Quenlin Blackwell

Quenlin Blackwell
Headshot of Quenlin Blackwell on a blue background
Driver's license photo of Blackwell, c. 2023
Born
Quenlin Riquera Blackwell

(2001-01-17) January 17, 2001
Dallas, Texas U.S.
Other nameQuen Blackwell[1][2]
EducationAllen High School
Occupations
  • YouTuber
  • Model
  • Actress
Years active2013–present
TikTok information
Page
Years active2019–present
GenreTalk
Followers13.4 million
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2014–present
Genres
  • Comedy
  • Talk
Subscribers3.47 million
Views390.8 million
Last updated: 23 July 2026

Quenlin Riquera "Quen" Blackwell (born January 17, 2001) is an American influencer, model, and comedian. She first found success on Vine as a teenager in the mid-2010s with comedic videos before shifting to other social media platforms such as YouTube, Twitter, and TikTok. As of 2025, she hosts the YouTube interview series Feeding Starving Celebrities.

Early life

Quenlin Blackwell was born on January 17, 2001 in Dallas, Texas.[3][4] She was raised in a predominantly white suburb of Dallas after she moved from Cincinnati, where the rest of her family is from, when she was about three years old. She has described the move as "traumatic" and her upbringing in Texas as alienating, stating that she had to "constantly convince" her friends at the time "why [she] deserved their consideration".[5] As a child, her father was in prison.[6] She started a YouTube channel when she was eight years old and began posting videos online at age nine.[7][8] She also participated in cheerleading.[5] She attended Allen High School in Allen, Texas.[9] She had her first viral video at age 12 which got 5 million views in 24 hours.

Career

2015–2023: Career beginnings

In 2015, when she was 14 years old, Blackwell started posting comedic videos on the video sharing platform Vine, where she gained over 500 thousand followers in the mid-2010s.[10][11] Blackwell gained an online following after she posted a video of herself falling while performing a cheerleading stunt, which received more than five million views in one day.[8][12] Many of her other Vine videos involved similar physical comedy, including her falling off of a hoverboard and strumming a guitar with her hair; she retrospectively described it as "freak content".[5] When Blackwell was 17 years old, she moved to Los Angeles, California.[13]

Following the shutdown of Vine, she became popular on Twitter and YouTube.[3] A screenshot from a 2018 Twitter video of Blackwell screaming, paired side-by-side with a photo of reality television personality Ms. Juicy staring blankly ahead, became a popular meme on Twitter in May 2019 to depict users trying to explain things to their mothers.[14][15] She began posting vlog–style videos on TikTok in 2019. A video on the platform of her crying over accidentally purchasing a couch for $100,000 and asking for donations went viral in October 2022 before she soon revealed that it was a prank, which received backlash online.[16]

By 2023, she had more than eight million followers on TikTok and more than one million subscribers on YouTube.[17] Blackwell starred in the music video for SG Lewis and Lucky Daye's song "Feed the Fire" in November 2020.[18] In February 2021, Blackwell signed with United Talent Agency.[17] Also in 2021, she was nominated as Breakout Creator at the 11th Streamy Awards and participated in the YouTube Originals reality competition series No. 1 Chicken, hosted by YouTuber FaZe Rug.[19][20] She was one of the hosts of YouTube's Coachella livestream in April 2022 and modeled for the lingerie brand Savage X Fenty's December 2022 campaign.[21][22] She launched the clothing brand Riquera in December 2023.[1]

2024–present: Rise to prominence

In March 2024, she made her runway debut walking for Off-White during Paris Fashion Week.[23] She appeared alongside other Internet personalities in the music video for "360" by British singer Charli XCX in May 2024.[24] Blackwell was featured as an onstage guest during Charli XCX's performance of her songs "Von Dutch" and "Guess" at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards.[25] She signed with Creative Artists Agency in October 2024, by which point she had amassed more than ten million followers on TikTok and more than two million on Instagram.[26]

