Latest news with #ASMR
Buzz Feed
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Tom Cruise Eating Popcorn Is Going Viral
Tom Cruise is a whole It's been almost thirty years since hunky heartthrob Ethan Hunt (Tom) dangled from a ceiling in the first Mission: Impossible movie based on the 1966 TV series. The legendary leading man who's become a household name from the '80s and beyond is back in Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning. Truth be told, my jaw is on the floor because the action sequences look more dangerous than ever before. But, to my surprise, doing death-defying stunts in your late 50s/early 60s in one of the highest-grossing and long-running series of all time is not why Tommy is going viral. Eight movies of Tom's unbelievable stunts —jumping from helicopters, running from explosions, leaping from tall buildings, dangling from more helicopters — and THE BIGGEST STUNT GOING VIRAL IS HIM EATING POPCORN! In a video posted by user @seifwtf on X, Tom went in on a popcorn bucket, aggressively flinging pieces into his mouth at the BFI IMAX Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018) screening. Tom also received a BFI Fellowship at the BFI Chair's Dinner, but all folks wanted to talk about was this single moment of him eating a bag of popcorn. People had hilarious reactions to Tom's high-octane eating popcorn-eating technique. One person said, "this is how my dad eats popcorn." This person suggested that "someone hand him heavier popcorn," and maybe that would help. I can't believe somebody compared him to a Nep-Enut from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. This user said, "I have got to change the way I eat popcorn." Someone else said Tom is "Just leaving mountain of popcorn on the floor in his wake," and I'm curious if this is true. I love the way this person incorporated Mission: Impossible lore into their joke. "Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to get it in your mouth, not on the floor," they wrote. "Man, I'm eating popcorn," Tom said, laughing. "They know when I'm going to these movies that I'm watching, I'm eating popcorn." Tom Cruise is serious about cinema and the movie theater experience; his popcorn practices are just an element of that dedication. You remember this 2023 promotional video for Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning? In another viral video shared on X, Tom was urging a fan to "go get some more" popcorn since he ate it all before the movie began. One person asked, "If you've not finished your popcorn before the movie starts have you been been to the cinema?" Someone else suggested, "This dude can never go to the movies again. Just embarrassing," after being called out by Tom. Tom should make an ASMR channel where he eats different types of popcorn in different movie theaters. Based on the internet's reactions, it would do numbers.
Forbes
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Turning Her Facials Into ASMR Content Helped Make One Esthetician's Spa A Multimillion-Dollar Business: ‘Changed My Life Completely'
Esthetician Holly Tanella and Kaylee Dudley Kyndal Banks Three years ago, an idea from a colleague changed Holly Tanella's business—and her life—forever. In 2022, Tanella—who owns BOHO Alternative MedSpa in Allen, Texas—was speaking with her social media coordinator when she suggested that Tanella try taking the work she was already doing as an esthetician and turn it into ASMR content for TikTok. 'She said, 'Hey, I know ASMR is a big thing—you should do ASMR,'' Tanella tells me on Zoom. 'And I was like, 'You mean eating food?' Because that's the only ASMR I knew—eating food. I'm like, 'I don't know how that's going to tie into facials, my friend.'' ASMR stands for autonomous sensory meridian response, which, in layperson's terms, is a tingly feeling brought on by so-called 'triggers'—auditory or visual stimuli that vary person to person in their effectiveness. ASMR is widely considered to be relaxing and calming and can often lull a person to sleep—and personal attention videos (i.e. getting a facial, as is Tanella's content) continue to rise in popularity. Popular triggers include whispering, tapping and crinkling, and many ASMRtists (great name, huh?) offer roleplays in their videos. That's where Tanella differs—for her, there is an actual client on her table, brave enough to have their bare face be given a facial treatment on Tanella's channels as the world (or at least a corner of it) watches. Until they fall asleep, anyway. Holly Tanella in her treatment room. Kyndal Banks Back in 2022, Tanella's social media coordinator made it sound simple: 'She's like, 'No, do your facial, don't talk and just tap on things,'' Tanella recalls. 