TikTok star Addison Rae has hit out at people leaving hate comments online, after fellow social media star Chase Hudson, a.k.a Lil Huddy, posted a series of concerning stories on Instagram.
While TikTok has experienced an unprecedented boom in the past year, with over 700 million users worldwide, it’s no secret that its huge user base brings with it some inevitable toxicity.
Even popular singer and rapper Taio Cruz abandoned the app entirely after only one week in September due to the influx of vicious hate, saying that “never in my life have I had a more negative experience than my past few days on here.”
If the trolls scare off an industry pro such as Taio, it’s no wonder that many young influencers are feeling the pressure of daily access to violent hate comments, and it’s taking a huge toll on their mental health.
18-year-old Chase Hudson, who has over 25 million followers on the video-sharing platform, had fans worried when he uploaded a series of Instagram stories that seemed to reflect a decline in his mental wellbeing.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CFwvvG6gc34/
“What is my worth here?” he wrote in one post. “What is my purpose? Why do I feel so alone? I’m surrounded by so many f**king people everyday that I love.” In another post was a picture of his shoe simply with the words “I’m empty inside.”
Addison Rae took to Twitter on the same day to share her thoughts about online bullying. “To everyone who comments hurtful things on mine and others’ posts… What do you truly gain?” she asked.
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to everyone who comments hurtful things on mine and others posts…. what do you truly gain? I know it can feel as though bringing someone else down will make you feel better but it’s only temporary. love others and bring them up. being kind is so much more fulfilling!!
— Addison Rae (@whoisaddison) September 30, 2020
“I know it can feel as though bringing someone else down will make you feel better but it’s only temporary. Love others and bring them up. Being kind is so much more fulfilling!”
In separate tweets, in the days following, she stressed that “bullying people isn’t comedy,” and questioned the advice she was receiving to just ignore the problem instead of dealing with the people at the core of the problem.
bullying people isn’t comedy
— Addison Rae (@whoisaddison) October 1, 2020
I hear a lot of people say “get used to mean comments and hate because it’s just the way the world is” but isn’t that just normalizing/justifying being hateful? idk I’ve always thought about that and it makes sense to me but probably not to most people
— Addison Rae (@whoisaddison) October 1, 2020
“I hear a lot of people say “get used to mean comments and hate because it’s just the way the world is,” but isn’t that just normalizing/justifying being hateful?” she suggested, going on to say “I’ve always thought about that and it makes sense to me but probably not to most people.”
Addison Rae is one of the most popular creators on TikTok. With a following of over 62 million at the age of just 19, it has put her and creators like Chase Hudson directly in the line of fire for vicious online hate.