Dylan Mulvaney honored as one of Forbes magazine’s “30 Under 30”

Dylan Mulvaney, the comedic transgender influencer who skyrocketed to fame this year via her 365 Days of Girlhood series on TikTok and drew right-wing controversy over her brand partnership with Bud Light, has been named one of Forbes magazine’s “30 Under 30.”

The business publication’s annual list honors 30 influential people under the age of 30 in various industries. Mulvaney, whose TikTok account boasts 10.4 million followers, is included in the Social Media category.

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Dylan Mulvaney makes wisecrack about the right’s Bud Light freakout in award speech

Mulvaney called on other influencers to support the trans community in their content.

“I was at the beginning of my transition and I was looking to all these iconic trans women but not knowing how to get from point A to point B,” Mulvaney said of her 365 Days of Girlhood series, which documented the first year of her transition. “And I thought, ‘Okay, well, why not take my followers along on this journey.’”

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Mulvaney explained that she originally intended the series to be “lighthearted,” but it evolved into something more that really connected with people. “Over this last year, I found a lot of vulnerability and depth that I didn’t even know was there, and it’s been really beautiful and also hard at times. But I don’t regret anything.”

According to Forbes, which also included her in its 2023 Top Creators list earlier this year, Mulvaney has earned an estimated $2 million this year and has landed partnerships with the Nike athletic brand and MAC cosmetics. But it was her partnership with Bud Light that got the most attention.

After the beer brand paid Mulvaney to post a video featuring a custom beer can bearing an image of her face, anti-LGBTQ+ conservatives called for a boycott of Bud Light’s parent company Anheuser-Busch. Mulvaney was subjected to a torrent of harassment and transphobia online — online and in person — and Anheuser-Busch’s tepid response to both the attacks on Mulvaney and the boycott led the Human Rights Campaign to remove the company from its Corporate Equality Index.

“For a company to hire a trans person and then not publicly stand by them is worse, in my opinion, than not hiring a trans person at all,” Mulvaney said in a June post, “because it gives customers permission to be as transphobic and hateful as they want. And the hate doesn’t end with me. It has serious and grave consequences for the rest of our community.”

While Mulvaney did not mention Bud Light or Anheuser-Busch directly in her “30 Under 30” interview, she did explain what the controversy taught her about how to approach brand partnerships.

“I now realize that when I work with a brand, that they will forever be a part of my story,” she said. “So, I want to make sure we’re on the same page going forward, and I want there to be a mutual respect, and not only for me but for my community.”

She also offered advice to brands who want to partner with content creators: “Talk to us. Watch our content. See — do we want to put out the same type of things into the world? And I think especially when it comes to working with trans talent, there just has to be some communication there. There needs to be some advocacy outside of just inclusive marketing.”

Mulvaney has said that the anti-trans backlash to her Bud Light video left her “scared to leave my house.” But she told Forbes that while she is now wary of “who to trust,” she doesn’t want to become jaded. “I want to maintain a sense of innocence and excitement about life, whatever comes with it,” she said.

She also spoke about meeting with President Joe Biden to discuss trans issues late last year. She said she left the White House “hopeful,” but acknowledged that there is a lot more to be done to combat anti-trans legislation and Republicans’ weaponization of transphobia.

“I think right now more than ever we need action,” Mulvaney said. “We need advocacy, we need allies. And allyship means a lot more than just a text that says ‘I support you.’ It needs to be out loud and proud and publicly.”