Lexy Silverstein: You’ll never believe who I have on this week’s episode of eLEXYfy: The Place for Fashion podcast. She’s a content creator focused on fashion, wellness, and everything in between. Hey Morgan, how are you?
Morgan Gardiner: Hi, I’m good. How are you doing?
Lexi: I’m so good! I’m so excited to have you on today. So for those who don’t know you, tell us a little bit about yourself.
I’m 19. I live in San Diego, Southern California. I’m a fashionista through and through. I love fashion. I’m a Virgo, if anyone was curious. Virgo, Centaurus moon, Aquarius rising for my astrology ladies out there. And I just have a lot of interests, but I’m very vintage, I guess you could say. Very 70s.
Lexy: I love it. I love it. And like I’m obsessed with your content. I think I started following you when – oh god, I don’t even remember – but you were doing like this one dance…
Morgan: I know what you’re talking about
Lexy: It was very often, and I just loved your energy. And I was like, this girl just like –
Morgan: It was the deja vu September remix, wasn’t it? I accidentally started a TikTok dance and it like took off.
Lexy: I loved it. I loved it. I was like, this girl has so much energy, and I just love it. And so I immediately started following you, and then I saw that you were into vintage stuff, and I just loved your whole 70s vibe to you. So that’s so cool.
How did you first get into fashion?
Lexy: So how did you first really get into fashion and becoming a fashionista?
Morgan: Okay, like growing up, I was always a very fashionable kid. My parents let me pick up my outfits all the time. Very iconic. Like, I was rocking tutus and suspenders like knee-high socks, like middle school. Well, that was more elementary school because then when I got into middle school, I lost all of my fashion sense and became very tomboy-esque. I just didn’t know how to dress myself anymore, and I kind of fed into this notion that I was very tomboyish. And I remember feeling scared to dress like feminine, girly. People would make fun of me for wearing dresses, so I was scared to dress girly. And then I, not until like high school, did I really start to find my style again. Like, I knew I was always like fashionable because like I did it as a kid, but when I was in middle school and like early high school, I felt like I would get made fun of for dressing how I felt, so I stopped. Sorry, my dogs are breaking.
Lexy: It’s okay. I have dogs. I have a dog too. I don’t know why, but she’s actually sleeping right now. Usually, she’ll be like, “Oh!”
Morgan: That’s good. My dogs are crazy. Sorry, I’ll wait for them to stop barking. Oh, good. Okay.
But yeah, so when I got around like sophomore year of high school, I really started to find my vintage style and like my personal style again. But that’s kind of where it all started.
How did you get into vintage?
Lexy: And so how did you get specifically into vintage? Are you a big thrifter, or was it for sustainable purposes or money purposes, or like what? What got you into vintage fashion?
Morgan: It was definitely a combination of things, I’d say. It all started like I said, it was very bland, like the first year of high school. And there’s nothing wrong with being basic because basic is basic for a reason, you know?
But I was dressing like everyone else, and I started to explore more 70s rock music. I started to fall in love with Fleetwood Mac and Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, and the world of classic rock really consumed my lifestyle. And just throughout the next two to three years, my style slowly evolved into what I would consider it sort of nowadays, but it really started with music.
And then the thrifting thing started with not having money, and so it was like this combination of wearing secondhand clothes because I couldn’t afford to buy the new stuff because it was so expensive, and then also just really trying to find my style.
And when I was thrifting, it wasn’t as popular yet, so it wasn’t super hard to find good stuff. You know, now everyone’s thrifting, so it can be hard to find good pieces. But I started when it was not as popular, and so it was really fun for me being able to go find one-of-a-kind pieces that no one could dress like.
Lexy: Yeah, no, I love thrifting. I feel like I completely had a very similar situation where I remember in elementary school, for our fifth grade graduation which I don’t know why that’s a thing, I was all about wearing super neon things, and I remember that I got this fringe infinity scarf and I decided to wear it. It was so bad, it was so bad. We don’t need to talk about it.
But I decided to wear it like a shirt, and I took a belt and I made it. I made the infinity scarf into a shirt. And then I got to middle school, and it was again, nothing wrong with like Lululemon and stuff like that, but that’s all I wore. And then not like that…
Morgan: I just was a leggings girl.
Lexy: I’m like, “I don’t think it’s like me as a person anymore,” and I didn’t realize that at the time. But I think that I was just doing like what was on trend and like what would make me not stick out, basically, because I was also like worried about being made fun of, and I was made fun of. I remember one time I literally wore flared jeans, flared jeans. Oh God, imagine, to school, and they were like barely flared…
Morgan: How bold of you.
Lexy: Oh God, like a mad, how could I? How could you? How dare I? But I remember people kept coming up to me, and they were like, “Why did you wear that to school?” And I was like, “What the heck?” I was like, “You’re bold for literally saying that,” and like, not only that, but saying it to my face, and I was like, “Okay, like actually, I don’t know, bro. Maybe because I don’t want to wear Lululemon today. Like, leave me alone.” And so I feel like I completely agree. And then I got out of high school, and it was kind of like the end of high school and beginning of college and stuff like that, and I was like, “You know what? Who gives a [ __ ] what other people think?”
