The "Internet celebrity universe" that the "Hyperthyroidism Brother" didn't take away

Bring in and go global.

Text by｜Yang Ruiqi

Source｜DomoreDumou (ID: DomoreDumou)

Cover source｜IC photo

 

The after - effect of "Hyperthyroidism Brother" is still ongoing.

 

Domestically, the "Hyperthyroidism Brother Universe" is taking shape. Not only has "Hyperthyroidism Brother" himself seen a continuous surge in followers on Xiaohongshu, Douyin, and Weibo, but the internet celebrities and ordinary people who interacted with him have also received a lot of attention.

 

The "Shaoxing Sweet Girl" he met during his trip to Hong Kong filmed a promotional video for the official Shaoxing cultural and tourism department; Lin Jiang, an uncle from Rongchang, Chongqing, known as "Goose - Roast Brother", has opened his own physical store and hasn't stopped live - streaming. The local government also reimbursed all the expenses for his five - city itinerary and rewarded him with 100,000 yuan; @Rui Ge English, who speaks "Sichuan - accented English", has also seen a continuous increase in social media followers.

 

Meanwhile, "Hyperthyroidism Brother"'s two bodyguards, "Dazhuang" and "Xiaomei", have both opened Xiaohongshu accounts to interact with Chinese fans. Both of their accounts currently have over 10,000 followers, and "Xiaomei" even exceeded 100,000 followers on the first day of opening the account.

 

(Image source: speed channel)

 

Abroad, perhaps seeing the effect of "Hyperthyroidism Brother"'s trip to China, YouTube top blogger @Mrbeast also said that he wants to come to China; Japanese travel blogger "@Osada, also known as the "Anxious Immortal", came to Chongqing at the beginning of the month to start his third trip to China. As more and more foreign bloggers come to China, it not only shows the traffic effect of the "Trip to China" at the content level. From a macro perspective, it also represents a deeper "granularity" of cultural exchanges between countries.

 

As Zhang Chaoyuan, the general manager of East Goes Global in China, said in an interview about "Hyperthyroidism Brother"'s trip, "This is not just a cultural exchange, but also the beginning of a new type of narrative and global cooperation."

 

Building the "Hyperthyroidism Brother Universe"

 

Although "Hyperthyroidism Brother" has returned to the United States, he has left behind a "Hyperthyroidism Brother Universe" in China.

 

First of all, there are the various ordinary people who were popularized by "Hyperthyroidism Brother". The "Goose - Roast Uncle", who followed "Hyperthyroidism Brother" everywhere and was obsessed with giving roasted geese, has now become an internet celebrity in both China and the United States.

 

In recent live - streams, "Hyperthyroidism Brother" frequently mentioned the "Goose - Roast Uncle" and watched personal videos of the uncle saving a drowning boy and putting out a mountain fire in Chongqing in the live - stream room, calling him a "legend". Many American netizens also left messages in the comment section, hoping to see the "uncle" again in the live - stream.

 

(Image source: speed channel)

 

Another person who came into the public view is the Shaoxing girl "Liqin" who appeared during the Hong Kong trip. After the interactive video with "Hyperthyroidism Brother" went viral, the Shaoxing cultural and tourism department quickly found "Liqin" to film a cultural and tourism promotional video, which was posted on the official account "@Meet Shaoxing".

 

In the video, "Liqin" was boating on the lake, gently waving a paper fan, introducing the beautiful scenery of Shaoxing. This video was also seen by "Hyperthyroidism Brother" after he returned to the United States. He was amazed in the live - stream room and asked, "Is this a water city? Like Venice in Italy?" He also seemed a bit regretful that he didn't go to Shaoxing for a live - stream this time.

 

The internet celebrity @Rui Ge English, who speaks "Sichuan - accented English", has also become popular both at home and abroad, with a sharp increase in the number of followers on domestic social media. The live - stream clips of him with "Hyperthyroidism Brother" received millions of views on YouTube in less than a week. Foreign netizens were shocked that a Chinese person who had never been to the United States could speak such pure "Sichuan - accented English" and asked him to come to the United States to interact with "Hyperthyroidism Brother" again.

 

(Image source: speed channel)

 

In addition to popularizing local ordinary people, the two bodyguards following "Hyperthyroidism Brother" have also received a lot of attention.

 

One bodyguard was nicknamed "Xiaomei" by netizens because she accidentally got a younger - looking makeup in an aunt's beauty camera during the Great Wall trip. The other was named "Dazhuang" because of his strong build and his frequent protection of "Hyperthyroidism Brother".