'I'm like, 'Okay, so just do what I normally do and shut the f— up and just tap.'' Tanella's first TikTok video hit 6 million views overnight. She thought it might be a fluke. So they produced another one, 'and, again, it was a multimillion-viewed video,' she says. Her third video, she says, got 45 million views 'and I got 500,000 followers from it,' she says. An ASMR star was born. Within a year, Tanella hit 1 million followers on TikTok—which, of course, is known for its shortform content. The masses began demanding longform content, asking to see the whole facial—not just a bite sized chunk of it. Last year, she started producing on YouTube and is expected to hit 1 million followers by summertime (as of this writing, she's at 865,000 subscribers and 847 videos). Tanella and her husband Trey run BOHO (as well as three other businesses together—'We're literally insane,' she says), and their five kids—who are YouTubers themselves—think it's so cool that mom is on the platform. (The kids have even appeared in YouTube videos getting a facial from mom.) The decision to add ASMR content has 'changed my life completely,' she tells me. Folks are flying into Allen, Texas—nearby Dallas—from all over the country 'because they want to come and get an ASMR facial, and they want to come in and experience it instead of just watching it,' she says. They're flocking in from California, Miami, New York and New Jersey, she says. 'Literally everywhere,' Tanella tells me. 'They come from all over. And it's high pressure. I actually get more nervous to see somebody who flies in to see me rather than seeing a high-tiered influencer because these people—they adore our channel and I appreciate them so much because they changed my life, but they do expect to have their life changed by a facial. So the bar—it better be a damn good facial if I'm flying from Florida.' Tanella Kyndal Banks ASMR has become such a part of BOHO that it has evolved into an ASMR MedSpa, including a forthcoming in-person ASMR facial where clients wear headphones and hear all the ASMR sounds that are so beloved while actually getting the treatment itself. Driving home Tanella's attention to detail, the headphones, she tells me, will be in the back of the ear so 'that way, when the head wrap goes on, it doesn't smash your ears,' she says. Tanella's content is innovative—think slime, think Pop Rocks, think jelly masks and marshmallow facials. It's not your average day at the spa. 'The BOHO experience is experiencing ecstasy,' she says, adding—as only a Texan can—'We love to basically melt your ass to our table, let you go to sleep and wake up with the skin of your dreams.' But while the facials are certainly fun (there's a Taylor Swift-themed facial, a Valentine's Day facial and a Halloween facial, for starters), Tanella isn't sacrificing quality for creativity, she tells me: 'People think that we're just a fluff and buff,' she says. 'I've been showing more of my before and after pictures, and I'm actually really good at skin correction. In the beauty industry, it's either you can only have fluffy, relaxing or a medical treatment where you're being tortured and then you leave. But I'm like, 'Why not have both?'' 'We really want to help people,' she says. 'Give them the skin of their dreams, but also give them a space where they can relax and rejuvenate and just f—king breathe.' BOHO has been in operation for 11 years, but after they started to go viral on TikTok, they more than tripled the amount of clients because of social media. After launching their BOHO Cleansing Balm in January 2024—which is used in nearly all of Tanella's ASMR videos, with clients frequently commenting on its aroma—'it immediately became our most popular cleanser, in-store and online,' Tanella says. As to its scent, 'If you've ever had Orange Julius, that's what it smells like,' she adds. BOHO's Shopify sales grew in 2023 by 74 percent from the previous year, with 35 percent of all online product sales coming from social media—and 74 percent of that coming from TikTok. (That platform is BOHO's leading source of organic traffic and engagement.) Tanella's skincare line, Bohemia Skin, had a 248 percent increase in sales from BOHO, with posts highlighting a specific product leading to immediate surges in sales—'up to 150 percent above daily averages within the first two hours of posting,' Tanella says. 'ASMR was one of the biggest ways BOHO was able to become a multimillion-dollar business, but it also helped me find my true calling of healing people through their sleep,' she tells me. 'It helped me build BOHO into something much more profound and allowed me to connect with people on a deeper level—not just through skincare, but through healing.' Tanella wants to bring BOHO to everyone, she says, adding that 'ASMR gave me the platform to do that. Facials are just the beginning. Healing is my life's work.' Some of the faces seen in BOHO's ASMR facials on YouTube are from longtime clients; some are people who specifically come to BOHO to be in videos. 