Morgan: And you need to graduate high school. Really, anyone who’s in high school, when they ask me for advice, I’m like, “Baby, things change. Just wait.”
Lexy: And it’s so funny because people are always like, “Oh my God, you find who you are in college,” or “You meet the right people,” and like all that stuff. And it’s like yeah, everyone says that, but I’m like there’s a reason why everyone says that. I’m like, it’s because it’s true.
Morgan: Yeah, exactly.
Lexy: Yeah, and I’m like, it’s so funny how I even like last year, like my first year of college, like I look back and I’m like, who was that? That’s not me.
Morgan: No, me every single year looking at my Tiktoks, who the [ __ ] are you, where did you come from?
Lexy: That trend right now that’s going on where it’s like…
Morgan: The February trend? Where you look at your past 4 selves?
Lexy: Yeah the past four years and I’m like, oh god, I don’t even, like…
Morgan: I don’t even want to look at it, 2019 was four years ago.
Lexy: Oh god,
Morgan: This is actually insane to think about.
Lexy: Oh god, what the heck.
Morgan: I know, I saw someone comment 2019 was four years ago and I’m like, what the [ __ ]? Like, that’s so crazy. I can’t fathom.
Lexy: Oh my god, you know, I’m having like a midlife crisis and I’m 18 years old. Oh god, what the heck?
Morgan: I go through those like once a week.
Lexy: I know, like last week I was like, I was like, you know what, I’m really bored of looking at myself, let’s just dye my hair brown. And then, and then two days later, I dyed it red and I was like, okay, this is good.
Morgan: You’re satisfied for now.
Lexy: For now, I’ll probably take it.
Morgan: Are you a hair dyer, like do you change your hair color a lot?
Lexy: I have had blonde hair pretty much my entire life. Like I, maybe in middle school, you know, when like um, what was it like
Morgan: Kool-aid? Are you talking about…
Lexy: Kool-aid dye. Oh god, I did like the dip, the tips.
Morgan: I know what you’re talking about.
Lexy: Awful, awful, but I don’t know, I’ve had blonde hair always. So this was the first time with a really big change.
Morgan: But did you have an identity crisis or did you like it? Because when I dyed my hair, my world was shook. [Laughter]
Lexy: Um, I feel like, I don’t know, it’s like, it’s the kind of dye that after like a few washes, they’re not, a few washes or like, maybe it’s kind of permanent, yeah.
Morgan: It’s semi-permanent.
Lexy: It’s semi-permanent. So I wasn’t too worried about it. I always do it at like one in the morning and I’m like, oh god, I hate it. And then the next day, I’ll put some makeup on, it’s like that,
Morgan: You need the makeup with that, I get that.
Lexy: Yeah, you need that. I like, I have to get the full look before I’m like, ah, do I look good?
Morgan: I dyed my hair for the first time this summer and I went like ginger, because like this isn’t what I’m my, I’m like redhead right now and it’s not natural. I’m a natural dirty blonde and I’d never dyed my hair. I always had really healthy hair, so I was like, why would I die if I could just keep it healthy, you know? And I was like, I’m ready for a change. Like I was going on a vacation. I’m like, [ __ ] it, let me dye my hair.
And I showed the lady, like my hairdresser, a picture of this light, strawberry blonde ginger hair. And my hair came out maroon, like dark red, and I was like, “I didn’t know how to tell her because she was a family friend.” And I cried all night. And then I woke up the next morning and I saw myself in the mirror at 6:30. I forgot that I dyed my hair the night before, so I was like fine. And then I saw myself in the mirror and I was like, “No, like no. This isn’t me.” And I texted her at 6am like, “We need to fix this.”
Lexy: Oh my god, oh my god. That’s the funniest thing, is when you feel bad that you do something and then you wake up and you’re like,
Morgan: I have to live with this.
Lexy: These are my decisions, so yikes.
Has being a vintage advocate brought you into the sustainable side of fashion?
Lexy: Well, back to the questions. So, is being a vintage, you know, advocate, drifter, shopper, all that jazz, has that brought you more on to the sustainable sides of fashion? I’m a huge sustainable fashion advocate, so I always like talking about sustainability. Is that something that you’re interested in because of vintage fashion?
Morgan: Totally, totally. So, along with thrifting because I couldn’t afford it (well, because I could afford thrifting and not other clothes), I was also doing it because it was good for the environment.
And it’s hard for me to speak about things like this online because no matter what I say, people can be very ruthless. And I don’t always feel like I have a place to confidently speak my mind without getting harassed. So, I don’t talk about it too much, but I am a sustainable, I guess you could say, advocate.
I think that there is a stigma around being a sustainable clothing advocate though that you can’t enjoy the unsustainable things in life. And that it’s hard to label yourself as sustainable, because living is not sustainable in this day and age. I personally love sustainable fashion for myself personally. Almost everything I buy is secondhand or like a sustainable brand.
