Top 20 Influencers who are changing the game

As businesses use social media to promote products and build brand loyalty, social media influencers are increasing in popularity and value. From Tiktok to Instagram to YouTube and beyond, digital enthusiasts are creating internet-breaking content and establishing themselves as credible, social media-certified icons. Listed below are entertainers, public figures, and entrepreneurs who have worked to make a lasting and profitable imprint on our social media-driven digital platforms. Check out VIP Global Magazine’s Top 20 influencers to keep an eye on in 2021. 1. Nate Garner - 2.2m Followers (Verified) Nate Garner is widely known for his good looks, his presence on Instagram often involves ad campaigns for various fashion and lifestyle brands. This was not always the case, Nate does stress the importance of working hard to maintain health, happiness, fitness, and financial freedom. A YouTube personality turned Entrepreneur at Large, Nate Garner has developed his following organically earning 2.2 million followers on Instagram. Nate’s following originates from those who have interacted with his vines and grown into his transition to vlogs on Youtube detailing his day-to-day life. Garner often serves as a pillar for his community, sharing his experience battling and overcoming obstacles from childhood bullying, depression, and anxiety while keeping within the public eye. Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/nategarner/ 2. Chiara Coco - 807k Followers Chiara Coco is the founder and owner of the German Fashion Streetstyle blog and YouTube channel ‘Culture with Coco.’ Chiara has since then migrated to the role as a digital creator on Instagram, which features many of Chiara’s adventures abroad exploring fashion, food, and culture. Her content captures exciting moments in time like overlooking sceneries, engaging in festivals, and that special moment before your first bite of delicious food... all while looking flawless in an excellent outfit. This creative’s content is digestible and appeals to the importance of consistent branding and brand storytelling, validating her following and amazing brand deals strewn just as effortlessly and elegantly about her page. Chiara’s essence brings about a free spirited, everyday girl nature in a high-class package. Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/culturewithcoco/ 3. Stephanie Buttermore - 627k Followers (Verified) A well-established athlete and Youtube personality, Stephanie Buttermore is most well known for her “All In” series online which challenges the Set-Point theory and earning her critical reviews from all over the world. In this series, Stephanie subverts the social norm and documents her experience going “All In.” That is, eating intuitively without restrictions in calorie count or the contents of what she craves. The result documented her experience quickly gaining a substantial amount of weight, then reverting to her “ideal” set weight and maintaining excellent athletic skill. This is no fad, but rather a critical theory relating to diet, metabolism, and the idea that the body will often try to operate intuitively. This is culturally counterintuitive to many personalities online who strive to maintain a specific physique at all times. Stephanie has given back to the health, wellness, and fitness community, by sharing the aftermath of her new lifestyle, fitness regimes, and continuously sharing her findings with her community. Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/stephanie_buttermore/ 4. Dannella Muñoz - 566k Followers Based in Miami, Florida, Dannella Munoz is a personal trainer priding on her ability to change women's bodies and mindsets. She empowers women of all sizes to fall in love with fitness as a mode of meditation, manifestation, and all-around feel-good energy. She is particularly well known for hosting a series of fitness challenges where women can convene online, offer support, and accountability toward each other, making sure to establish a healthy relationship between mind, body, soul, and community. Dannella owns two businesses: Danimunozfit offers fitness guides and gym equipment, while For the Peach operates as her gym apparel company. This is truly a testament to the strength and support of her community, for which she shows gratitude in the form of giveaways, gift cards, discounts, and the occasional offer to pay for a follower’s rent. Social Link: https://www.in+6stagram.com/danimunozfit/ 5. Robby Hayes - 435k followers (Verified) Growing up, Robby always found himself close to the water. Raised in Florida and alumni of Florida State, the All-American swimmer competed in the 2012 Olympic Trials, where shortly after he accepted a sports sales job based out of Italy. The traveling for our Founder began here! In the summer of 2016, Robby was introduced to the influential media world after his participation on ABC’s The Bachelorette. Getting more immersed in his new world through follow up television work on MTV, Bravo, and ABC, he founded Rebella as a way to continue traveling the world, help revolutionize creative marketing through social media, and share the knowledge he’s obtained through what has become a life-changing experience. Connectors and networking. People helping people. We’re all in this together and want to see each of us succeed. I am always willing to make an introduction. Passion, Work Ethic, and Confidence is everything. Believe in yourself and your purpose. Don't be afraid to fail. IG: instagram.com/roberthunter89 6. Jessi Than - 248k Followers Jessi Than is a fitness coach who empowers women to take control of their mindset for fitness, in favor of simply enjoying an active lifestyle. Her background involves an unhappiness with her physique, as most fitness personalities’ do. However, Jessi mentions her story is entirely different. She was, “too skinny” growing up without paying much attention to her exercise or diet.
