Who is Khabane Lame, laid-off factory worker to top TikTok star?

Khabane Lame has gone from a factory worker, who was laid off during COVID, to the world’s most popular TikTok star, amassing 142.8 million followers as of Thursday afternoon. He dethroned Charli D’Amelio, the American sensation, who has 142.3 million followers. 

Lame, who created the social media account two years back, describes himself as a comedian. He is best known for humorous clips that mock social media influencers who chase clout and create over-the-top content in the process. 

Born in Senegal in 2000, he immigrated with his parents to Italy the next year. He began working as a machine operator in a factory located in the northern city of Turin, once Lame graduated high school. However, all this changed in 2020, when the world faced the coronavirus pandemic. 

When he was interviewed by Forbes last March, Lame said “The pandemic had just started, and I was bored with a lot of time on my hands so I started making videos on TikTok”. 

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Due to his inability to speak English properly, Lame’s videos don’t have a lot of verbal communication, which allows them to be accessible to people all over the world. 

“I would describe myself as a simple person, but full of ideas and inspiration”, the 22-year-old said, adding, “Making people laugh has always been my biggest passion in life.” 

Lame, who earlier said he wanted to move to Hollywood next, stated that he puts a lot of thought into creating his videos. 

“Every day, I spend at least 3 hours looking for the right video to parody”, the TikTok star explained, adding, “I always try to be careful to not offend anyone with my videos, and I always prefer to joke with light-hearted parody.” 

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He is now one of the most influential people on the planet but never expected his popularity to catapult this much, especially since he began creating the videos for fun. 

His initial videos were parodies of life hacks, for cleaning dishes or cutting hair, as uploaded by influencers. 

Lame concluded, “My background and journey give me the strength to believe in my dreams and to move forward because with commitment and perseverance they can come true.”