in the USA including; Vibe House, The Girls in the Valley, and the Sway House. The Sway House, located in Los Angeles, allegedly caused headaches for their neighbours with continuous partying.
It is without a doubt that the ten, young TikTok stars of the G.O.A.T house will cause some disturbance in their South Dublin location. For now, we have to wait and see what content the household will produce, and how long their popularity will last.
*It has since been speculated DJ Marty Guilfoyle has left the G.O.A.T house.