'I do have a lot of clients that are my own clients, and it started with me [saying], 'Hey, can I film? I'll give you a free treatment, a free add-on or a mask.'' Since 2020, Tanella has worked with influencers and content creators, originally just doing Instagram Stories and, since joining the platforms, expanding onto TikTok and YouTube. 'I found that it's been one of the best ways to grow my business,' she says. These days, influencers are reaching out to her, 'and they want to be filmed, because now it's become a clout thing,' Tanella says. Kaylee Dudley Kyndal Banks One content creator, Kaylee Dudley, often appears in BOHO's ASMR videos. 'She put me on the map for bigger influencers,' Tanella tells me of Dudley, and their business partnership is taking a big leap forward this month when they launch an oxygen-infused serum together under the Bohemia Skin line. 'Kaylee has always wanted to do skincare, and I was like, 'Why don't we do something together?'' Tanella says. Dudley is known for her glow, Tanella says, and 'this serum, in a nutshell, is meant to give you the super glow—like glass skin, mega glow.' The serum will join Bohemia Skin's product lineup, which includes the cleanser, a gua sha tool and fan brushes. Dudley, who is also from Dallas, tells me on Zoom that Tanella's videos on Instagram—which were sent to her from a friend—piqued her interest. 'And I never even had facials done in my life, so I was super interested and intrigued,' she tells me. Dudley says that she started going to BOHO when she was pregnant, and 'I had a lot of acne and she was like, 'I want to help you get through this,'' Dudley says. 'She completely transformed my skin. I feel like I owe her so much.' From there, a friendship developed, and Dudley—who boasts 1 million Instagram followers—eventually ended up appearing in a number of Tanella's ASMR facials on YouTube. 'I don't really feel 100 percent comfortable with my face, but I also want to be relatable,' Dudley says. 'And I know I did have a lot of acne scars that Holly has helped me through that I got from my pregnancy.' Postpartum, Tanella was doing treatments like microneedling to help Dudley with those scars, and the two got the idea to start documenting Dudley's skincare journey. 'And I am not going to lie—I was very nervous to show my face at first,' she says of the vulnerable experience of having your bare face watched by the world. 'But everybody's always so kind, and you do get used to it.' Plus, she says of Tanella, 'you feel like you're in great hands. I always feel comfortable—I trust her completely.' Tanella's setup for filming ASMR facial content. Kyndal Banks 'She's such an expert at what she does, but I just feel so taken care of and I feel relaxed,' Dudley adds. 'Even filming content, I feel relaxed. There's times where we're filming and I'm like, 'I'm going to fall asleep,' even though I know I'm being filmed.' As for watching her videos back? 'I will watch some of them,' she says, adding that 'it is a little hard for me to watch myself, but I'm the same way with even my content.' 'I don't love seeing myself, but it is cool seeing the other side—what other people are seeing—and I can feel what she's doing, but seeing it back is always kind of cool because I'm like, oh wow, I knew she was doing a good job, but seeing her hands work—the magic of what she's doing—it's pretty cool.' Prior to doing ASMR facials at BOHO, Dudley would watch ASMR unboxing videos and cleaning videos. 'I just love the sound of everything,' she says. 'It's so crisp, and it's very relaxing. And so, when I started watching the facials, I was like, 'This is a whole new world.'' Dudley called Tanella putting her work in ASMR form 'a very genius way to promote, not only her products but her business. I think it's probably pulled in a lot of customers—people that may have never even thought of getting facials.' 'I think that she has something really good going, and you don't really see a lot of ASMR facial channels, and if you see them, they're probably getting the idea from BOHO,' Dudley says. Among other types of roleplays, Sarah Lavender—a full-time ASMRtist with 452,000 subscribers and 353 videos on YouTube as of this writing—does personal attention ASMR work on her channel. Lavender's first exposure to ASMR was about 10 years ago when she was in school for mechanical engineering and 'I was very anxious during that time in my life, and I had a friend recommend ASMR to me,' she tells me on Zoom. 