The best gifts for the aspiring influencer in your life
Thankfully, you don’t have to understand the world of social media in order to buy gifts for the TikTokers, Instagrammers, YouTubers and live streamers in your life. The basics of content creation are relatively simple — lights, camera, action — and the rest is all about personal style. And hashtags, of course. If your holiday list is filled with folks who live online, these are the gifts that are sure to make them.
Elgato Stream Deck MK.2
Being a social media influencer is a busy business, and nothing helps organize all of those apps like Elgato’s Stream Deck MK.2. The Stream Deck features 15 customizable LCD buttons that can be used to easily launch and manage all sorts of crucial programs, such as YouTube, Spotify, PhotoShop and OBS. You can usually find the MK.2 for around $150, and it’s sold alongside seven faceplates that make it look cute even when it’s just sitting there, available for $10 each. — Jessica Conditt, Senior Editor
Buy Elgato Stream Deck at Amazon – $150
Fujifilm X-T4
If you’re going all-in this holiday season, you might as well get the best. When it comes to APS-C cameras, it’s hard to beat Fujifilm’s X-T4. It captures incredibly sharp images with color-accurate results, plus it shoots video in 4K. It has the essential flip-out display and excellent image stabilization, and all-around, it’s considered among the best. If it helps, think of this one as an investment in your loved one’s small social media business. — J.C.
Buy Fujifilm X-T4 at B&H – $1,700
Illuminated Dreamz Custom TikTok sign
Most of us will never be professional social media stars, but a custom LED-lit sign with your TikTok handle is cool enough you might just feel like one. The signs allow you to illuminate your handle in color-changing LEDs, alongside the TikTok logo, of course. And if your social media platform of choice isn’t TikTok, there are YouTube and Twitch options available, too. The sign even comes with a remote control so you can change up the lighting colors and settings to suit your mood — or your stream. — Karissa Bell, Senior Editor
Kawaii Cat Ring Light
You’ve probably seen your share of ring lights, but you probably haven’t seen one with built in cat ears. Is it a little extra? Yes. Is it the cutest ring light you’ve ever seen? Also yes. But besides being cute, Kawaii Lighting’s cat ring light is also a really solid ring light. At 65W with 10 levels of dimming, it can go from super-bright to just-bright-enough, and the included remote control should make it easy to change things up. It also comes with a 68-inch adjustable stand and three phone mounts built in so you can get the perfect angle (or angles) with each shot. — K.B.
Buy ring light at Kawaii Lighting – $199
Lightsmoon Line Lamp
Here’s where that personal style comes into play. The Line Lamp by Lightsmoon is an elegant, minimalist light that creates instant vibes. The Line Lamp is designed to fit in the corner of a room or near a wall, where its 150cm-tall bar glows against the surface, reflecting light all around. It supports a near-infinite range of colors and has more than 300 lighting effects, while the frame itself comes in black or white. — J.C.
Buy Line Lamp at Lightsmoon – $120
Neewer Green Screen
A green screen is the ideal way for a streamer or YouTuber to start stepping up their content. Having a physical green screen gives you way more flexibility to play with your background or just to get rid of anything distracting in your surroundings. This one is great because at about 60 inches wide and 78 inches tall, you’ll have plenty of space to work without feeling cramped. And, when you’re done, it folds up neatly into an easily portable aluminum case. — K.B.
Buy green screen at Amazon – $162
Razer Kraken BT Kitty Edition
Don’t ask about the cat ears — just support the person in your life who wants to wear them. Razer is an iconic gaming brand, making the Kraken BT Kitty Edition perfect for the live streamer or e-girl influencer in your life. The headset supports Bluetooth 5.0 (that’s what the “BT” stands for, though there’s also a black wired version for $150), it’s pink and it has two light-up cat ears right on top. The Kraken BT Kitty Edition uses Razer Chroma RGB to power the lights on the ears — both feline and the actual ear cups — meaning it’s all customizable as well. — J.C.
Buy Kraken BT Kitty Edition at Amazon – $100
SoJourner Holographic Rave Fanny Pack
It takes a lot of accessories, gadgets and gear to manage a successful social presence, and the Holographic Rave Fanny Pack from SoJourner is the perfect way to keep it all contained in a trendy bag. The pack comes in a range of colorways to fit your loved one’s unique style, with three pockets and an adjustable waistband. Best of all, it’s only around $20. — J.C.
Buy fanny pack at Amazon – $17
What Do You Meme TikTok Edition
What better gift for the social-obsessed than the TikTok edition of What Do You Meme. Like other iterations of the game, it borrows meme-worthy moments from IRL (in this case, TikToK) and players compete to come up with the funniest captions. The game itself is simple enough that even those with zero knowledge of TikTok can play, but should still have enough Easter eggs to keep the real fans engaged. As an added bonus, the TikTok version of the game also has QR codes on the back that will take you straight to the corresponding video on each card. — K.B.
Buy What Do You Meme at Amazon – $25
Thankfully, you don’t have to understand the world of social media in order to buy gifts for the TikTokers, Instagrammers, YouTubers and live streamers in your life. The basics of content creation are relatively simple — lights, camera, action — and the rest is all about personal style. And hashtags,…
