The TikTok that Changed It All: How One Viral Video Catapulted Lyla King into the Limelight
Jan. 17 2024, Published 2:10 p.m. ET
In the age of the social media craze, the path to viral stardom lies wide open. Now, an ordinary person can capture the world’s attention and become an overnight sensation. With just a few viral videos, content creators have been riding the fast lane to fame, enjoying a flood of likes, shares, views, and engagement. This powerful transformation has paved the way for a new generation of budding stars who can reap significant financial rewards from their online success.
One story of instant success is that of Lyla King. A single TikTok video changed the course of her life forever. This breakthrough moment happened in September last year when one of her videos amassed close to 300,000 views in record time. The next morning, Lyla shares, she woke up to a whopping 27,000 new followers.
“I remember waking up that morning, looking at my phone, and my eyes nearly popping out of my head,” Lyla reminisces. “I couldn’t believe it. Within just one night, my life practically turned upside down, this time for the better.”
Marked by a fair share of challenges, Lyla’s life has certainly been far from ordinary. Before the online fame and the ever-growing and uncompromisingly loyal fanbase, Lyla struggled to maintain traditional employment. Though she did her best as a housekeeper at a local hospital, she couldn’t hold on to this job due to a chronic illness with which she’d been battling for years: conversion disorder.
This disorder is a condition in which a person experiences physical and sensory problems, such as paralysis, numbness, blindness, deafness or seizures, with no underlying neurological symptoms. “Imagine taking a hard fall from your bike and being unable to move your arm. That’s exactly how it feels, only there was no bike and no physical injury,” Lyla explains. “It’s debilitating and, honestly, depressing at times.”
Lyla has bravely battled her condition for a long time, experiencing numbness and seizures, which become particularly pronounced during stressful times. This condition also led her to live in subsidized housing while also relying on disability support. Fortunately, however, thanks to the success of some treatments, Lyla has been symptom-free for three years now.
Owing to her TikTok fame, however, Lyla has been able to turn her life around. Seeing a chance for more meaningful reach, she eventually launched an Instagram account, as well. Today, it boasts an impressive 612,000 followers - and growing. Through each photo, Lyla’s authenticity and natural beauty shine, setting her apart from creators who choose to go for heavily edited images.
Capitalizing on this social media momentum, Lyla boldly embraced another life-changing decision – to venture into the world of content creation. Drawing from her previous experience as a dancer, she could navigate her way through this new journey naturally and effortlessly.
Interestingly, though, Lyla began her content creating career without revealing her face or engaging in explicit nudity. “When I was in a relationship, part of our agreement was that I kept my face off it,” she says. “But now we’ve gone our separate ways, so I wondered why I was still keeping my face off of it?”
Lyla admits that she has encountered some unconventional requests from her audience. One memorable request involved playing the role of a WWE “diva,” for which she had a script written out for her. Still, although she aims to reply to every message she receives, she draws the line at responding to rude people and only engages in activities she feels comfortable with.
By meticulously observing trending content, analyzing peak engagement periods, and capitalizing on popular sounds, Lyla has successfully carved out her unique space in the saturated world of content creation. Now, she’s a force to be reckoned with, consistently ranking among the top creators.
As she puts it, “It’s a lot of trial and error. Also, as I started posting more videos on TikTok, the algorithm pointed me in the direction of other women doing the same thing. So, I just observed certain things and tweaked them to create my own.”
In the world of content creation, climbing the ladder to viral stardom demands authenticity and a fearless embrace of opportunities, even in the face of challenges. Lyla is living proof of this. Her path has been marked by obstacles, but instead of being deterred, she saw these challenges as stepping stones towards a brighter future. She saw a glimmer of hope - an opportunity to rewrite her narrative and tap into the boundless potential of social media.
As she says, “The only person standing in your way is yourself. There is nothing you can’t accomplish as long as you put your mind to it and pay no attention to what other people have to say. People will always talk. What matters is how you choose to respond and continue to believe in yourself.”