One thing about me is I love a good red carpet. I love the interviews, the Glambots, the reviews of everyone’s outfits the next day, and most importantly, seeing who showed up. At the Grammys, you can expect to see big singers and songwriters like Taylor Swift. At the Golden Globes, you can expect to see big movie stars like Margot Robbie. But did you expect to see TikToker Chris Olsen on the carpet? Or a Glambot from Alix Earle? Probably not. It may seem strange for someone who makes ‘get ready with me’ videos to be at such a prestigious event that honors other people’s talent. While some people may have strong opinions on influencers being invited to award shows, including the one and only Billie Eilish, there’s a reason they’re there.
Many TikTokers and other influencers get invited either by brands or by the award show themselves to attend these red carpets. If they attend, they’ll be posting about it on social media all day. They record and upload the whole process, including getting their hair and makeup done, trying on outfits, walking the red carpet, and then show off their seats once they get inside. The goal is for their followers to decide that since their favorite influencer is at the award show and making it look fun, they’ll put it on the TV and watch, too. This brings in a whole new demographic of people who may have yet to tune in to the show initially, which makes money for certain brands and increases viewership for whatever network the award show is being aired on.
While I understand this is mainly for business purposes, I also get why Billie Eilish and many others can be upset by this. If I were a famous singer, I feel like I might be annoyed that someone who simply lip-syncs to my songs and makes money off of them gets to experience the excitement of award shows. If I put in a ton of hard work all year and am getting awarded for my song or my album, I wouldn’t want to be bombarded by influencers who are using me to create content for themselves, the way some TikTokers were trying to interview celebrities at the People’s Choice Awards.
For example, Billie Eilish was approached by TikToker Harry Daniels, whose bit is singing badly to famous people. She is seen in the video below saying “Not you!” repeatedly. While she may have been laughing, she did seem annoyed later on about all the TikTokers that were there that night. It’s possible that she would have rather been asked questions about her music and accomplishments of the past year instead of being trolled by Daniels.
I get why people have mixed emotions about this subject. On one side, it’s a good business move to invite influencers to celebrity events. I’m sure the influencers themselves couldn’t be happier to attend. On the other hand, I can understand how celebrities and regular viewers can be annoyed by people who don’t have anything to do with the awards being given attention at these highly regarded events. What do you think?
Want to see more HCFSU? Be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and Pinterest!