Oklahoma is not really known for it’s celebrities, sure there are a few anomalies such as Brad Pitt, Garth Brooks, and Carrie Underwood, but for the most part it’s not known for having many Internet celebrities. Enter Stephen Emrich, a marketing student known more widely as “Insyde” to his fans online. Emrich boasts over 1 million followers across his social media accounts, and nearly 300 million views and streams of his content. Emrich told The US Inquirer that he started the “Insyde” project as a test of his marketing skills to prove to himself and others that he didn’t only have the knowledge on how to blow up online, but that he also had the skills and experience to do so as well.
He started out as a musician, landing a record deal with Kobalt’s AWAL (home to Lauv, Paul McCartney, and massive internet music sensation JVKE). Emrich later went on to go viral on TikTok, where he currently has over 700,000 followers. He attributes his success on the popular live-streaming service Twitch to his time on TikTok, which he utilized to bring fans to his live streams. “I think a lot of people see TikTok as a cringy platform for kids” said Emrich. “But if you get on the right side of it, there’s a lot more than just kids on TikTok.”
Emrich recently has been showing love to local Oklahoma City businesses, making appearances at several family-owned and private businesses to promote booting the local economy. It’s always great to see a local Oklahoma resident use their skills to make an impact on a national and even a global scale, and Emrich has done just that.