But now that I have more of a following, I get PR and with that, you know, comes new pieces. But I don’t buy new pieces with my own money. It’s either thrifted or gifted. That’s usually what my closet is. And I just try to only say yes to the things that I need. And I try to say yes to things that I don’t always need so I can share it with the people in my life that maybe can’t afford it but want it, because that’s a perk of getting PR.
But at the end of the day, I do consider myself a more sustainable creator. I just don’t like to talk about it too much because it’s difficult to ethically consume and be in the fashion community online. It’s so hard.
Lexy: Definitely. Yeah, I feel like there is, like you said, a stigma. There’s, I feel like in general, there’s just so much judgment going around in the fashion industry whether it’s like you’re shopping fast fashion or you’re trying to shop sustainably. And I think what people need to realize is that we’re all human and we make mistakes and we can’t always be perfect 100% of the time. And it’s more about not shaming people when they buy from a fast fashion site but encouraging people when they buy from a sustainable one or you know, they’re thrifting or secondhand shopping instead.
Morgan: Positive reinforcement.
Lexy: Yes, exactly. Positive reinforcement. And I feel like that is lost a lot of the time, especially on apps like TikTok where I feel like people are so ruthless.
Morgan: Literally. So is ethical consumption.
Lexy: Yeah, yeah. And there’s just so much more to sustainable fashion than people know about. So yeah, but I love to talk to people that are interested in stuff like that. And I mean, putting yourself out there as a vintage advocate person, like that’s still…
Morgan: It’s just secondhand.
Lexy: You don’t stop being sustainable even if you’re marketing it just basically in a different way. So, I love to see it. I love to see it. I love to see it.
Why did you originally join TikTok?
Lexy: Let’s talk about your social media journey. So, like I said, I found you on TikTok. How did you join originally? Did you join to make it a platform that you were going to have as a career, or did you just join for fun and then randomly blow up and now you’re here?
Morgan: I feel like that question is always a lot to unpack because there are so many different things that went into my TikTok.
Okay, well, let’s go way back. Like, I was a Musical.ly user, oh yeah, like middle school. I was out here making Musical.lys, lip syncing and everything. So glad that you can’t find those anymore.
Lexy: I was gonna say, you should repost them and just…
Morgan: Oh no. I probably deleted it. Like, I never used it in high school, and I don’t know when TikTok came out. I think it was maybe like 2018 or 2019. Yeah, I was a TikTok hater. I was like, “F**k TikTok, this thing is stupid. It’s so cringy. Who would even use TikTok? Literally, why would they name an app TikTok? What the hell is this?” Right? Like, I hated it. And then COVID happened, and I was like, “Okay, everyone’s talking about it. Let me download it, you know, see what’s good.”
The thing I didn’t like about it at first was like, you have to consume a lot before you can get your “For You” page to be, like, for you. And so, that’s why I didn’t like it at first because I didn’t feel like the content was even interesting, but it’s just because it wasn’t catered to myself yet, you know? So, I was just scrolling here and there out of boredom.
And I didn’t mention this earlier, but part of thrifting when I was younger was reselling clothes. That was one of my first jobs. I did it when I was 15. I didn’t have a license, and I would resell clothes. So, I made a couple TikTok videos trying to show how I was doing style bundles because before I was on social media, people were paying me to style them. So, I would go thrift, they would send me a chunk of money, I would go thrift them some outfits.
And I started making TikToks out of it because I thought that I wanted to be a reseller for the rest of my life. So glad I’m not, honestly, it’s a lot of work. But that’s where I started making TikToks from. It was like that, the occasional friends and family TikTok that was stupid, just posting for my 50 followers.
And one day, a video blew up for me. I hadn’t touched TikTok in months because my parents had just gotten divorced. I was going through a move, like I was just going through big life changes and I had just moved into the place that I’m in now, which, I think, has a lot to do with my growth because my room is very ’70s.
But I just put down my phone and I filmed a video of me dancing which I, like, never done on TikTok, but I was like, “hey f*** it, let me just post something goofy” and it blew up. Like, I think it got like half a million views, and you know, for someone who got like 100 views on a video, that was crazy. You know, this could, this could be something, because growing up I always thought people who did this were really cool. I just didn’t feel like I was. I was insecure, and so I honestly would make fun of people who are doing what I’m doing now as a kid, like, you know what I mean?
Like, when I was going to be like, “dude, what the heck is an influencer?” Really, it’s funny how things change. But I kind of got over that insecurity of posting because I was like, “well, people like it.” So I took the opportunity of my video blowing up and posted every single day for the next, like, six months, I think. Like, six months went by where I posted at least a video every single day because I took my one video blowing up as an opportunity. And the whole week of my daily posting, my videos were blowing up, like, getting hundreds of thousands of views every single day.
And I don’t know what happened. I literally felt like a chosen one, which is so weird. But I’ve talked to other TikTokers too, and the same thing happened where it’s just like one day a video blows up, and then it just keeps happening, and so I grew really fast. Well, not really fast because there’s people who get like millions of followers in a couple of days, like that’s not me. But within a few months, I had like three hundred thousand on TikTok, and I was like, “oh my god, brands want to pay me, I can do something with this,” and that’s kind of where that all started. Very all over the place, but yeah, that’s kind of how my TikTok started.