 

While the number of followers on "Hyperthyroidism Brother"'s Douyin, Xiaohongshu, and Weibo accounts continues to rise, "Dazhuang" and "Xiaomei" have both opened Xiaohongshu accounts and introduced themselves as "Dazhuang" and "Xiaomei" in pinyin in their profiles, with a rapid increase in followers. Especially "Xiaomei", whose followers soared by 100,000 in one day. The relatively low - key "Dazhuang" currently also has over 10,000 followers.

 

Chinese netizens really like these two bodyguards of "Hyperthyroidism Brother". They not only came up with a way to distinguish them, saying "Shiny black is Xiaomei, matte brown is Dazhuang", but also summarized their characteristics. For example, Xiaomei has a kind of "innocent stupidity", is "bad at but loves" food, often needs "Hyperthyroidism Brother" to try it first before eating, and likes rose milk tea, full of contrasts.

 

(Image source: speed channel)

 

Dazhuang, who can always spot the "Goose - Roast Uncle" in the crowd and bring him to "Hyperthyroidism Brother", is relatively low - key. He is calm and composed when protecting "Hyperthyroidism Brother" and is called the "gentle male mother" by netizens.

 

As of now, "Dazhuang" has only opened an account and has not posted any content. "Xiaomei", on the other hand, has posted five notes, including a personal verification video greeting Xiaohongshu users and claiming the title of "Xiaomei", as well as interactive videos competing with "Hyperthyroidism Brother". The latest video takes a fitness route and has received nearly 10,000 likes.

 

The number of followers on the Xiaohongshu account of Lingo, the overseas market head of the 88rising team that assisted "Hyperthyroidism Brother" in his China trip, has also been soaring and has now exceeded 10,000.

 

Foreign Bloggers Flocking to China

 

The after - effect of "Hyperthyroidism Brother" goes far beyond that. In addition to building the "Hyperthyroidism Brother Universe" in China, this trip to China has also made many foreign bloggers eager to come.

 

Before "Hyperthyroidism Brother"'s China trip ended, the top YouTube blogger @MrBeast, who has 380 million followers, said that he also wanted to come to China. In addition to YouTube, @MrBeast also has over 100 million followers on TikTok.

 

(Image source: Weibo)

 

Before @MrBeast set off, the top Japanese travel blogger @Osada, also known as the "Anxious Immortal" by netizens, had already come to China.

 

Almost at the same time as "Hyperthyroidism Brother" came to China, @Osada arrived in Chongqing. On the first day he arrived in Chongqing, @Osada posted 15 Instagram stories in a row to record the local food in Chongqing.

 

In an Instagram live - stream, @Osada introduced his Chongqing trip to his followers in detail. In addition to the delicious food and beautiful scenery, @Osada also mentioned some "small problems" he encountered during the trip, such as the rude attitude of a taxi driver and the poor sanitation conditions of some toilets, but he said that "it's all tolerable".

 

This is not @Osada's first trip to China. As a travel blogger, he actually set foot on a trip to Shanghai last April with a sense of "unease".

 

It was because he was so cautious during his Shanghai trip and seemed very "furtive" that netizens jokingly called him the "Anxious Immortal". On the third day in Shanghai, @Osada began to relax and started recommending Shanghai in his videos.

 

@Youtube Selected Channel (Image source: BILIBILI)

 

This video made @Osada, who originally had only a few thousand followers, quickly become popular, with an increase of over 100,000 followers. Sensing the "secret to getting traffic", @Osada came to Beijing again in November. Similarly, these videos were also very popular. So in April this year, @Osada chose to come to Chongqing for his third trip to China.

 

In response to the question from his followers, "Why do you like going to China so much?", @Osada's answer was quite candid: "I'm going to China to make money and then spend it in Europe."

 

In response to this answer, netizens believe that anyway, foreign bloggers represented by @Osada have indeed played a positive role in promoting China and have allowed many foreign netizens to truly feel the beauty of China, and that's enough.

 

With the vigorous implementation of the 144 - hour visa - free policy, more and more internet celebrities and bloggers have come to China in recent years. At first, most of them were travel bloggers represented by @Osada. However, as China's opening - up efforts continue to deepen, the types of bloggers have also become more diverse. Outdoor entertainment live - stream bloggers represented by "Hyperthyroidism Brother" are a typical example.

 

Actually, from the popularity of @Osada and "Hyperthyroidism Brother" in China, we can also get a glimpse of the changing types of foreign bloggers coming to China in recent years.

 

@Osada's videos are full of Japanese - style dry humor. Compared with a "travel blogger", @Osada is more like a "fun - seeking" blogger.

 

@Youtube Selected Channel (Image source: BILIBILI)

 

For example, in Shanghai, @Osada pointed at the Huangpu River and called it the "sea"; in Beijing, he confidently took out his phone to scan the code but found that the payment method had been updated to "tap - to - pay"; in Chongqing, he mistook hot pot base for pizza. All kinds of accidental funny moments during his trips have attracted a large number of domestic netizens.

