At this point, it's basically impossible not to know Charli and Dixie D'Amelio, the 16- and 19-year-old sisters who practically singlehandedly run TikTok.
The sisters have shot to fame over the last year, but now they're opening up about some of the negative sides of being the most recognizable teens on the planet — namely, paparazzi.
Apparently the D'Amelios aren't a huge fan of the paps, with Charli admitting during this week's episode of the sisters' 2 Chix podcast that the paparazzi's recent behavior has been "grinding her gears."
"Kevin, Josh, this is for you guys: Please stop waiting outside my house," the 16-year-old said, seeming to call out well known YouTube channels Kevin Wong and Pap Galore by name.
"Super weird, super uncomfortable, big invasion of privacy," she went on. "Home is supposed to be a safe place, not a place where you have people waiting for you."
Her sister agreed, adding: "Every time I leave my apartment, they're illegally parked right outside and then follow me all the way to your house."
Charli went on to allege that she had tried to talk to the men about the problem, but said they had followed her to record the podcast that same day.
"I was like, 'Hey, I just want to let you know, I've been able to create a great friendship with you guys. I really do appreciate and I understand that this is your job. But just the waiting outside the house thing just really isn't cool,'" she said. "They were like, 'Got it.'"
"They used to be really chill," Dixie agreed. "We'd be like, 'Hey, not right now, we're just sitting outside.' But now, I feel like since everything's closed, and they're getting zero content from anyone, they kind of know our routine now."
Paparazzi who follow YouTube and TikTok stars — like the Hollywood Fix, Kevin Wong, and Pap Galore — have become increasingly prevalent over the last couple of years, and especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In September, Fletcher Greene — who runs the Hollywood Fix channel on YouTube — told BuzzFeed News that he exclusively pivoted to following TikTok stars after the majority of traditional celebrities left LA to escape the pandemic.
"I said, Let me shoot kids that have millions of fans on TikTok and let me see how it'll do," he explained. "It just blew up. It's almost like following a high school drama but in real life."
It's reached the point where some social media stars have publicly developed working relationships with the paparazzi. James Charles, for example, has featured the photographers in multiple videos on his YouTube channel.
