9 of the year's most delightful internet micro-celebrities you've probably already forgotten about
Mara Leighton
- Dozens of micro-celebrities were made — and forgotten — this past year.
- The term, shortened to "nimcels" was broadly popularized by Taylor Lorenz's reporting.
2022 was the year of the niche internet micro-celebrity.
As apps like TikTok slingshotted dozens of people from obscurity to millions of views every day, and online life continues to grow increasingly disjointed and siloed, micro-celebs have popped up — i.e. people who are big names in their own special pockets of the internet, but would draw blank stares from most people on the street.
Among our favorites is a guy who's been "playing dead" on TikTok for the last year, a 28-year-old in Seattle who spent his 9-5 job savings making a 3,000-pound tomb for a bag of Cheetos, and a woman who faithfully recreates red carpet dresses with everyday items.
As the Washington Post's Taylor Lorenz noted, online fame for many of these creators is often an unexpected consequence rather than a goal. Sometimes, they parlay their internet fame into a genuine influencer career or big-time opportunities — like a guest appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live." But, as quickly as many "nimcels" hit a near-cultural saturation point in their corner of the digital universe, they tend to fade from the general consciousness.
Below, you'll find a few of the niche micro-celebrities that made the news this year and whom you've probably already forgotten about.
Below, nine micro-celebrities we fondly remember (but likely forgot) from this year:
Zach Montana, the teen who posted his dad's unreleased song on TikTok
In January, Zach Montana went viral for a TikTok in which he discovered an unreleased song his father wrote and recorded over four decades ago.
A CD of the track had been left in the car by his dad.
"I went to go plug my phone in to stream my own music, and the song just came up in my car," he told Insider. "And then the vocals come in. I was like, 'I know that voice.'"
The video racked up 3.9 million views and the song caught the attention of music critic Anthony Fantano — who called the song "a banger" in a comment — along with DragonForce guitarist Herman Li and singer Meghan Trainor. A remastered cut of the song, "Surrender to Me," was released on streaming platforms in early February.
Montana, also a musician, and his father, William "Curly" Smith, performed the song on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" in February.
Jack Sweeney, the 19-year-old who popularized tracking celebrity jets online
As a lockdown project, then-19-year-old Jack Sweeney began tracking Elon Musk's jet via his Twitter account, @ElonJet.
In January, billionaire Elon Musk approached the then-college freshman via DM (a screenshot of which Sweeney shared with Insider) and offered him $5,000 in exchange for the account and advice on "generally helping make it harder for crazy people to track me."
Sweeney discussed with Musk how his bots tracked his plane and gave the billionaire advice on how he could make it harder to track. When Musk offered Sweeney $5,000, the teen counter-offered, mentioning college tuition and wanting to put money towards a Tesla Model 3.
"Sounds doable," Sweeney replied, "account and all my help. Any chance to up that to $50K?"
"I've done a lot of work on this, and 5k is not enough," Sweeney later told Insider, when Musk lost interest in the deal — adding that $5,000 wasn't enough to replace "the fun I have in this, working on it."
Since beginning his project, Sweeney has created 15 jet-tracking accounts — and has cut deals with celebrities such as Mark Cuban, ending his monitoring in exchange for business advice.
Daniel Mertzlufft, the composer behind the "Ratatouille" TikTok musical
Daniel Mertzlufft, a classically trained musical theater composer, went viral for his role in "Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical," an online production created by TikTokers that reimagined the 2007 Pixar film and became wildly successful.
In April, he followed up with the first musical commissioned and funded by TikTok: "For You, Paige," which told the fictional story of a teen going viral in a similar way to Mertzlufft.
"As far as I know, it's one of the very first times that a brand new musical has been written to be viewed through your phone," he told Insider.
Josh Nalley, the restaurant manager who "played dead" on TikTok for a year
Forty-two-year-old restaurant manager Josh Nalley "played dead" on TikTok for 300+ days in the hopes of landing a low-lift Hollywood role.
In various videos, Nalley lay propped up against cars and face-down in the snow, and commenters tagged film studios, hoping to get the attention of TV and film execs.
Finally, Nalley landed a gig with "CSI: Las Vegas" this July, and Nalley told Insider the show's social media team flew him out to California to film.
Joie Henney and Wally, the emotional support alligator
Reptile rescuer Joie Henney shares snippets of everyday life with his emotional support alligator, Wally, on social media — including a video of the reptile moseying through Love Park in a harness and leash that went viral in August.
Henney told The Washington Post that he hugs Wally and sleeps beside him, even though he mentioned in a CNN interview that the pet "steals my pillows, steals my blankets."
The two visit the farmers' market and watch TV together. Henney described the alligator as "super sweet-natured" and said he was partial to cheesy popcorn.
"When he turns his nose toward you, that means he expects a kiss," Henney told The Post.
Angelica Hicks, the TikToker who recreates celebrity dresses with everyday items
TikToker @angelicahacks, whose name is listed as Angela Hicks on TikTok, uses trash and everyday items to recreate celebrity dresses, with one of her most notable replicas being a September 10 garbage bag replica of the pink Louis Vuitton gown Ana de Armas wore to the premiere of "Blonde" at the Venice Film Festival.
De Armas also wore a statement necklace from the brand Only Natural Diamonds, for which she is a global ambassador. The TikToker used the mesh-like sleeves from grocery store apples, black ribbon, and a piece of garlic to recreate the accent piece.
@Sunday.nobody, the meme artist who made a 3,000-pound coffin for a bag of chips
TikToker @sunday.nobody, 28, built a 3,000-pound coffin for a bag of Flamin' Hot Cheetos "for future civilizations to find" this year.
The meme artist spent four months and over $1,000 of his savings, he told Insider, to build out the project.
"There's nothing else I'd really want to spend my money on," he told Insider. "I don't want clothes, or a car, or any of that stuff."
The Seattle native wasn't interested in transitioning into a full-time creator who paid the bills through his art. "I'd rather sell myself to my job rather than sell my art to people," he said. "I don't really want to be a salesperson."
Charlie Southern, the guy who ran the beloved "Simpsons" Twitter fan account
Charlie Southern, 33, ran the popular Twitter account @SimpsonsQTD for the last nine years — posting over 13,000 times.
Originally conceptualized while working as a receptionist, Southern's account snowballed in popularity to over 630,000 followers.
To create his content, which Southern told Insider he didn't make money from, he'd watch between 10 and 12 episodes of "The Simpsons" in a single sitting every three months and bank about 200 screengrabs.
Southern was even contacted by Mike Scully, a writer and former showrunner of "The Simpsons," who told Southern in DMs reviewed by Insider that he loved the account: "It makes me laugh all over again, or it brings back a great memory of being in the room when it was pitched or the first time I read it in somebody's script," Scully wrote.
On November 8, Southern confirmed he'd posted to the account for the last time. He told Insider he had other commitments and that Elon Musk's takeover of the company had been a catalyst for exiting.
Corey Paul, "Goo," the TikTok plant-themed rapper and gardener
Corey Paul, known as "Goo" to more than 640,000 followers across social media, created an urban gardening community in which he teaches viewers about growing and nurturing plants — a hobby he picked up after becoming a dad and wanting more time at home.
Paul's followers, known as the Green Thumb Gang, also offer tips to one another and appreciate the 37-year-old's non-traditional approach, which includes plant-themed rap songs. The father of seven knows his very presence is helping to reframe what gardeners typically look like.
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