'I would listen to it while I was studying,' Lavender says. After she graduated, she became an engineer, 'and I decided just for fun to try making a video,' she says. The key to quality ASMR? A good microphone, and Lavender was in luck—her fiance is a musician, and he had a good mic on hand. 'So I made a video, and then it did okay,' she says. 'And then I kept doing it for fun, and then maybe six months later I had a viral video.' This video—Lavender's first medical roleplay—went viral in July 2019. By November of that same year, she'd quit her job as an engineer to do ASMR full-time. 'I was like, 'Maybe I'll try this and see where this goes,'' she says. Over five years later, she's still at it. Her channel has expanded from roleplays to book reviews and her popular Pomodoro series, 'which is nice,' she says. 'I started listening to ASMR as a student, so it's nice coming full circle and making 'study with me' videos.' Sarah Lavender Courtesy of Sarah Lavender Most of her revenue comes from Google AdSense, she tells me—the ads that play in the beginning of her videos. For ASMRtist, ads can really only play at the beginning of the video—you can't interrupt soft-spoken, whispered sleep content with a loud ad that would wake your viewer up. (A very quick way to lose followers.) Lavender also does about two to three sponsorships a month, and she also has a Patreon, which brings in income, as well. (On the side, in addition to being an ASMRtist she is an artist—'I draw and paint and stuff,' she says. 'And I send it to supporters on Patreon.') She also makes money by distributing her videos on Spotify and Apple Music, but 'those don't pay as well as YouTube—but that is a part of it too,' she says. Lavender is currently in a moment where, after five years away from the engineering field, 'I'm starting to be faced with the reality that getting a job as an engineer again will start being really difficult the longer I spend away from that field,' she says. 'I think that's the risk anyone takes quitting their career trajectory.' After five years, she says, she's coming to terms with the fact that her ASMR career 'isn't going to last forever,' she tells me. 'And I think it's unrealistic to treat it like it is.' For the first two years she was a full-time ASMRtist, she reduced her own consumption of ASMR because 'it became my job, [and] when I would watch other people's videos whose content was similar to mine, I'd be like, 'Oh, they're doing it so much better. Their mic sounds so much better.' I was working. Or like, 'Where'd she get that trigger?'' She's back listening to ASMR again, 'mainly listening to people whose style is different from my own.' She adds, 'I am learning Spanish, so I'll listen to Spanish ASMR just to make it different than what I do.' 'It is weird how a hobby turning into a job is—everyone thinks it's a dream, but it's exhausting sometimes,' Lavender says, adding that her supportive community of loyal followers has kept her going. 'Once you reach a certain size, you're still going to get bad apples constantly,' she says of viewer feedback. 'But, like, 99, 98 percent of my comments are really sweet.' Lavender Courtesy of Sarah Lavender Lavender isn't sure there's a ceiling with ASMR on YouTube, but tells me that 'the internet's so fickle that, even when you think there's no ceiling, you can very quickly fall out of favor with the algorithm.' Lavender is currently getting a little over 2 million views per month and is earning more than what she was earning as an engineer, she tells me, 'but I'm not earning 'I never have to work again' kind of money.' There are ASMRtists who are making that kind of money, but as for her viewership, 'sometimes it goes up and sometimes it goes down,' she says. As she begins to think about the next 30 years of her life, she can't help but consider the 'question of when it's going to keep going down.' 'At the point I'm at now, it's still a good job,' she tells me. 'So I'm not too stressed about it. But it's definitely not up and away forever and ever.' Tanella Kyndal Banks ASMR has changed Tanella's business, but what's next for BOHO? Well, for starters, more ASMR content—and with Tanella coming out from behind the camera to in front of it 'to get to know me more,' she says. She tells me she wants to continue to expand her skincare line, continue to create 'very niche facials that you can only get at BOHO MedSpa' and eventually franchise BOHO to other locations. Mostly, though, Tanella wants to continue healing work that she says she feels called to do. 'I get so many emails of people telling me how much I've helped them in their everyday life,' she says. 'People who have crippling anxiety or depression—they don't feel like they can live in the world. My channel is a safe place for them, and I just feel so honored to put the world to sleep.'
