Today we’d like to introduce you to Taylor Herd.
Hi Taylor, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I started my social media journey at the beginning of 2018. I started out on Music.ly just making acting videos for fun because that’s what I hoped to go to school for. I was using the videos as practice for my acting techniques and didn’t expect them to gain any traction on the app.
The first viral video I had is one I made very soon after starting on the app. It was audio from one of the Twilight movies. The video took off, and to this day it has over 300,000 likes and over 2 million views. After that first video blew up I just kept posting. I gained 100,000 followers in my first 3 months on the app, and I haven’t stopped.
Since then, social media has become my full-time job. I’ve had the privilege of meeting so many amazing people and getting to travel to places like California, NYC, Canada, and New Jersey. I have also started streaming on Twitch with some of my friends.
I feel very lucky to be able to make a living doing what I love. It was just kind of something I fell into. I started my Music.ly account as a joke, and now I have over 600,000 followers. I’ve been forced to teach myself the ins and outs of posting, video concept-creating, and managing brand deals because I don’t have a manager. It’s just me.
I also am in school at USF for acting, and I’ve been able to find some local acting jobs for films through Backstage. I feel as though I’m doing a little bit of everything that I love, and I’m so lucky for it.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My social media journey has definitely had its ups and downs.
I’ve had to deal with people trying to get to me or be friends with me to gain exposure, people trying to befriend me to get to other people that I’m friends with that have more followers than I do. I learned to be wary of people’s intentions, which wasn’t fun.
I’ve also had to navigate following trends and figuring out how to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to putting out content. I have to say that that was probably the biggest thing I had to figure out for myself and the most discouraging at times.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I would say that on TikTok I am best known for the acting videos that I used to post more frequently.
Nowadays, I mainly post memes and lifestyle videos or follow trends that I see. I still post acting videos from time to time, but the niche for those videos isn’t what it used to be.
Some of my favorite videos to make are taste-testing weird/random flavors of foods that have gone viral on TikTok. I enjoy watching other people’s videos when I see them, and I really enjoy making them myself.
We all have different ways of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
I define success as doing something to the best of your ability. If you feel that you have put your all into whatever you set your mind to, then you’ve succeeded.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tayylorherd/
Image Credits
Jessie Jean, Dove Herd, Ben Hafkey, Amanda Comstock, and Zekaryah
