One of the hottest internet sensations now in China is Papi, a graduate of the Central Academy of Drama. Since she started to post her homemade videos in August in social networks, Papi easily gained followers with her posts usually getting no less than 100,000 hits.
The popularity of Papi’s videos is because she makes critical monologues that are humorous on issues that affect China. In Weibo, China’s biggest microblogging site, Papi has about 8 million followers who cite her though-provoking, but hilarious commentaries, on pop culture as the reason they like her.
One follower, himself an internet star, Luo Zhenyu, invested 12 million yuan ($1.84 million) on March 19 in Papi, reported China Daily.
But the question remains on social media stars, like Luo and Papi, if they have staying powers or are just enjoying their 15 minutes of fame and are just flash in the pans.
One Weibo user who uses the handle DogRich, believes that internet sensations come and go, and they usually do not last very long. But he added that those backed by professional agents could stay longer in the business. Tsinghua University Professor Shen Yang pointed out that the 12-million-yuan investment of Luo on Papi could result in her having to alter her own style.
Shen cited the case of previous internet stars, such as Shi Hengxia and Fengjie, whose stars eventually faded, bringing into question if Papi’s commercial value would continue to rise.
However, Heima, an investment critic, pointed that attitudes toward the internet have changed since many people, like WeChat users, are willing to give Papi financial reward for what she does. Zhang Yi, CEO of iiMedia Research, added that people are keen to invest on internet stars because of the number of followers.
Outside China, there had been successful people who used the internet, such as YouTube, to rise to fame. The best examples are Canadian pop singer Justin Bieber, Filipina singing sensation Charice Pempengco and recently, Filipina Dubsmash queen Maine Mendoza.
Time noted that many people became viral sensations on the internet by mistake. However, there are others who really pursue it, Time said, as it cited Kim Kardashian’s cover on Paper Magazine in November 2014 which capitalized on her oily naked butt to generate buzz in social media.