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| Canadian YouTube star Lilly Singh speaks at the Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) on Nov. 8 at the Sharjah Expo Center. Courtesy of SIBF |
Multilingual digital nomads know no language barriers, generational rifts or culture shock
By Kang Hyun-kyung
Sharjah, UAE ― Canadian YouTube star Lilly Singh got a rock star's welcome in the small Persian Gulf state of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Loud cheering erupted at the Sharjah Expo Center Hall on Nov. 8 as comedian-actress Singh, better known among her 14.5 million subscribers by her YouTube channel title "Superwoman," entered the hall to take the stage.
The crowds, mostly teens, applauded and shouted for joy until she was seated next to a moderator on the stage.
Singh was one of the world's highest-paid YouTube stars in 2017 according to Forbes.
Considering her global fame, it's no wonder she was well-received by the young UAE fans.
If you think twice, however, her popularity in the Middle Eastern country is not something you can take for granted. In the UAE, the official language is Arabic. It is also one of the conservative Arab countries in which traditional culture, which is quite different from the Western lifestyle, still exerts considerable influence on people's way of life.
Then how did this 30-year-old Canadian YouTube star come to mesmerize young people in the UAE?
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| Many of Singh's fans are teens and some university students and graduates also showed up for the event. Korea Times |
Tech-savvy, multilingual teens having diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds are the main fan base that boosted the Canadian YouTube star's rare rise in the Middle East. Growing up online and using English as their second language, this generation knows no language barriers, generational rifts or terms such as culture shock.
The young multilingual netizens have Singh's back.
Upon a request from the moderator, Singh explained to the UAE fan event her eight-year journey as a YouTube creator which began in 2010.
She described running her YouTube channel as a life-changing experience.
Before her sensational rise in cyberspace, Singh said she was a typical Canadian girl of Indian descent who was educated to live a life as a caring housewife. She earned a psychology degree from a university just as her older sister did and was supposed to go on to graduate school for a master's degree as her parents wanted her to do.
"Once getting my master's degree, I was going to get married because my parents wanted me to. Then I was supposed to have kids. There are lots of things they wanted me to do," she said.
Instead of passively following her career roadmap set by her conservative parents, Singh chose to take a road less taken.
"When I was younger, I used to be such a creative person. I sang. I danced," she said. "However, the world convinced me I couldn't be that person. My culture and my parents convinced me that you just need to grow up and do this in your life which didn't quite fit for me."
Singh fell into depression. About a year later, she discovered YouTube. "I was the last person to be on board YouTube," she said.
Her first video had only 70 views and drew harsh criticism from some online bullies. She admitted her first video was awkward and annoying. But later it turned out to be a great start. She learned a lot from the first lackluster 10 videos she uploaded and came to make videos that went viral across the world.
In cyberspace, she is a superstar. One of the fascinating things about being an influential YouTube creator is, according to Singh, she can make her voice heard. YouTube has been a springboard to her career rise. With 14.5 million subscribers, her global influence knows no borders.
In the Q&A session in Sharjah, her fans revealed their curiosity about almost everything about her ― her secret to beautiful long hair that reaches to her waist, her favorite video among the 1,000 she has uploaded since 2010, and if there were any big differences she has experienced before and after she rose to online stardom.
Just as she did in her videos, Singh kept her audiences laughing while answering all questions with a great sense of humor.
She was humble and down to Earth. The social media star gave a hug to a middle school girl who couldn't speak after becoming emotional at seeing her star in person and being given an opportunity to ask her questions there.
Singh answered all questions from dozens of her other fans with sincerity and humility.
Unlike most glamorous celebrities, Singh was more like a mentor or a life coach. Her advice for the teens reflected her wisdom she learned from bittersweet experiences while growing up.
According to Dr. Nita Salam, one of the UAE fan event organizers, Singh has teen and pre-teen fans from all over the world.
Singh's popularity in the country where English is neither the first nor official language is not something that can be taken for granted.
Singh said she was wondering if she would have fans there when she made her first UAE trip years ago. It, however, turns out that UAE fans are "one of Singh's favorite fans" in the world, according to her.
Many of Singh's UAE fans are the children of guest workers from outside the Middle Eastern country. They moved to the country with their parents when they were very young, or some were born and raised there.
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| Singh's UAE fan event attracted a huge crowd at the Expo Center. Courtesy of SIBF |
UAE's unique demographic characteristics ― the expat population is four times larger than that of local Emiratis ― paved the way for the Canadian star's rise in the Middle Eastern country. Guest workers in the UAE come from around 150 countries from all over the world. Although Arabic is the country's official language, English is widely spoken as many guest workers speak English as a means of communication.
Singh's UAE fans are multilingual millennials who grew up online.
Dana Sweileh, 23, said she has been Singh's fan for several years. Originally from Palestine, Sweileh, a university graduate, viewed one of Singh's videos which was sent to her years ago. "I saw her video for the first time when I went through dark times in my life. Watching her videos always makes me laugh and has been always best part of my life," she said. "She talks about important things in life such as the importance of girls' education. While watching her video, I came to feel comfortable about myself as I came to accept myself."
Mararn Mohammed from Yemen said Singh is much more than a hilarious YouTube creator. "She is funny, but also meaningful and purposeful," she said. "(Although Singh was raised in Canada), I feel no cultural differences with her. I was raised in an environment that encourages me to accept people with different colors and races."
Singh's fan base includes children under 10. Mysha Shaikah from India came to Sharjah from Dubai with her mother for Singh's fan event. The nine-year-old said she watches Singh's videos on a daily basis and has no difficulty following the Canadian star's messages. "She is cool and has nice messages for people like me. She is like me. I hate exams and she said she hates exams, too," she said.
While much of the audience was female, there were some male college students at the event. Zineddine Haitaanar from Algeria said Singh deals with universal topics in her videos and he found her videos fun and educational. "Some topics are related to people like me," the university student said. "Once you watch her videos, you'll see why she is so popular."