“That didn’t mean I didn’t hate the body I was in,” she states. “I had never played any sport in school so I was extremely unfit, I couldn’t even do a pushup on my knees.” While reminiscing, Jessi often mentions the mindset change she needed to start seeing serious results. She began to set goals for herself just to challenge herself in her movement. Paying attention to nutrition alongside her new fitness regime, Jessi began seeing results, and felt inspired to share her story and methods with her followers.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/jessi_than 7. Stephanie Laurette - 201k Followers (Verified) Stephanie Lauretta, AKA Lee from Beauty by Lee, is a lifestyle blogger, Internet personality, and makeup artist. While she runs her business with a CEO mindset, she also must play the role model and caretaker for her three kids. Lee documents her lifestyle traveling across the world as a boss. “A lot of my dreams came true like being in huge campaigns, magazines, and in store makeup aisles,” Lee says.
Lee’s content appeals to many working CEO mothers, detailing her struggles and her outlook of having two kids under two years and third by the end of 2019 before the pandemic. As her motto and blog say: Life Happens. Through this mindset she’s fostered a wide community of over 201k followers on Instagram, most of which are aspiring entrepreneurs juggling business, maintaining a family in quarantine, and creating content in the digital space.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/beautybylee 8. Krista DeBono - 146k Followers (Verified) A former NFL cheerleader for the New York Jets, Krista DeBono has starred in CBS’s The Amazing Race alongside teammate Tiffany Torres. Now a speech pathologist by trade, Krista has dedicated her life to helping students with special needs by providing speech therapy to children ages 3 to 8.
Krista also documents her life online as a public figure by sharing and celebrating her travels, milestones, and entrepreneurial ventures while sometimes collaborating with brands to host giveaways and product ads. She has effectively made an incredible career after dancing by investing into multiple streams of passive income and is a prime example of someone who integrates the CEO mentality while raising children and starting a family.
Social Links: https://www.instagram.com/krista_kimberly 9. Nneka Ibeabuchi - 145k Followers Nneka Ibeabuchi is a fashion model, fashion influencer and creative director born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria. She currently resides in Los Angeles, CA, doing what she does best, “being a dope creative.”
Ibeabuchi would like to see more entrepreneurs genuinely supporting each other and giving out helpful information to others. “There’s room for all of us to win. I’m big on helping people, especially when I know it’s difficult out here for new entrepreneurs. People tend to hide or hold onto helpful information because they feel as though the other person will surpass them. But in all reality, when it’s your time, it's your time. God will never leave you hanging.”
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/africanjawn 10. Dana Emmanuelle-Jean Nozime - 143k Followers Dana Emmanuelle-Jean Nozime is a model, digital creative, and thought leader working from home. She is known for her clean high-end style in varied shades of white, stark blacks, and neutrals, alongside imagery featuring luxury home environments and incredible set dressings.
Like many of us, Dana’s lifestyle has adapted to working from home. Unlike some of us, she’s been doing it since before the pandemic. As a result, the aesthetic has produced incredible imagery and iconography across her work the past few months and even the past year. Her pictures more often feature Dana in a great outfit posing for a selfie in front of a mirror. However, her sense of elegance in front of the camera is truly what captures the attention of her following. Her work has earned her followers on Instagram alone, a platform she also utilizes to comment against social injustices.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/dananozime 11. Taylor Price – 101k Followers (Verified) Taylor Price is a TikTok personality and founder of financial education platform, TAP Intuit. TAP Intuit is a financial education platform that provides financial literacy to students, enabling them to take control of their personal finances and make their money work for them. Taylor launched this platform in early 2019 and has since grown where students worldwide are committing to transforming their lives through personal finances.
For Taylor, content creation has always been a passion. Not only does she understand how to communicate complicated financial concepts to her peers, but she has also broadened the online education space to social media through TAP. In an effort to change the way we talk about finance, Taylor has demonstrated the importance of learning today to stay wealthy tomorrow.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/pricelesstay 12. Autum Rainn - 98.8k Followers Autum is a competitive dancer turned digital creative and influencer who is sought out for her innovative take on lifestyle blogging. After pursuing what seems like a lifetime of dancing, Autum turned to digital media as a new outlet where she could continue to use her eyes for color, shapes, and design, while sharing her thoughts and inspiring others. Her blog captures a little bit of everything from fashion, beauty, food, social media, home decor, and everyday events living with her boyfriend, Noah, and cat, Binks.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/autumrainn 13. Tori Dunlap – 89.3k Followers “After saving $100,000 at age 25, I quit my corporate job in marketing and founded Her First $100K, to fight financial inequality by giving women actionable resources to better their money,” Tori reveals. Tori has helped over 700,000 women negotiate salary, pay off debt, build savings, and invest. A Plutus Award Winner and 425 Magazine’s “Woman to Watch”, Tori’s work has been featured on Good Morning America, the Today Show, the New York Times, TIME, PEOPLE, New York Magazine, Forbes, CNBC, and more.
