Who exactly is the TikTok “It Group,” and how did they rise to fame? In this episode, we chat with Gajen Chandra, who went viral on TikTok during the MCO.
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00:00I find myself commenting the crying emojis the most.
00:02Yeah, a lot.
00:03Because it's like, what is happening?
00:05Like, Gajan, please, what are you doing right now?
00:12What were the first videos that you did that blew up?
00:14So I was, it was during MCO.
00:16Okay, so back then when I was posting videos, it was just for my friends.
00:19So I made this video like, recreating Jenny's hair.
00:22It was like, you know when she had like the white streaks?
00:24It was like, doing 2020.
00:26So I just like, recreated it.
00:28It wasn't even properly shot or anything.
00:30I was like, eh, like, it's getting quite a lot of views.
00:32And I think it started from there.
00:34And then I just started posting, just for fun la, consistently.
00:37And then it just grew from there.
00:38So, recreating Jenny's hair, like, what other videos were you posting at the time?
00:42Honestly, the same type of videos I've been posting, I'm posting now.
00:45Were they as out there as some of your videos now?
00:48No, they're not.
00:49I used to be way more, like, reserved la.
00:51And like, quite self-conscious.
00:53Like, I have to like, look a certain way.
00:54Like, I was afraid of like, being perceived a certain way.
00:57But now, like, I just don't care la.
00:58I find myself commenting the crying emojis.
01:01Yeah, a lot.
01:02Because it's like, what is happening?
01:05So I was like, Gajan, please, what are you doing right now?
01:08You said you started off feeling very self-conscious.
01:10Like, how did it turn into like, you know what?
01:13I'm just gonna put this thing that nobody else is gonna say.
01:18I think we always start off that way, right?
01:19I think everyone will be a bit more self-conscious.
01:22Honestly, like, that's really who I am with my close friends.
01:25Or like, the kind of humour that I have.
01:27So it's like, it's kind of like, warming up to people la.
01:30Have you ever like, gotten any like, backlash?
01:33The only like, backlash that I got was, it was this one K-pop thing.
01:37Like, do you remember it?
01:39I do remember it.
01:40Yeah, it was, I was just using this one audio la.
01:42But I wasn't making fun of that K-pop girl.
01:45But yeah, I think people took it as like, me bullying her.
01:49But it really wasn't that way la.
01:50Was kind of trending when you did it, right?
01:52Yeah, people were already doing it.
01:54Yeah, I remember seeing it and then feeling like,
01:56oh, how come you're suddenly getting this backlash?
01:58But other people are doing it as well.
02:00But I think with like, social media, it's kind of like that sometimes.
02:03Yeah.
02:03Yeah, but it was quite funny la.
02:04I mean, I didn't mind it.
02:05You kept it up, right?
02:08See, that's one thing like, I have so many questions to a lot of content creators.
02:12Because for me, I'm still very self-conscious with what I post.
02:15Like, even now, like, sometimes, you know, like, we get all those like, archive memories.
02:20I see like, a video or something, I'm like, you know what, let me just archive this.
02:23And like, if I get any kind of like, hate comments or whatever, right?
02:28Like, I don't know what to do.
02:31Yeah, I can't just like, ignore it.
02:32How do you like, just decide that you're not gonna care?
02:35I think for me like, okay, if I'm getting hate over something that's not actually wrong,
02:40like, I don't really care.
02:41Like, if they're making fun of my looks or like, if it's like that K-pop thing,
02:44it's like, I know my intention wasn't to like, bully like, that girl or whatever, right?
02:48So I wouldn't, like, I don't mind.
02:50But if it's genuinely something that I did wrong or like, say if I said something wrong,
02:54then it would affect me.
02:56But if it's like, surface level things or like, shallow things, I really don't care.
02:59Do you have advice for aspiring content creators?
03:03And do you have advice for aspiring entrepreneurs?
03:05Okay, I'm gonna, this is gonna sound very like, I don't know if it's considered good advice
03:10or like, even advice.
03:12But I feel like, a lot of it has to do with luck.
03:14Like, I really, I hate when people like, content creators who are like, big, big.
03:18And they're like, oh, you just need to like, you know, be consistent, blah, blah, blah.
03:21It sounds so out of touch because it's very frustrating.
03:24Even for someone like me, like, it's hard to grow.
03:27Like, sometimes you just can't like, reach that level.
03:29But I feel like a lot of it is just luck.
03:30But I think like, I think you just need to like, okay, but what you can do is put out value, I guess.
03:36Like, whatever type of value that you want to put out, whether it's like, comedy or like, advice or whatever.
03:41As long as you're like, putting out value, then I think that's the most that you can do.
03:44I don't know, see, that's not good advice.
03:46I actually think it is good advice.
03:47Because I feel like...
03:48It's realistic.
03:48Yes.
03:49Yeah.
03:49And because it is frustrating.
03:51And I get it.
03:52Like, even for myself, like, I don't have like, dreams of being like, a huge content creator.
03:56But seeing the numbers being stagnant for so long, sometimes it can get very frustrating.
04:01Yeah.
04:01And I think it's very important to remember that sometimes it's not what you're doing is right or wrong.
04:06It is luck.
04:07Yes.
04:07I feel like when content creators make it, they don't want to credit their luck.
04:10Because they feel like it discredits their efforts and all that.