Clarke Peoples is a senior at Columbia University in New York City studying for a degree in American Studies. She is also a content creator who has made about $200,000 in the past five months.
Peoples comes from a poor family background and to get into Columbia University, she had to put in a lot of work to earn enough scholarship to get into Columbia. She spent months writing application essays and did all that she could to make herself a more competitive applicant, according to Business Insider.
During her sophomore year in late 2020, she moved into an apartment with roommates while working for a start-up and interning for jewelry company David Yurman’s legal department. She was not paid a lot for her job but it was enough for her to move into her own apartment for a few months.
Her breakthrough came in May 2021 when she was just posting on TikTok for fun showing her apartment and talking about her life and it went viral. According to her, the comments were filled with people wanting to know how she was able to afford to live alone in New York as a student.
The post centered around her doing everyday common things like laundry and paying the rent before ending the night on a date with a millionaire.
“I tried my best to answer questions and give viewers a peek into my life. Two days later, the next video explaining my finances went viral and a video a few days after that — another day in the life — did so, too. Two weeks after my first video, I signed my first brand deal for $250,” she noted.
Today, she works for brands like JCPenney, Walmart, and DSW. Although Peoples got her brand deals because of her activities on TikTok, she is not part of the creator Fund, which is the money the platform pays to creators based on their video views and engagement.
In March, she moved into a $ 4,000-per-month apartment in Manhattan at 21 years old. Prior to becoming an internet sensation, Peoples’ worldview was simple — attend Columbia, make it to law school, and live happily ever after. Today, she is a brand influencer.