As of 2025, she hosts the YouTube series Feeding Starving Celebrities, which features her cooking for colleagues and friends such as Larray,[27] Lil Nas X,[28] Lil Yachty,[29] PinkPantheress,[2] Addison Rae,[30] and the Sturniolo Triplets.[31] Throughout 2025, she modeled in various high profile campaigns for Stella McCartney, Glossier,[32] Old Navy,[33] Chanel,[34] Charlotte Tilbury,[35] and the sunglasses brand Elisa Johnson.[36] In October 2025, she walked the runway at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, which was received positively on social media.[37][38] In November 2025, she hosted GQ Men of the Year[39]. Blackwell hosted the 2026 Vanity Fair Oscars Party 2026 dressed by CHANEL[40].

In 2026, she became a MAC ambassador with her first MAC campaign for MAC x Sephora[41] and later went on to create her own MAC lip combo She became the face of several other campaigns including Hennessy[42], Youth To The People[43], Pinterest [44], Balenciaga and Old Navy[45]. In August 2026, Blackwell joined the Nike family and is expected to front several Nike campaigns in the next year [46][47].

In 2024, she was cast as a guest star in Rachel Sennott's then–untitled HBO series I Love LA, which premiered in November 2025.[48][49]

Public image

In 2025, Blackwell was included on Time, The Hollywood Reporter, and Rolling Stone's respective lists of the most influential content creators online.[50][2][51] For InStyle, Moises Mendez II wrote that Blackwell had "cement[ed] herself among the internet's it girls" by 2025.[52] She was named in Variety’s 2025 Young Hollywood Impact Report[53] and Complex’s Top 50 Innovators[54].

In 2026, Blackwell was named as the “Next Big Thing” by The Hollywood Reporter[55]. Blackwell was also named in Time100 Creators list[56], Vanity Fair’s feature titled “The New Late Night”[57], Harper’s BAZAAR “How Do You Make Art in 2026” in their April Issue[58] and in Variety’s 10 Creators to Watch list.[59]

She has also been on the cover of several notable fashion magazines including Dazed Magazine,Paper Magazine, Complex Magazine, Perfect Magazine[60], Homme Girls[61] and Greatest Magazine. She has also been featured in Interview Magazine, Cosmopolitan Magazine, Vogue Italia, Los Angeles Magazine and many more[62][63][64][65].

Personal life

Blackwell may have asthma.[66] She was diagnosed with OCD at age 15.[67] She has also stated that she suffered from anorexia, which, according to her, worsened in 2018 after she received hate online for an unintelligible tweet about her parents' skincare brand.[68]

In October 2020, a then-19-year-old Blackwell and the then-41-year-old American record producer Diplo posted videos about living with one another, which fans online decried as Diplo grooming Blackwell, though both denied that they had a relationship beyond being friends.[69] Diplo clarified that Blackwell was renting a property from him and that there was no romantic relationship between the pair.[70] Prior to this, Quenlin 'bed hopped' on the couches of other prominent, affluent influencers and celebrities in Los Angeles. In her own YouTube video titled "FEEDING STARVING CELEBRITIES FT. LIL YACHTY", Yachty revealed that she was sleeping on his couch in 2018.[71]

Blackwell came out as bisexual in 2018 via Twitter (now X).

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2021 The D'Amelio Show Self Guest appearance [72]
No. 1 Chicken Self Contestant [20]
2025 I Love LA Self Guest role; Episode: "Upstairses" [48]

Music videos

Year Title Artist Ref.
2020 "Feed the Fire" SG Lewis and Lucky Daye [18]
2024 "360" Charli XCX [24]
"90s Baby" JT [26]
2025 "Ran Out" [73]
2026 "Homewrecker" sombr [74]

