Influencer Davis Burleson is growing from TikTok to the fashion industry.
Originally from Texas, Burleson went viral after posting TikTok clips last fall. The 19-year-old has since moved to New York City, and currently hosts digital interview show “What’s Poppin?” in Washington Square Park. Burleson’s amassed over 30 million video views—and though it’s a “dream come true,” his viral fame has still been surprising.
“The biggest mental change was me leaving the house, and then people coming up to me and stuff—especially when I go to the Park, a place that I used to go to read a book and hang out,” says Burleson. “Whereas now, it’s like my office, and when I walk in there it’s just immediately, people are coming up to me.”
From attending “Gossip Girl” premieres to reporting from Ganni’s spring 2022 show, Burleson’s also become more entwined with the fashion world. Aside from partnerships with Nike, Calvin Klein and Kurt Geiger, his presence has grown from attending shows by Tory Burch, Brandon Maxwell and more during New York Fashion Week—which came with its own challenges. Amid discourse over TikTokers attending shows, Burleson also dealt with online backlash towards his outfits. His solution? Handling hateful comments with maturity and self-awareness.
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“I’m always, definitely very aware of what I’m saying, what I’m doing, what I’m wearing, because I know that anyone can say something about it,” says Burleson. “I don’t really get too offended by the hate comments.”
Burleson’s vibrant personal style is often inspired by New York itself. For his trips around the city, he wears Converse Chuck 70 Hi sneakers, Saint Laurent sneakers and Sandro boots. Outside of his go-to Converse, Burleson also favors Dr. Martens‘ tassel loafers.
“I love the preppy vibe, but also what I love so much about these is this clear heel,” he says. “I love how there’s a platform at the bottom because it makes it classic yet a little elevated, but a little modern.”
Though Burleson has established himself on TikTok, he still has other ambitions. In the future, he hopes to host television shows—though, for now, he’s got a range of projects up his sleeve.
“There’s a few TV things that we might be doing, so we’ll see,” Burleson teases. “And just growing my TikTok, [and] merch coming out pretty soon, that’s exciting.”