 

In the two articles "Why did 'Hyperthyroidism Brother' become popular with a million - follower increase in three days?" and "In 2023, does a foreigner's 'I love China' still work?", we also analyzed in detail the content changes of foreign bloggers of different generations. Perhaps nowadays, "fun - seeking" bloggers represented by the "Anxious Immortal" @Osada and "Hyperthyroidism Brother" are more popular among the younger generation.

 

"Granular" Cultural Exchanges

 

Foreign bloggers coming to China may seem like an individual behavior, but in fact, it is the result of the mutual influence of the cultural strategies of different countries.

 

The large - scale influx of foreigners into China is first of all due to the implementation of the 144 - hour transit visa - free policy. Half an hour after this policy was introduced, the search popularity of Chinese - related destinations on the European, American, and Asia - Pacific sites of Ctrip's overseas platform increased by 85%, 163%, and 116% respectively compared with the previous period.

 

@CCTV.com (Image source: Weibo)

 

With the continuous development of self - media, it's no longer just professional bloggers like "Hyperthyroidism Brother" and the "Anxious Immortal" who record their trips to China. Ordinary tourists have also started uploading what they see and hear in China, which has had a significant impact on the long - standing "stereotyped China" image constructed in the Western world.

 

According to the video blogger @Andy, a foreigner who has lived in Shanghai, China for a long time, national institutions such as the US Agency for International Development and the US Global Media Agency have long provided a large amount of funding for activities to smear China. Since Trump took office, the US Department of Defense has significantly cut the relevant budgets of these institutions, resulting in the construction of the stereotyped image of China being shifted from the official level to individuals.

 

On social media platforms such as YouTube and Instagram, many bloggers claim that those who come to China for tourism and highly praise China "are paid by the Chinese government and shoot according to a unified script".

 

@Andy (Image source: Weibo)

 

Taking the recent "Hyperthyroidism Brother" as an example, Matthew Spalt, the operations officer of East Goes Global, a company that has facilitated the entry of European and American stars such as Jessi J, Westlife, Backstreet Boys, and Will Smith into the Chinese market, said in an interview that "Hyperthyroidism Brother"'s China trip was a cultural exchange and 'an unprecedented event'."

 

According to Lingo, the overseas market head of the 88rising team that assisted "Hyperthyroidism Brother" in his China trip, there was no script or pre - rehearsal for this live - stream.

 

The live - stream review data of "Hyperthyroidism Brother" released by East Goes Global shows that this series of live - streams made 78% of overseas viewers correct their perception of China, and 63% said that they were considering traveling to China within the next three years. What's more surprising is that the proportion of viewers over 35 years old reached 41%, far exceeding the original age structure of "Hyperthyroidism Brother"'s followers.

 

"This shows that real Chinese stories have the magic to penetrate different circles," Matthew Spalt believes.

 

In the era of self - media, the vivid stories of creators may be more vivid and lively. This is why the foreign internet is targeting the so - called "interference" and "guidance" of the Chinese government towards foreign bloggers.

 

@InvincibleBeria (Image source: BILIBILI)

 

In fact, in terms of cultural exchange and development, it is necessary for the country to take action. For example, South Korea, which is good at content marketing and promotion, has already started to encourage and support Korean creators abroad. Many Korean bloggers on Bilibili have participated in this program.

 

In China, the government is also starting to take action.

 

According to Pengpai News, the State Council Information Office will organize more than 30 domestic and foreign internet celebrities and bloggers to visit Guangxi for a themed visit activity called "Perceive the Happy China".

 

These internet celebrities are from many countries and regions such as the UK, Russia, Japan, Vietnam, the Philippines, India, and Indonesia, and their content covers multiple overseas social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, VKontakte, X, Instagram, and TikTok.

 

The relevant person in charge of the organizing party introduced that during this activity, the internet celebrities and bloggers will be invited to visit SAIC - GM - Wuling, the "Village of the World's Longest Hair" in Huangluo Yaozhai, the Longji Rice Terraces, and taste Luosifen noodles, so as to experience the economic and social development, cultural protection and inheritance, ecological environment protection, and the happy life of the people in the border ethnic areas of Guangxi from multiple perspectives.

 

@Guilin Life Network (Image source: Weibo)

 

Whether it's "going global" or "bringing in", cultural exchange is irresistible. This wave of the times contains space for multi - party exchanges and the possibility of commercial transformation.

 

As Zhang Chaoyuan, the general manager of East Goes Global in China, said in an interview, "This is not just a cultural exchange, but also the beginning of a new type of narrative and global cooperation."