Time Out
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
I got a head spa treatment, and now I never want to wash my own hair again
Years ago, I was at a media dinner, seated near a group of girls I'd never met, when I heard the most absurd thing to ever come out of a peer's mouth: 'I haven't washed my own hair in years,' said the woman with the shiniest locks I'd ever seen. Surely, she doesn't mean she doesn't wash it at all—it's the most beautiful mane. It took me a moment to realize what she was actually saying: she pays someone to wash her hair (and blow it out, presumably). I'm no stranger to Glamsquad and blowouts, but the idea of regularly paying someone to wash my hair never occurred to me—nor did I think it was a worthwhile expense. I can shampoo my own hair, thank you very much. All that changed last week at Face. Brow & Beauty Bar, when a nice woman named Jery introduced me to the wonders of a head spa treatment. Now, I never want to go near a shampoo bottle again. (I need to find a way to make this new addiction work financially because it was worth every penny.) The experience is more than just a regular wash and dry—it's all about the science of scalp care. It started with a thorough examination using a scalp-analyzing machine, where Jery checked for dryness, flaking, or any conditions needing special attention. I was two days post-hair wash with a typical amount of oil build-up, but nothing requiring extra care. For anyone worried about hair loss or underlying scalp issues, there's a high-frequency comb and meridian brush that helps stimulate growth. With nothing major to treat, we moved to the treatment area. Curtained off from the salon's main area, the private treatment room features a massage-style bed with a fancy sink at the end. I instantly recognized the water halo I'd seen all over Instagram and got excited. Head spa treatments vary in length and intensity; mine was right in the middle—the 45-minute 'Serenity Escape' with scalp stimulation, massage, and a blend of soothing oils and shampoos tailored to my scalp's needs. There's a definite ASMR vibe, amplifying the pleasure of having someone dote on your scalp. Shampoo is meticulously painted on with a small brush, section by section. Before each new step, Jery lightly tapped her fingernails on glass vessels near my ears—all while a meditative hum lulled me into total relaxation. Water halo therapy—a low-pressure hydro massage—gently rinsed away the remaining products before a proprietary dry oil was applied as the final touch. I doubled down on bliss and opted for a blowout post-head spa. Jery checked my scalp one more time before drying my tresses, and even without pre-existing issues, the difference was noticeable. My follicles practically sparkled under the microscope, and my scalp looked visibly cleaner and healthier, even to my untrained eye. While I'd love someone to pamper my scalp weekly, it's just not feasible for me financially or time-wise. The treatment/combo took about 90 minutes and costs $150. But my morning at the head spa definitely opened me up to the idea of treating myself more often—if only to get one step closer to never washing my own hair again.