References

  1. 1 2 Billson, Chantelle (April 17, 2025). "Who's the girl Billie Eilish kissed at Coachella?". PinkNews. Retrieved October 17, 2025. Quenlin Blackwell, who is best known as Quen ...
  2. 1 2 3 Cao, Steffi; Garber-Paul, Elisabeth; Ihaza, Jeff; Jones, CT; Klee, Miles; Lorenz, Taylor (August 26, 2025). "25 Most Influential Creators of 2025". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  3. 1 2 "The Rise of Quen Blackwell". Sennheiser Newsroom. March 24, 2021. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  4. ↑ Puckett-Pope, Lauren (November 24, 2025). "How Quenlin Blackwell Brought Her Real Life To I Love LA". Elle. Retrieved July 31, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. 1 2 3 Guzman, Ivan (August 11, 2025). "Quen Blackwell Takes Over". Paper. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  6. ↑ Chow, Amber (March 28, 2025). "Quen Blackwell Is No Longer Just The Girl Who Makes You Laugh". Hypebae. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  7. ↑ Sennott, Rachel (February 20, 2025). "'What Are You Crying About?': Quenlin Blackwell, by Rachel Sennott". Interview. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  8. 1 2 DuBose Morris, JoliAmour (April 4, 2023). "Stop Scrolling, it's Quen Blackwell". Office Magazine. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  9. ↑ Pyeatt, Coleman. "Queen Quenlin". The Eagle Angle. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  10. ↑ Leupold, Dennis (November 25, 2022). "Generation V: Quen Blackwell". V. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  11. ↑ Canzona, Carissa (March 1, 2023). "Quenlin Blackwell reflects on internet comedy career during PPC, BAS event". The Pitt News. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  12. ↑ Wright, Danielle (February 12, 2025). "Unapologetically Quen: How Social Media's Favorite Influencer Is Changing The Game". Girls United. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  13. ↑ Lil Nas X (January 5, 2023). "Quenlin the Entertainer". Highsnobiety. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  14. ↑ Anderson, Sage (May 31, 2019). "'Me explaining to my mom' memes are the perfect reaction to all our obsessions". Mashable. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  15. ↑ Kiley, Rachel (May 31, 2019). "'Me Explaining' meme is relatable content for literally everyone". The Daily Dot. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  16. ↑ Cheong, Charissa (October 17, 2022). "An influencer who begged followers for donations saying she 'accidentally' bought a $100,000 couch appeared to suggest the whole story was part of a prank". Business Insider. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  17. 1 2 Chikhoune, Ryma (February 23, 2021). "The Latest Gen Z Internet Star to Sign With Hollywood Agency UTA". WWD. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  18. 1 2 Kelly, Dylan (November 19, 2020). "Alton Mason and Quen Blackwell Star in SG Lewis' New Video". Paper. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  19. ↑ Chan, J. Clara (October 20, 2021). "YouTube Streamy Awards: MrBeast Leads With 7 Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  20. 1 2 Weiss, Geoff (September 10, 2021). "FaZe Rug's New YouTube Original Looks A Lot Like 'Fear Factor' For Influencers". Tubefilter. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  21. ↑ Parkel, Inga (April 23, 2022). "How to tune into the Coachella 2022 live stream". The Independent. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  22. ↑ Kim, YeEun (December 1, 2022). "Latto Fronts Savage X Fenty's December 2022 Campaign". Hypebae. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  23. ↑ Bradley, Faye (April 16, 2024). "Who is Quenlin Blackwell, the TikTok star who Billie Eilish kissed at Coachella?". South China Morning Post. Retrieved August 31, 2025.
  24. 1 2 Frank, Jason P. (May 10, 2024). "Help! Help! It's an 'It' Girl Explosion!". Vulture. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
  25. ↑ "Charli XCX Made It Rain Underwear During Her 'Brat' Performance at the 2025 Grammys". ELLE. February 3, 2025. Retrieved February 9, 2025.
