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Sunday, July 27, 2025

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The Return of Emma Chamberlain, Again

Reading time: about 5 minutes

I have a parasocial relationship with Emma Chamberlain, but not in the way you might expect. I would hardly describe myself as a devoted fan, much less a diehard lover of Chamberlain’s content, but I’ve always felt inextricably connected to her from afar. Maybe she’s the cooler older sister I never had, or maybe I’m still clinging to the seventh-grade version of myself that first discovered her channel in 2019. Regardless, I’ve never been one to grow overly attached to celebrities or online personas. My years-old appreciation for Chamberlain’s content was rekindled about a month ago when her face popped up in my YouTube recommendations. I was pleasantly surprised because, as faithful viewers know, she’s become more of a sporadic poster over the years. That’s one of the incredible things about her, though. She’s never trying to please others or come off as anything more or less than herself. When she needs to take a break, she takes a break. When she wants to delete her entire TikTok feed, she deletes it. When she feels like dropping an hour-long vlog on a casual Tuesday afternoon, she does exactly that. 

In this age of instant gratification and eight-second attention spans, there’s something oddly nice, almost satisfying, about watching an Emma vlog after months or weeks of radio silence. Even during posting sprees with content pumped out in quick succession, you never know which video will be your last for the indefinite future. So, you make the most of your time and cling to the comforting lull of background music and daily routines caught on film, settling into the warm, slightly awkward embrace that is an Emma Chamberlain YouTube video. 

As for her most recent content, Chamberlain seems more herself than ever. Sporting new hair and a recently cleaned-out closet, the 23-year-old’s current editing style is my all-time favorite of her many content-creating eras. Dating back to the chaotic, rapid-fire clips of her first videos on YouTube, it’s safe to say that she will always be a pioneer of “quirky” and “relatable” Gen Z content. These days, Chamberlain’s taken the style of her channel in a philosophical direction. Her latest posts are more somber and thoughtful in their composition, making an art form out of everyday life. Her most recent hobbies — sewing, painting, baking and reading — sound generic on paper, but injections of her gritty humor and eye for cinematic design make even the most mundane of crafts a pleasure to watch. Whether we’re cooking tofu and vegetables in her green kitchen, or intently watching L.A. traffic at random times of the day, there's a sense of comfort and nostalgia that radiates from Chamberlain’s new content. With little regard for the hustle and bustle of the outside world, it’s incredibly endearing to watch her cycle through daily routines, finding joy in trying new things. 

From daily high school vlogs, to living alone in L.A., to filming with the Sister Squad, there will always be something inexplicably timeless about Chamberlain’s content. A quick scroll through any one of her comment sections is typically filled with users trying to place their finger on the secret ingredient in her videos that keeps them coming back for more. Under one of Chamberlain’s most recent posts, a user commented, “how can a person be this effortlessly interesting?” For as long as I’ve watched her content, I’ve wondered the same. After all, there are very few people in the world with enough power and influence to singlehandedly raise an entire generation of VSCO girls, myself included. One thing I do know, however, is that citing Chamberlain’s relatability as her sole claim to fame is a massive oversight, one that fails to recognize the true essence of what sets her apart from other creators. No matter how much her lifestyle, editing or fashion changes, she’s unusually good at commercializing her individuality. She’s never shied away from online hate or speculation. She keeps her relationships private and has spent years building a loyal fanbase of viewers who return to her channel to watch her, and her alone. Chamberlain isn’t a one-trick pony who needs to build success based on the people she surrounds herself with. She keeps the spotlight keenly trained on herself, creating a uniquely intimate relationship with viewers that they can’t find anywhere else. And I haven’t even mentioned that her eclectic style is always years ahead of its time.

At any age, at any point in my life, visiting an old Emma video is like reliving the version of myself that I was when I first saw it. Growing alongside her is bittersweet, but no matter how many times she leaves and returns to YouTube, my parasocial relationship with Emma Chamberlain is one that I’ll always appreciate.

Charlotte Feehan is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at cgf47@cornell.edu.


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