Lexy: That’s so cool. Yeah, I was literally the exact same way. I remember all my friends were like, I would sit outside of our dance class after school, and all my friends were making TikToks and learning the dances. I remember it was like when Renegades was huge.
Morgan: Yeah, that’s what happened for me.
Lexy: And I remember I was like, “what the heck is this dance?” And I remember that for, um, so the dance team at my school, we would do what was called palms, and we would do what was called, um, I think it was like bombs or something. And it was boy palms, and we would get some of the guys in our grade to do a dance for one of the pep rallies, and I remember we taught them Renegade. And I was sitting there, and I was like, “I do not know what this dance is. Why is everyone doing it?” And I was like, “oh, I’m not like the other girls. I’m not gonna download TikTok.” And then literally the exact same thing, like a few weeks before COVID, I just started going on it and, like, you know, scrolling through it. And I was like, “oh, this is actually a fun app, and like maybe I shouldn’t be…
Morgan: It’s addictive.
Lexy: Yeah, and then I got addicted to it. And I was definitely guilty of that. But we literally had the exact same experience. I feel like I know so many people who are like, “Oh my god, I hated TikTok,” and I was like, “Don’t say that.”
Morgan: I was an avid TikTok hater.
Lexy: Like literally protesting it.
Morgan: Yeah, like it was disgusting. I was like, “How could you ever use it?” I would cringe at my friends or be like, “Why are you on there?”
I feel like… something that’s crazy though is seeing the growth emotionally with me being on social media, because like I said earlier, I used to make fun of people. And I’m not trying to say that I was a bully or anything, but more like internally, I would judge people for being on social media because it always felt silly, it always felt cringey. But that’s because deep down, I wish I could have been doing it. I feel like that’s where all the insecurities come from, you know, and I was judging these people as a 14-15 year old. And it’d be funny to know that four years later, I would be one of those people. And you really just have to overcome that fear of people making fun of you because the second you stop caring, the second you become successful.
Lexy: I think Michaela Hedereman said once on her story, like what you just said, that basically when you’re jealous of people, it’s because there’s a pretty high possibility that you’re jealous because you know they’re doing something that you wish you could do. They’re doing something that for some reason in your mind, you think you can’t do.
So then I started thinking about that and I was like, “That’s so true.” And I’m like, so when I’m jealous of people or when I’m in my head, because obviously I don’t think I’ve ever left a hate comment or said anything…
Morgan: Never. I’m not a hater.
Lexy: But in my head, I did probably exactly what you did where I’m just like, “Why would you be on that app?” And then I’m like, yeah, if you step back and you’re like, “Oh wait, it’s because I actually do want to start posting on the app like an influencer stuff like that.”
Morgan: Having the realization that you’re annoyed at somebody, most of the time, you’re jealous of somebody because they’re doing something you wish you could be doing. It’s so opening because ever since I realized that, I’ve been so much less judgmental. And it’s also made me realize how badly I want something and I’m unwilling to go for it out of insecurity. I feel like there’s a lot of growth that happens when you realize you want something someone else has.
Lexy: Yeah, exactly. And then you have to think and be like, “Okay, well why am I not doing that? Is that something that I could do?” And then maybe you go and do it and you stop being a jealous human being because you also have the ability to go and do the same things that other people are doing. There’s enough space in the world for all of us to grow and succeed, and I feel like that is something that gets lost a lot.
If someone found your TikTok or Instagram, what would you want them to take away from your profile and from you?
Lexy: That’s so great that you were able to grow like that. And now that you have this platform, I feel like the other thing with social media is sometimes there’s a misconception or when you view someone’s page, you’re just viewing their photos and videos and it’s hard to really know a person. So if someone was scrolling through your page and found your TikTok or Instagram, what would you want them to take away from your profile and from you?
Morgan: My goal on social media is to spread kindness and inspire people to be themselves. I deal with this issue a lot internally of feeling like I don’t have a substantial position online being a fashion creator. Like I said, I don’t talk about politics much online because I can’t handle the heat. I just literally can’t handle the heat. Like, I’m an empathetic person, and I don’t like being hated on. It hurts my feelings.
And because of that, I just decided that I would really stick to what I can confidently speak on, and that is fashion and that is like being happy, having good vibes, or whatever. And I’ve noticed that it can feel like I don’t have a position to be speaking online. Like, I think that my platform is useless in a sense because I’m not sharing those things. But what I wish people could know is that there is like a place for just going somewhere to be happy and going somewhere to be inspired by things. Because if the internet was full of only the sad things going on in life, people wouldn’t be on the internet.
And also, it’s like I think seeing a fashion creator’s content can feel shallow sometimes, but I’m a very deep, intellectual person. And I think it’s easy to miss that when you’re just seeing pictures of me posing with my hands in the air, you know? I’m a fashion creator, but deep down, I’m very considerate and caring. And I’m very nice. And I think it’s easy to lose that on social media.