One of her biggest priorities in life has always been to reach financial independence. Starting her first business at the age of 9, Tori has evolved her skills since childhood to develop a well-rounded perspective in saving, investing, and negotiating. She owes much of that to her parents, who made sure she had a strong financial education at a young age.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/herfirst100k 14. Antthony Mark Hankins – 52.7k Followers (Verified) Antthony Mark Hankins is an American fashion designer and founder of design studios, Anthony Design Originals and Antthony Designs, both of which are featured on QVC and HSN Network Channels. From as early as 13 years old, Antthony’s mission was to create luxurious, beautiful, and smart clothing for women. By his mid-twenties, he had built a $40 million business and was named one of the top 100 people to watch in America by Newsweek.
Antthony represents one of many minority businesses flourishing in the online space and is a prominent figurehead that has adapted to and promoted diversity online.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/antthonymarkhankins 15. Mia Holmes – 52.1k Followers Mila Holmes is a social media and visibility strategist and one of many up-and-coming Tiktok personalities making strides toward educating their following on virtual work and its accessibility. Mila is proud of her six-figure salary increase since beginning self-employment via her LLC two years ago after dropping out of high school, reassuring that anyone can learn, grow, and earn a living wage outside of corporate work.
She is now one of the most reliable coaches teaching others the ins and outs of social media strategy, brand management, and general business management both in free and paid to view content. Through her coaching, Mila has earned the testimonials of many students leaving their corporate job and taking the mantle of CEO. Mila frequently stresses that, “any experience is experience, you should be paid your worth,” when it comes to adopting the CEO mindset.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/digitalmila 16. Jessica Ward – 49k Followers Jessica Ward is most widely known for her educational resources and coaching services within the Virtual Assistant industry. This previous Summer, Jessica was motivated to quit her corporate job to begin freelancing as a Virtual Assistant, quickly raising her pricing to earn $9k months in profit and eventually earning a six-figure salary within four months of hard work, dedication to clients, and dedication to optimizing her time and investments. The four-month turnaround time to triple her corporate salary has earned Jessica a feature in Yahoo! News among other publications for outstanding and innovative entrepreneurial achievement.
Now serving as a coach, Jessica adopts a “yes you can” mentality and reassures her growing fan base that anyone with internet access can grow to earn a living wage from the comfort of their home, and security in owning their business. Her social media acts as a free resource containing over 7 hours of free content covering the basics of starting and maintaining a business and CEO mindset.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/itsjessicaward 17. Bree – 43.7k Followers Bree is a jewelry designer and ex-game developer from Canada. She is known for her brand, BISOULOVELY, a jewelry brand inspired by all things magical, celestial, and ethereal.
“I’d love to see more artists in the entrepreneurial space,” says Bree. “All my life I've been told being an artist would lead to a life of starvation, but I learned how to turn my artistic style into a business.” Right she is, her creations, fast growing team, and dedication to excellent service to her clients has solidified her company to be featured multiple times over in Vogue UK, Vanity Fair, Elle, and others.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/bisoulovely 18. Cassie Marin – 43.1k Followers (Verified) Cassi is primarily known for her music, modeling, and key sense of fashion. As a growing entrepreneur, her challenges include setting boundaries for herself, learning how to be self-disciplined while maintaining healthy relationships, and setting time aside for her own self-care. It seems these challenges have only moved Cassie forward, earning her a string of successful modeling campaigns and music releases in the Summer of 2020 alone.
“Focus on your dream,” Cassie states. “What makes you unique is your journey, your story. It’s easy to compare and feel the weight of the world on the internet, but ultimately and most importantly, your dream will always belong to you and only you, so chase it!”
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/cassiemarin 19. Amanda Fre – 21.1k Followers Amanda is a model known for her ability to story tell within the fashion industry. When it comes to her modeling style, she always tried staying true to herself. Amanda strives to tell a story rather than perform and consequently feel like a mannequin. “That thought process was really inspired by wanting to bridge the gap between the product and the consumer in an intimate and vulnerable way,” says Fre.
Fre treats her work with brands as a special experience, like a partnership where her goal is to evolve the pieces through feeling. This process plays a big part in representing brands across the digital marketplace, often inspiring others to see their inner selves in her, and the pieces as modes of expression.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/frezarr 20. Willow Kaii – 11.5k Followers Willow Kaii is your go-to guy for all things personal branding and Pinterest. After leaving the Agency world of LA, he pivoted his energy into helping other young and ambitious creatives launch their own personal brands and use Pinterest as their driving force. Willow debuted his strategies in the coaching space after launching BoldxBoho with his fiancé Becca which sells website templates for online coaches and other female service-providers, all organically. These days, you’ll find Kaii giving free value-added tips on his Tiktok, or working heads down with his clients, helping them launch as the go-to businesses in whatever niche they’re in.
Social Link: https://www.instagram.com/willowkaii