Daily Mirror
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Catholic priest turned social media icon goes viral on TikTok with ASMR videos
Father Simon Teller, a Dominican priest at Providence College, is gaining viral fame on TikTok with his calming ASMR videos of Mass preparations, captivating millions online In an unlikely marriage of faith and modern media, Father Simon Teller, a Dominican chaplain at Providence College in Rhode Island, has found fame on TikTok. His soothing ASMR -style videos, which capture the quiet and careful preparation for Catholic Mass, have struck a chord with millions, offering a peaceful moment of spirituality in the online world. Known to his growing fanbase as @fathersimonteller, Father Simon has racked up more than 185,000 followers. His clips, filled with the gentle clink of chalices and the soft rustle of liturgical garments, give viewers an unexpectedly calming insight into the sacred rituals of the Church. One of his most popular videos, simply captioned 'Setting up for Easter Mass,' has racked up over 2.3 million likes. Another, filmed ahead of the Easter Vigil and tagged with #easter #catholic #asmr, received over 14,000 likes, showing just how far his gentle touch has travelled. The comments beneath his posts are a mix of surprise and delight. 'Never in my 27 years of life did I expect to see this,' wrote one viewer. Another confessed: 'I didn't realise how bad I needed Catholic ASMR.' One commenter said: 'GRWM [Get ready with me] to serve (the body of Christ)." And in perhaps the most telling sign of the times, someone quipped: 'Even the priests are content creators now.' But for Father Simon, this isn't just about going viral. It's about connection. 'A priest is someone who you can have as a friend, a mentor, a companion,' he told WCVB. 'Someone who is not just a person you see in the pulpit on Sundays.' He's also known on campus for his creative approach to teaching. One of his courses, called CIV: Taylor's Version, is a creative adaptation of the college's required Western Civilization curriculum and explores big themes like happiness and morality through the works of Taylor Swift, Dante, and Shakespeare. Unsurprisingly, it's become a student favourite. Music is another outlet for Father Simon's talents. He's part of a folk and bluegrass band of Dominican friars called The Hillbilly Thomists. Their latest album, Marigold, reached number two on the Billboard Bluegrass charts last year, including a guest spot with the Zac Brown Band. His path to the priesthood wasn't exactly traditional. Before donning the white robes, he worked in the oil industry, did shifts in construction, and even made a living as a street performer in Asheville. These experiences have shaped a ministry that feels grounded, accessible, and refreshingly human. Unsurprisingly, his students adore him. One even joked: 'He's like the most famous person I know! And it's like, I have his phone number. I can text a famous person!' Through it all, Father Simon remains focused on his mission. 'There's not a lot of cons to trying something new and creative,' he's said, reflecting on his unexpected TikTok journey. 'It's all about finding new ways to share the Gospel.' And perhaps that's what makes his videos so compelling. They're not just calming, they're authentic.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Watch: Viral 'You Are What You Eat' AI video is pure mukbang nightmare fuel
What's the opposite of ASMR? We might have found it. On the Reddit /aivideo subreddit, a video titled "You Are What You Eat" is going viral, and we can't look away. The AI-generated video depicts people made of food eating said food, i.e., a sushi man eating a sushi roll, or a man made of yogurt chomping down on a yogurt bowl. The exact video going viral on Reddit is also worth watching in its entirety, though you may find it deeply unsettling: The video is a compilation of clips from abstract visual artist Bennett Waisbren, who shares his creations on Instagram and YouTube. Waisbren told Mashable in an email that the nightmare-inducing videos are inspired by mukbang videos. "The series grew out of my fascination with viral mukbang culture and ASMR. I love pairing hyper-real visuals with rich sound design, so blending the two felt natural," Waisbren said. AI video tools like Sora from OpenAI and are getting more sophisticated, but the use of artificial intelligence in the arts remains highly controversial. "These pieces darkly riff on the adage 'you are what you eat,' adding a visceral, almost body-horror twist that spotlights the modern pull of gluttony. My goal is to create visuals that hit instantly and force viewers to confront their own complicated relationship with food," Waisbren said. You can find additional "You Are What You Eat" videos on YouTube, though turn the sound on at your own risk.
