L.A.-based social star Aliyah Marie, better known as @aliyahm411, is the gift that keeps on giving. The 19-year-old boasts a following of over 3.7 million followers, a number that comes greatly from her TikTok. Videos of her and her boyfriend Bryan Duran became a hit in the midst of the pandemic. This journey started off as a clear pastime— the two also host a YouTube channel, THE DIAMOND FAMILY, which currently has over 103k followers— 87.4 million likes later, however, it has become a lot more. She says that the recent success has been a sure spark for creativity, allowing her to make new connections and “highlight causes” she is passionate about. We recently spoke to Aliyah about this massive influence, what she does on her time off, and more!
Tell us a little bit about yourself. How did you get started making TikToks?
I was born and raised in Santa Barbara, and just moved to LA a couple months ago with my boyfriend, Bryan. Im 19 years old. I started doing TikToks because my boyfriend and I were really bored during quarantine. We started making content for fun at the beginning. We had a couple of our videos go viral and in the process, our accounts got really big and our videos gained a ton of views. We really enjoyed making content together so we just kept making Tiktoks the whole quarantine and have not stopped growing on the platform.
Did you ever imagine that you'd have the social media platform that you have today? What is another profession that you would consider going into?
No, I never imagined this, but always wanted to be a person of influence and have a career in entertainment. I always have had trouble with focus in a regular 9-5 job. I love being creative and social media gives me the flexibility I need. If it weren't for this, I'd probably be pursuing acting.
What has been the best perk of your TikTok success?
One of the best perks is Bryan and I being able to live in a content house in Los Angeles with other creators who have the same ambitions and passions we do. I love not having to sit at a desk to work and having a flexible schedule. I also love how creative I can be when I make content. Having a substantial platform and influence also lets me highlight causes I'm passionate about.
Some of your most popular videos are those including TikToker Bryan Duran. What do you enjoy most about this collaborative process?
Bryan matches my energy and my weirdness, and I love that. He's my boyfriend but we're honestly pretty much the same person. I really like just being able to be myself with him. Bryan never judges me and is just as crazy as I am. It is always so fun to make content with him.
Which one of your recent videos was your favorite to make and why?
One of my most favorite recent videos was a comedy skit where I was begging Bryan to let me keep my hamster and then was hiding it under my shirt. We used a real hamster and it was so fun to act and just be silly.
Where do you draw inspiration from when making TikToks?
Honestly, we draw inspiration from scenarios and situations that occur in our day to day lives. We think a certain experience that happened to us could be funny, and then we just exaggerate and dramatize it. We also watch a lot of the Nickelodeon show Victorious and various comedy shows, and draw inspiration from there.
How has the pandemic affected your ability to create content?
The pandemic hasn't really affected our ability to make content at all. We started making our content during the pandemic. If anything, quarantine helped us find our drive for making content.
What can we catch you up to on your day off?
Bryan and I try to find ways to go out safely because, normally, we'd hardly ever be home. On a day off, you can probably find us strolling on Melrose Ave.
If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?
My superpower would be to be invisible so I could just disappear whenever I wanted too and be incognito. I think that would be really cool.
What's next for Aliyah Marie?
Bryan and I are moving into a new content house soon, so I am super excited. We just want to keep growing, making Tiktok videos, and doing collabs with more couples and other creators and see where it goes. We are also going to start up our Youtube channel again so we are looking forward to filming for that.
