Plus, Oxford reveals its top word of the year. Do you have “rizz”? There’s more — an AI influencer earns $11,000 a month, and there’s a new tool that creates songs from any set of lyrics. And, we talk about Google’s big Santa search engine issue.
The folks trading retirement for influencer status
Who do you imagine when I say “social media influencer?” I’ll bet a young, hot model or a chiseled guy into cars. It’s time to expand your horizons.
I love that Joy Ryan didn’t even get her passport until she was 91. At 94, she’s on a mission to visit every continent with her grandson. So far, she’s at four out of seven. Joy is also the oldest person to visit all 63 U.S. national parks.
She’s posting “Grandma Joy’s Road Trip” on Instagram. She’s part of the trend of “grandfluencers” (“grandparent” and “influencer”) racking up millions of followers and fans of all ages. Maybe this is your sign to get this idea going with your grandparents, parents or even yourself.
Defying stereotypes
You probably think grandfluencers’ fans are older adults, too, right? Nope, most are young adults.
Take 94-year-old Lillian Droniak, aka “Grandma Droniak.” She went viral by laying down the three rules she wants people to follow at her funeral: Cry, but not too much (don’t embarrass yourself); Bertha isn’t invited (Who’s she?); and get drunk afterward.
Her 14.6 million TikTok followers love her sass, and I do, too. After she was hospitalized for breaking her leg, she shrugged it off, saying she “slayed too hard.” Love her.
Then, there’s 78-year-old Joan MacDonald. She was overweight and struggling with health issues. With the help of her daughter, a fitness coach, she now deadlifts 175 pounds for her 2 million Instagram followers and sports a bodybuilder’s physique, along with crop tops. She’s proof it’s never too late for a glow-up.
Offering up wisdom
Navy vet Kenny Jary, or “patriotickenny,” tells stories and tries out new tech with his 2.7 million followers. The 82-year-old has a chronic lung condition and gets around with a mobility scooter.
When Kenny’s last scooter broke down, his followers raised money for a new one. He’s since paid it forward and helped 119 other vets with their mobility needs. How awesome is that?
Be yourself
Need some extra cash? 15 jobs you can do from home
Working remotely isn’t suitable for everybody. But in the wake of the pandemic, it has seen a considerable boon globally. Tap or click here for legit ways to find work-from-home jobs.
If you’re interested in earning a living from home, there is no better time to get involved with the right opportunity.
AI gone wild: A social media influencer created an AI clone to act as a virtual girlfriend. She charged followers $1 per minute for audio chats and raked in $70,000 a week. Then, the AI went rogue, playing along with dark fantasies and initiating explicit conversations the influencer says horrified her. Yeah, I warned you about this.
57% of Gen Z
Want to be an influencer. Sounds like a dream, but the reality isn’t so pretty. Most influencers barely make enough to scrape by, and even the ones making bank work like crazy.
🙏 Faith palm: Meet Carlo Acutis, a British-born teen who might be the Catholic Church’s first millennial saint. Known as “God’s Influencer,” he preached online before dying at 15 of leukemia. Now, he’s recognized for miracles and resting in a glass tomb in Assisi, drawing pilgrims from around the globe.
Over-share-enting: Former online influencer babies are all grown up and they want laws to protect kids from parents oversharing online. One woman said when she was nine, her mom posted about her first period online, saying, “My baby girl’s a woman today.” Maybe we need to go back to good old-fashioned baby books.