Lexy: No, definitely. I think that social media obviously has so many pros and cons. And you’re able to meet people like how we met through social media. But there’s also like, like you said, if you’re looking at my profile or something and you just see me taking pictures and clothes and like, I don’t know, like you’re not gonna get a full description of who I am as a person through that.
I love that though because when you go to your Instagram, your bio is like “fashion, wellness, and everything in between.” And so I love that you know, like yes, we get some fashion, but we also get like, you know, some joy, something to brighten up. I feel like you’re just such like, such great energy to you. And so like whenever I see your profile, I’m like, “Oh my God, yes, she’s dancing, she’s picking up.”
Morgan: Oh my God, thanks.
Lexy: Of course.
Morgan: One more thing that I thought of, sorry, is that okay if I go?
Lexy: Oh my God, yeah.
Morgan: Okay, one more thing that I was thinking about with social media. And this kind of I think about this because I used to think this way as a young teenager. But when I see, when I used to see other people’s social media pages, and I’m assuming people think this way when they see mine, is that like, I don’t work for anything. I feel like it’s a really common misconception, that people on social media don’t work for what they have. But I really do work, like 50 hours a week sometimes. And I wish that people could see that. Like, there’s so much more than just getting free stuff and taking cute pictures.
And I just, it’s the same thing. Like, I think that it’s just, I wish people could see, and like, I wish people knew that I was a hard worker and that I really have drive, and I think it’s easy to get lost.
Lexy: No, definitely. And I always say this, but, um, you know, like the content creator industry, it’s, you know, it’s decently new, and it’s primarily a woman-run industry, and it’s very, like, laughed upon. And what’s interesting is that it’s literally just marketing, just in a new way, and…
Morgan: It clearly is marketing.
Lexy: It’s literally just marketing, which has been around forever, and, um, you know, brands that aren’t, like, using social media nowadays and brands that aren’t using content creators to their full advantage are…
Morgan: Getting forgotten about.
Lexy: …not succeeding. Yeah, they’re literally getting left in the dust. And so it’s interesting how we’ll get made fun of because we just take pictures with clothes, which isn’t true. I literally am always working.
Morgan: I have a podcast. I don’t think people realize how much work goes into it, like having to listen to yourself over and over again for hours. That’s literally why I can’t get them out weekly anymore, is because it’s hard to feel like you have something substantial to say. I don’t want to be like putting out stuff and you probably feel that way too. Like creating is sometimes when you’re just the only one speaking on camera, you’re like, is what I’m about to post and say actually going to change someone’s life or am I just doing this to get likes, you know?
Lexy: Yeah, no, yeah, it’s like, and like, you know, like there’s like creative blocks, just like how like when a writer, an author is trying to write a book and they can’t, they’re having like a block in their writing, or an artist, like there’s, it’s the same thing with, you know, content creators and whether or not, but also we’re, we’re our own negotiators, our own photographers, our own models, our own everything, lawyers, whatever.
And so there’s like so much, like usually, like I mean for like Instagram accounts, for like businesses and stuff, like big businesses, they have like multiple people on a team.
Morgan: They have someone who answers the DMs, someone who does the reels, the pictures.
Lexy: Mm-hmm.
Morgan: Like I love business so much, so like the business side of social media is so interesting to me. I wanted to say because you were talking about it, what’s really interesting about social media and influencers in general is the whole pyramid of working is flipped upside down, and I think people don’t realize that. Instead of having a boss that is supported by the workers, you are like the boss and the worker. And if you hire a manager or you hire an editor, you’re keeping all those people working, and when you quit, everyone else quits.
Have you ever thought about that? Because I heard that and I thought it was so crazy, and it’s just, you really are like in charge of everything, and it’s stressful.
Lexy: It’s like you are everything. Yes, um, like you are literally everything. And so it’s just like…
[noise]
Living in Downtown LA, you know the vibes. Um, right before this podcast, literally probably like 15 minutes beforehand, I was walking back from the chiropractor, and I got chased by some lady, and she starts trying to punch me.
Morgan: No…
Lexy: And she’s literally swinging at me, and my fight-or-flight kicks in, and I’m like, I don’t know how, but my freaking spidey senses like dodged that and then I started sprinting and I was like, “I have a podcast in 10 minutes, I can’t deal with this right now.”
Morgan: She literally tried to, like, beat you.
Lexy: She did and it was so unprovoked, like, okay.
Morgan: That’s what I’m just gonna ask.
Lexy: I was like, I had sunglasses on, like, I wasn’t even, like, I didn’t even realize that, like, she was running at me until she was, like, taking her fist out and trying to swing at me, and I had my headphones on, like, I was literally, like, not paying attention to the world, like, I was just, like, walking. I didn’t even say anything, not in, like, a rude way, but it’s like there were a billion people on the street, like, I wasn’t, like, gonna stop and say hi to one random person, and then all of a sudden, I just turn around and she starts, you know, the scene from “Get Out” where the guy is, like, sprinting, like, so fast at the main character? I don’t know if you’ve ever seen it.
Morgan: Okay, I’m not a movie watcher, really. I’m like painting the picture in my head.
