During the 2020 TikTok phenomenon, a teenage influencer named Addison Rae made a name for herself by posting viral dance videos. She became especially popular after joining the infamous Hype House, a group of content creators who moved in together and achieved extravagant popularity on social media by filming videos in their new, picturesque mansion. Success on social media gave her a platform to build off to work towards her goal of stardom, and she would later transition her focus to music and acting rather than content creation. Despite Rae’s continuous backlash in all aspects of her career, she continued producing quality short-form content, hosted a podcast, starred in movies, and kicked off iconic musical endeavors with the support of pop stars such as Charli XCX and A.G. Cook.
Although Addison Rae got her start on social media, in an interview with Brittany Spanos from Rolling Stone Magazine, Rae claimed that she has always aspired to grow into a pop star. To work towards her dream of fame in music and Hollywood, Rae created a podcast titled Mama Knows Best (later renamed That Was Fun?), which she hosted with her mother. On this podcast, Rae discussed the nuances of life as a public figure and had entertaining conversations with celebrities such as Kourtney Kardashian, Hailey Bieber, Tate McRae, and many more. About a year after the podcast started, Rae released her first-ever song “Obsessed”, marking the beginning of her journey in the music industry. Further building on her fame, Rae starred in the Netflix movie He’s All That in August 2021. Although the general response to the film was not overwhelmingly positive, Rae stayed consistent in pursuing her dream.
In August 2023, Rae released an EP titled “AR”, featuring “2 die 4 (feat. Charli XCX)”. Addison Rae’s opportunity to work with the well-known and widely acclaimed star Charli XCX served as a monumental event in her ongoing career, proving to the public that she had the outstanding talent and unique persona necessary for achieving true, sparkling stardom. Alyssa Avila (12) said, “[AR] set the tone of fun and girly pop that she’s continued with through each of her singles.” Two months later, Rae starred in the Netflix horror film Thanksgiving. Then, diving right back into music, Charli XCX created a remix of her song from Brat called “Von Dutch” featuring Addison Rae. Avila said, “I think the way she was able to transform herself from a TikTok celebrity who wasn’t taken too seriously to a singer who has worked with respected artists such as Charli XCX, A.G. Cook, and Arca is impressive.”
Recently, Rae has once again been a vital artist in the pop-culture zeitgeist with her singles “Diet Pepsi”, “Aquamarine”, and her newest song “High Fashion”. All three songs have a similar feel, expressing love and self-acceptance in a flashy dance-pop style. While she has not officially announced an upcoming album, her new singles indicate that a larger project may come to fruition!
Addison Rae may seem like just another celebrity to some, but her fearlessness and undying effort to achieve her goals sets her apart in the eyes of others. Siyona Pathak said, “Whenever I need to lift myself up, she is there. She is iconic and her music is refreshing.” Rose Billowitch (10) claims, “I absolutely adore Addison Rae because she’s so talented and her videos always make me smile!” In Spanos’s article “Addison Rae took over TikTok. Now she’s coming for pop.”, Spanos writes, “All she can hope is that everything she does next will make people feel free and get them to dance – and that she’ll continue to change minds along the way.”