  26. 1 2 Vlessing, Etan (October 15, 2024). "Social Media Star Quenlin Blackwell Signs With CAA (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  27. ↑ Quenlin Blackwell (August 3, 2025). FEEDING STARVING CELEBRITIES FT. LARRAY. Retrieved March 4, 2026 – via YouTube.
  28. ↑ Jarvey, Natalie (November 20, 2024). "Next Gen Creators 2024: 15 Rising Influencers Who Are Taking Social by Storm". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  29. ↑ Walker, Jackson (March 12, 2025). "Rapper Lil Yachty says Black Lives Matter is a 'scam': 'they had bought mansions'". WKRC. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  30. ↑ Fong, Gigi (June 9, 2025). "Addison Drags ChatGPT and Drops the 'Rae' with Quen Blackwell". Hypebae. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  31. ↑ Headlam, Truth (August 9, 2024). "Top 10 YouTube videos this week, including Quenlin Blackwell, Mr. Beast, and more". Mashable. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  32. ↑ Chupinina, Valeriya (April 23, 2025). "Internet Darling Quen Blackwell Stars in New Glossier Campaign". Hypebae. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  33. ↑ Follett, Gillian (June 3, 2025). "Creator and influencer trends brand marketers need to know about right now". Ad Age. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  34. ↑ McCarthy, Lauren (May 15, 2025). "Quen Blackwell and Enya Umanzor On How They Stack Chanel". Nylon. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  35. ↑ Follett, Gillian (October 2, 2025). "Charlotte Tilbury Taps Celine Dion and Quen Blackwell for New Campaign". Hypebae. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  36. ↑ Mowatt, Robyn (July 9, 2025). "Elisa Johnson Teams Up With Quenlin Blackwell On Summer-Ready Sunglasses Edit". Essence. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  37. ↑ Bennett Parker, Alexis (October 16, 2025). "See All the Jaw-Dropping Looks From the 2025 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show". Elle. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  38. ↑ Nosa, Diana (October 16, 2025). "Quenlin Blackwell Manifested Her First Victoria's Secret Fashion Show Feature". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 17, 2025. There's no doubt Blackwell slayed her first time walking the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, and the internet's reaction certainly proves that.
  39. ↑ Hine, Samuel (November 14, 2025). "One More Night in Hollywood: Inside the 30th Anniversary GQ Men of the Year 2025". GQ. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  40. ↑ Vanity Fair (March 15, 2026). Vanity Fair Oscar Party Live. Retrieved August 12, 2026 – via YouTube.
  41. ↑ "MAC Celebrates Its Sephora Debut With Chappell Roan". Hypebae. February 23, 2026. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  42. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  43. ↑ https://www.byrdie.com/quenlin-blackwell-interview-11951962. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  44. ↑ "Why Quenlin Blackwell Went Phone-Free for Coachella". ELLE. April 13, 2026. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  45. ↑ Turner-Williams, Jaelani (August 5, 2026). "Cardi B Joined by Quenlin Blackwell, Brooks Nader, and More in Old Navy's Fall Denim Campaign". Complex. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  46. ↑ "Quen Blackwell Is Officially A Nike Girl". Nylon. August 19, 2026. Retrieved August 25, 2026.
  47. ↑ Riley, Grace (August 19, 2026). "Quenlin Blackwell Reflects on Cheerleader Past and Half-Marathon Training, Announces Nike Partnership". Us Weekly. Retrieved August 25, 2026.
  48. 1 2 Otterson, Joe. "Leighton Meester, Quenlin Blackwell Join Rachel Sennott's HBO Comedy Pilot (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  49. ↑ Schwartz, Ryan (October 8, 2025). "Rachel Sennott HBO Comedy I Love LA Drops First Trailer — Get Premiere Date". TVLine. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  50. ↑ Gravley, Carly May (July 20, 2025). "3 Dallas Influencers Make Time's Top 100 Creators". Dallas Observer. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  51. ↑ Rankin, Seija (October 15, 2025). "The Creator A-List: The 50 Hottest Influencers on the Planet (2025)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  52. ↑ Mendez II, Moises (April 22, 2025). "Why This Influencer Buys Her Sister's Breast Milk For Her Skin Care". InStyle. Retrieved October 17, 2025.