Lexy: Yeah, so there’s this scene that’s, like, after “Get Out” came out, it was, I feel like it was, like, a TikTok trend, or not a trend, but, like, I don’t know, people were talking about that one scene because he’s just, like, full speed ahead, sprinting at the main character. And I turned around and that’s what this woman’s doing, like, just full speed ahead, and I literally was just, like, “Oh, she’s probably trying to make the light or something like that”…
Morgan: And then she’s winding up her arm…
Lexy: …and she’s like, “Never mind,” and I was like, “Oh my god.”
Morgan: Oh, that’s good.
Lexy: Anyways, downtown LA. So yeah, back to what we were talking about. Um, I don’t even remember now but, um, yeah, in general, it’s just like social media is just so much work and it’s so crazy that it is like such a made-fun-of thing, and not even made-fun-of, but also that brands are like working or it’s such a big thing for brands to be working with content creators nowadays and then are like barely paying content creators what they should be getting paid.
Morgan: Well, my tip for that is if this is like what I literally tell everyone, if you’re ever trying to make money on social media, the one tip that I would give is to highball the [ __ ] out of these people. Like if you want, you know what I mean, if you want a hundred dollars, tell them you want a thousand. Like I’m just telling you, so many brands would be willing to pay you that are good.
Lexy: Yeah, no definitely, it’s I mean that’s that’s a creative and then just be like, “Oh, like I guess I could go a little lower than that.”
Morgan: That’s how you make the money you want. Because if you start with what you want, you’re never going to get it. That’s why you need to learn how to negotiate.
Lexy: There was, yeah, there was this video I was just editing for my other job and it was about negotiating and stuff, and she was like the first person that says a price never wins, so either don’t be the first one to say a price or say something that’s like so out of like what you’re looking for.
And then there’s even a possibility of you getting that, but if not, then you just go down from that huge number.
Morgan: You’d be surprised. One time someone did meet me at that highball price and I was like, “what?!” I was like, “what?!” I was like, “oh my god”.
Lexy: You’re like “Thank you.”
Morgan: Maybe I should make it even higher.
Lexy: Next time, next time, next time, making like a million dollars just for funsies.
Morgan: For real, yeah it’s gonna be a million dollars for that one TikTok.
What other tips do you have for content creation?
Lexy: So what other tips, like, if, if I feel like a lot of my listeners are people who are interested in content creation, what other tips would you give them for, I don’t know, maybe wanting to start creating content and just putting themselves out there?
Morgan: Honestly, it can be difficult to be a content creator and work another job because most successful content creators are working that as a full-time job. And that’s something that I had to do, was work a normal job and then work extra with social media, because you have to make it successful before you can quit, usually.
What worked for me was (a) posting every single day, and I know that sounds like a lot, but honestly trying to post two to three times a day really does help because then you’re current. (b) Another thing that really helped for me was communicating with my audience. I feel like it’s so common nowadays to see creators who have a platform because of their audience and don’t even bat an eye at the comments.
And honestly, like I understand being too busy to respond to everything, but it doesn’t hurt to even respond to a few on every video. And I’ve noticed now that I have grown a little bit to the point where I can’t respond to every single comment, but I do recommend talking to your audience.
When I, honestly up until about 300k, I think I would respond to almost every single comment or at least like it. And it’s so crazy because people are like, “oh my god, she likes my comment,” and I’m like, it doesn’t seem crazy to me, but other creators don’t do it. And it really does make you stand out because it’s like, I do genuinely care about the people that follow me. They’re my audience for the reason I’m able to do what I do, and it’s like the least I could do is tell them thank you when they tell me I’m pretty or they like my video, you know?
Lexy: Yeah, definitely. I feel that’s a problem that I have a lot. It’s like, “oh, like I’m so busy,” and then I like forget it.
Morgan: It’s easy to miss it. Like, I don’t blame anyone for not doing it because it’s hard, but I think that you totally should try it.
Lexy: No, yeah, and I feel like you mentioned, like posting every day and how yeah, that maybe that can be like intimidating or like even seem like a lot, but like I feel like what people like on TikTok especially, but on also all social platforms is you just being yourself and just posting random stuff. So, it doesn’t have to be this whole curated TikTok, you can literally be, I don’t know, you dancing in your room.
Morgan: Those are the videos that do best for me. I’m not out here like choreographing dances, like I’m out here putting my phone down and moving and those are the ones that blow up.
Yeah, I could spend two hours on an outfit video when it reaches like five percent of my audience. It doesn’t, you know?
Lexy: No, literally. I’ll spend like an hour editing for these really cool edit videos or whatever, and then it’s like I’ll take two seconds to make a TikTok of me getting ready for work, and they’re like, “Oh my gosh,” and I’m like, okay guys, I didn’t realize that this is what you guys wanted.”
So I feel like, yeah, I like it. Yes, again, it seems intimidating or like a lot, but just post random stuff. Just be yourself on social, and while that also could be intimidating, that’s honestly like what people like to see. They like to see you being real and being like a human being, and people eat that up.
