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For as many shocks as the influencer economy has sustained since its very inception, one fact of it remains true–the idea of who influences remains triumphant over who conjures up said influence. As we’ve come to further familiarize ourselves with virtual spaces on the back of a pandemic that kept us glued to our screens for a year and change, the magic of influencers that abstract themselves away from their real-life personalities has only grown stronger–whether it’s e-girls, VTubers, sex doll Instagram accounts or much else in the same vein; there’s never been a stronger foreshadowing of the traditional celebrity’s death than in this era.
It used to be that those who wished to become the talk of media cycles had to work the cogs of entire industries, but online influencers have figured out a way to create an insulated ecosystem where their interactions make for stories that do interest their followers, while not needing to meet the standards of a traditional gossip magazine. There are parasocial relationships forged, public feuds ginned up to bolster influencers’ own profiles, clashes between the personality projected and the one closer to reality, and a whole host of drama that makes the influencer economy…