  53. ↑ Zee, Carole Horst,Matt Donnelly,Thania Garcia,Steven J. Horowitz,Abigail Lee,Giana Levy,Seth Marumoto,Brooke Mazurek,Leia Mendoza,Rosemary Rossi,Jazz Tangcay,Chris Willman,Michaela (August 6, 2025). "Young Hollywood Impact Report 2025: Milly Alcock, Simone Biles, Sombr, Miles Caton and More Talent Riding the Next Wave in Showbiz". Variety. Retrieved August 12, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  54. ↑ "List[ed]: 50 Innovators Shaping Complex Culture in 2025". Complex. October 23, 2025. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  55. ↑ Thomas, Carly (June 15, 2026). "Quenlin Blackwell Sets the Record Straight: "I Don't Think I'm an Influencer. I'm a Creator"". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  56. ↑ "The 100 Most Influential Creators of 2026". TIME. July 14, 2026. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  57. ↑ Press, Joy (February 19, 2026). "Bowen Yang, Brittany Broski, and the 8 Other Hosts Who Are Shattering the Talk Show Format". Vanity Fair. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  58. ↑ "How Do You Make Art in 2026?". Harper's BAZAAR. April 8, 2026. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  59. ↑ Turkeltaub, Payton; French, Kennedy; Jacob, Arushi; Mays, Harper; Ferme, Antonio (March 4, 2026). "Variety's 10 Creators to Watch Spotlights the New Class of Online Talent". Variety. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  60. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  61. ↑ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  62. ↑ Sennott, Rachel (February 20, 2025). ""What Are You Crying About?": Quenlin Blackwell, by Rachel Sennott". Interview Magazine. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  63. ↑ "The Internet's Favorite It Girl Quen Blackwell Takes the Cosmo Quiz". Cosmopolitan. October 16, 2025. Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  64. ↑ Caravita, Irene (November 6, 2025). "Nessuno come Sophia Wilson sa catturare l'essenza della "girlhood": con #GRWM, il suo primo photobook, esplora l'intimità delle ragazze che si preparano per uscire". Vogue Italia (in Italian). Retrieved August 12, 2026.
  65. ↑ Nichols, Haley Bosselman, Jasmin Rosemberg, Michele McPhee, Chris (March 4, 2026). "Los Angeles Magazine Presents the 2026 L.A. Woman List". LAmag. Retrieved August 12, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  66. ↑ Quen Blackwell Replies To Fans Online | Actually Me (Video). GQ. June 10, 2025. Archived from the original on June 10, 2025. I actually have a specific type of asthma called cough variant asthma. [...] But also I might not have asthma because I used to just hate my surroundings in elementary school [...] So I would just act sick all the time. So maybe I dreamt up asthma and I don't actually have it.
  67. ↑ GQ (June 10, 2025). Quen Blackwell Replies To Fans Online | Actually Me. Retrieved June 15, 2026 – via YouTube.
  68. ↑ "I Accidentally Became A Meme: Me Explaining To My Mom" (Video). BuzzFeed. March 20, 2021. Retrieved April 5, 2025 – via YouTube.
  69. ↑ Song, Sandra (October 27, 2020). "Diplo Responds to Quenlin Blackwell 'Grooming' Accusations". Paper. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  70. ↑ Dupre, Elyse (October 26, 2020). "Diplo, 41, Responds After TikTok's Quenlin Blackwell, 19, Says She's Living With Him". E! Online. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  71. ↑ Quenlin Blackwell (March 2, 2025). FEEDING STARVING CELEBRITIES FT. LIL YACHTY. Retrieved June 15, 2026 – via YouTube.
  72. ↑ Jones, Marcus (August 12, 2021). "'The D'Amelio Show' trailer sees Charli and Dixie dealing with hate that comes with TikTok fame". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  73. ↑ Conteh, Mankaprr (March 21, 2025). "JT and a Gaggle of Baddies Grab Cash in 'Ran Out'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
  74. ↑ Atkinson, Katie (February 5, 2026). "sombr Returns With New Song 'Homewrecker,' Navigates Love Triangle With Quenlin Blackwell & Milo Manheim in Western Music Video". Billboard. Retrieved February 5, 2026.
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