Morgan: I feel like if you find something that works well for you, like, who says you can’t do it 10 more times? That’s something that some people would be like, “Oh, I’m tired of it.” Like you said at the beginning, “Oh, I saw you do this one dance and I saw you doing it all the time.”
Yeah, it might have been annoying, but the thing is, like, say what you want, but those videos were getting millions of views every time I posted them. Like, why would I not? And that’s the same thing for like anyone who’s trying to be on social media. Like, if you do something and it blows up, make another one. Make another one. Like, make 10 of them. They eat it up.
Lexy: Watching those videos every day were like the highlight of my day. They were not annoying. I’m like, “Oh my god, like, it’s like first thing in the morning, she’s just dancing in her bedroom.”
Morgan: I used to work at a smoothie shop, so sometimes I would film them at like 7:30 in the morning, like seven o’clock before I go to work.
Lexy: I love it. I love this.
Morgan: Okay, Olivia Rodrigo, let’s go.
Lexy: No, I literally love them. I’m like, they were not annoying. They were so fun. I was like, they were like a little encouragement to get moving in the morning.
Morgan: It’s like a pick-me-up.
Lexy: Literally. Yeah, definitely do it as many times as you want if something blows up, or if you even just like doing it, you know, post. If you were to be following someone else, or if you were to be following yourself as someone else, like what content would you like to see? Like that would you like to follow? And then post that content if that makes sense.
I like to see, I like to follow other people that, you know, brighten my day or post dancing or post just like fun little, I don’t know, like have colorful fashion, vintage fashion, and so that’s what I also like.
Morgan: It has to be genuine.
Lexy: Definitely. Yeah, you have to, I mean, people, I feel like people can tell when you’re just like doing something to do something, you know.
Morgan: For the views.
Lexy: Yeah.
Is dancing another one of your passions?
Lexy: So speaking of dancing, so I know social media is that a full-time job for you now?
Morgan: It is full-time now, yeah.
Lexy: Okay, and so dancing is that like another one of your passions? Is that something – I know that we talked about that we have a mutual friend, my boss, hi Fanny. Um, that, uh, you know, because of dancing – is that something I don’t know maybe you’re interested in doing in the future or just like to keep it on TikTok or what?
Morgan: So, funny enough, I feel like I don’t talk about it because it kind of got burnt out, but you mentioned dancing. So, I grew up dancing, like, I danced for 15 years from the age of three to 18. Like, that’s how much I was doing it. I remember at one point in high school, I was dancing like 40 hours a week on top of school, which is insane, and my last year of competition, I honestly was really proud of where I got. I was going to like pretty big competitions and I was placing well and I was like so excited, and then COVID happened and I never got to finish the season, and I was like, okay, well maybe maybe I’ll just take a break, and I just, I love dance, but I did not miss like the competitiveness of it, um.
Dance is definitely gonna be in my life because whether I like it or not, like I know that I’m like a trained dancer and that like I have dancing skills that not everyone does, like it shows in my TikToks, like yeah, like the way that I dance is very genuine but a lot of it’s because I was trained and I know how to like do stuff, I know how to hold my body, and like already just being like four months into social media full-time, I’ve realized that whether I want to be a dancer or not, dancing opportunities will continue to find me because that’s what I’m known for online.
I was also a dance teacher at one point as well which is like crazy to think about, I’ve lived so many lives but I was, yeah, secure, and then like same thing with COVID, like I taught less and I got surgeries, and so like I was always kind of hurting myself so I don’t really train on the dance studio anymore. Every once in a while I’ll take a dance class, but I’m open to dancing for fun, like I can’t help but move.
I feel like I’m very funky just like naturally, I just love like grooving around and stuff but I can’t see myself really being like a dance teacher or anything like that anymore, but I do think that dance will just find me for the rest of my life. Like I said, I can’t say what it is, but I’ve been getting random opportunities for dancing and I’m like wow I thought I was a fashion creator but like this works too.
Lexy: This is fine, anything works. I like it, yeah.
Morgan: I realized that part of me wanted to be a niche creator, but I think my niche is myself. It’s weird because I always wanted to be like a fashion creator or a “this” creator, but like I just do so many different things that I think my niche at this point is my personality and I am a jack of all trades, that’s what you get when you follow me, you know?
What is it about the 70s that you love?
Lexy: I love it, I love it, I love it and so, um, just to touch on like one last thing before we wrap up because I feel like it is a big part of like following you, so the whole, you know, like kind of like 70s fashion, we mentioned that you know, you fell in love with like music and then it kind of like attached yourself to it, so what about the whole 70s era do you love? Just like the fashion, the home decor, all of that. Like how did you, other than maybe music…
Morgan: Why am I attracted to it? Like what even is it for me?
Lexy: I mean, I get the attraction. I just love looking back at fashion from different decades. When you look at what was 2010 fashion, I was like, that [ __ ] was so boring, not to be rude, it was just like, yeah. Yeah, so I’d like, so what, how did you kind of just make this like a I guess like personality trait? I don’t know.
Morgan: Literally, that’s another thing like I’m just like that 70s girl apparently. Like I guess that’s what I’m known for, which is so crazy to me. I don’t understand it at all. Like I guess that is my style, but I don’t even know. I just love the fashion, you know. You see like old catalogs, I love the cuts.
