The life and rise of Emma Chamberlain, the 18-year-old YouTuber who has become one of Gen Z's most beloved celebrities

Chamberlain was born on May 22, 2001. She grew up in San Bruno, California, a suburb just south of San Francisco where — coincidentally — YouTube's headquarters are located.

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Her parents divorced when Chamberlain, an only child, was 5 years old. She found YouTube at an early age "to connect with other people and see what they were up to," she told The New York Times.

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Growing up, Chamberlain's family struggled financially. "There were times when we couldn't even go to the movies, when I was a kid, because there wasn't enough money," Chamberlain told Forbes in 2018.

But even as a kid, Chamberlain loved making videos for her friends. "I always had an outgoing personality. That was the one thing that I was known for," Chamberlain said. "When I was younger I had a gut feeling that I was going to use my personality in some way, but I didn't know how."

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Chamberlain taught herself how to edit videos, and started posting to her self-titled YouTube channel in 2017, the summer before her junior year of high school. She filled her channel with vlogs and DIY content, much of which her dad, an artist and photographer, would help her film.

Her first video to go viral came in July 2017 when she did a "haul" — a popular YouTube trend where you show off items from a shopping spree — from the dollar store. "That was apparently a YouTube trend at the time, and it ended up working in my favor," Chamberlain told W Magazine.

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After that first viral video, success seemingly happened "overnight," Chamberlain told Forbes. She got an agent, and dropped out of high school right before her junior year to do YouTube full-time.

By the next year, Chamberlain and her parents decided that it would be best for her career to move from the San Francisco area to Los Angeles. She moved into her own apartment there in June 2018.

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Shortly after moving, Chamberlain teamed up with a group of three other young YouTubers: James Charles, and Ethan and Grayson Dolan. Dubbed the "Sister Squad," the crew often collaborated on videos across their YouTube channels through 2018. However, it seems the group's friendship frayed in early 2019, and they've since stopped recording content together.

Chamberlain's rapid rise to success has not come without criticism and hate. In mid-2018, Chamberlain almost quit because of the drama and rumors spread about her online. "It's really uninspiring when you post a video and everyone says, 'Go kill yourself,'" she told Forbes.

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But in times of stress and difficulty, Chamberlain has credited her friends and family for helping her get through to the other side. "Spending time with them is super important to me because, at the end of the day, you need a support system," Chamberlain said.

As a YouTuber, Chamberlain has also learned that there are certain things she has to keep private. "I don't know if I would ever have a public relationship, ever," she said in a 2019 interview. "And this is not coming from experience in any way ... Breakups alone are absolutely the most f---ing awful thing that exist. Why would you want other people to be heartbroken with you?"

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Chamberlain has been grouped in with the onslaught of VSCO girls, the uber-trendy teens sporting scrunchies, Hydro Flask water bottles, and reusable metal straws. Chamberlain — who often does clothing hauls from places like Brandy Melville and Urban Outfitters — fits the bill.

Chamberlain has been credited with popularizing an entire counterculture subgenre of YouTube, where creators are seen as authentic and relatable to their teen fans. Her vlogs are funny, coffee-addled, and showcase her outgoing personality.

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Chamberlain's editing style is just as distinct, full of meme-y quick cuts, zooming, and text commentary. She told W Magazine it takes her 20 to 30 hours to edit a YouTube video.

Chamberlain has skyrocketed to such an iconic status, it earned her high-profile invites Paris Fashion Week twice this year, including a video partnership with supermodel Karlie Kloss.

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The 18-year-old Chamberlain is now worth an estimated $3 million. She has more than 8 million followers on both YouTube and Instagram. She launched a podcast this year called "Stupid Genius," and sells a line of popular merchandise for fans.

Chamberlain was named to Time Magazine's list of "100 Most Influential People in the World" in November 2019. "Showing off acne and highlighting mundane moments like badly needing an iced coffee are hallmarks of vlogs by Chamberlain, whose editing style spawned a subgenre of young creators following her lead," Time wrote.

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