I don’t know if this helps – I wouldn’t consider it a reason, but it’s definitely nice – is the style of the 70s and the framing of the clothes has always been very flattering to my body type as well which I love. Like I’ve always felt good in bell bottoms. Like that style of pant just does me good. It does the booty good. And on top of that, I really do just enjoy the music and there were movements of the 70s that I aligned with, like peace, you know, like anti-war. Like that’s not really something I’m really into.
I have a peace sign tattoo on my middle finger. A lot of them, I know it’s on my middle finger. It’s just funny because people say I got it so I could like flip people off, but I got like a peace tattoo. I think that’s like the whole movement of peace and being calm and like addressing your problems peacefully is something that really means a lot to me and that did come with the 70s.
But something that a lot of people assume about me is that because I like 70s fashion I align with 70s politics, but like I’m all here for women’s rights and like that wasn’t really a thing in the 70s. So I feel like I had to say that because I don’t want people thinking that I’m like anti-women’s rights.
Lexy: Not in women’s history month.
Morgan: No, no, literally no.
Lexy: Me too girl, obviously I mean like women’s right all around, feminists, but yeah I love it. I do feel like it is maybe something that people probably associate with you, but I just love it, like I just…
Morgan: I don’t mind because it’s like not super popular anymore. 70s is coming back though.
Lexy: No 100%, but I think it just really sets you apart and I just love your whole vibe and even how your room decor and stuff reflects your interests and stuff like that. So it’s just so cool. I love looking at other people’s styles and seeing how it describes them like as a person.
Morgan: I love that, thank you.
Lexy: Yeah, so you keep doing you girl, you’re amazing. I love your energy. I know I’ve said that like a billion times, but I do.
Morgan: One more thing that I was thinking about. It’s really funny to me that you say that you enjoy that I’m a 70s style person because I view other people with their styles, you know? Some people are just like so 90s and they like rock it so well.
But this also goes back to like, I guess advice that I would give to somebody that’s trying to be a content creator, but like, I realize that I spent a lot of time trying to run away from my niches, because I was like, people aren’t going to find 70s interesting, people aren’t going to find dancing interesting, but like, those are two things that really make me myself, and I found myself like running away from it because it got like, I felt like I was being overhyped for something that I didn’t love, but I do love it. I was just not aligning with it, because I was scared that people wouldn’t love it forever, like it would go out of style. But it’s so crazy because like 70s is my like my style. Like that’s really like, I just exude 70s energy like I’ve been told and so, I think a tip I would have for anyone trying to be a creator is just really like allowing yourself to feel comfortable in what your niche is because like the right people will find it.
Lexy: Don’t do something, kind of like what we were saying earlier, but like don’t do something for other people, because then it’s obvious that like that’s not necessarily like something that you resonate with or something that sets you apart or something you even care about in general. Like don’t just do it because like your followers or because other people are doing it. Don’t do it because it’s a trend, just do what you love and then you’ll find your people.
Morgan: Totally, yeah, literally exactly. They’ll find you. Literally, exactly. What the hell? What did I just say? Oh, I can’t believe I said that. Oh my god, I’ve been talking for too long. I look like a valley girl sometimes. I have a valley girl accent. My dad makes fun of me all the time.
Lexy: Yeah, my dad every time I say literally he’s like, “literally”. I remember I was with him for New Year’s Eve, and he said that my New Year’s resolution was to stop saying like and literally, and I was like, that’s literally like not gonna happen.
Morgan: I’m a valley girl at heart, like it’s the way I was raised. I’m from, I don’t know, people tell me I have an accent. I don’t know what kind of accent they hear. I think it’s like a Southern California valley girl. Maybe I have like a little bit of a speech impediment. Sometimes I think I might, like I’m not even joking.
Lexy: I haven’t noticed anything.
Morgan: I’ve just kind of created my own accent because I get that all the time, like “oh where are you from?” and I’m like “California”.
Lexy: I haven’t noticed it, but I live currently in California, so maybe I’m just like…
Morgan: Where are you from?
Lexy: I’m originally from Washington, DC, so like east coast area. I moved fully across the country, but all my friends here are from Orange County. Maybe I’m just used to the whole Southern California.
Morgan: You’re a Southern California girl at heart.
Lexy: Yeah. That’s what it is. Well, thank you so, so, so much for coming on with us today. Where can people find you on social media?
Morgan: You can find me on Instagram and TikTok at @morgan.ag. And if you’re interested, I do have a podcast and a YouTube that I try to post on like two to three times a month. You can find those in the links to my Instagram and TikTok because I don’t even feel like trying to give you the name. I can’t come up with it off of my head. I just go to like @morgan.ag on TikTok or Instagram, and the link in my bio has everything you could need.
Lexy: Perfect, well everyone make sure you go follow Morgan on all of your socials. And while you’re at it, you can follow me. My Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube are all at Lexy Silverstein. That’s L-E-X-Y Silver like the color S-T-E-I-N. And remember to make the ordinary extraordinary.
