Nowadays, social media is most often used as a platform for promoting one’s brand. Whether it’s a company, a famous celeb or an aspiring musician, actor, writer, etc., we’re always in the know of their on-going projects. For regular, around the way folks, however, sites like Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram are used for sharing every day moments in their lives—whether they’re good moments or bad. And, sometimes, something as simple as that has a way of drawing a crowd.
Case in point: Abigail “Aggy Abby” Silva. The 23-year-old East Newark, N.J. native took up social media as a way to vent a bit during her time in the military. With her camera phone in-hand, Abby reported on the goings-on in her life—at times touching upon delicate subjects like miscarriages, abusive relationships and even her parents’ past issues with alcohol. The half Colombian, half Portuguese girl was an open book, and the public gradually gravitated towards her.
Aggy Abby has since amassed hundreds of thousands of followers across all social media platforms, which has opened up doors for hosting gigs, features with major media outlets and even paved the way for her own self-titled clothing line. ’LLERO caught up with the social media star to talk about her early days on social media, her advice on how to take your social media game up a notch without giving away too much of yourself, her future plans, dating, and why tattooed guys are so irresistible to her.
‘LL: How did the idea to make your videos on social media come about?
Aggy: It started back in 2013, and I was in the military on my way of processing out. I like to speak my mind, and when I was in the military, I didn’t really have too many people to talk to, so when they came out with the ability to make videos on Instagram, I was like, “Okay, well, f-ck it. I’m just going to speak my mind on Instagram.” Anything that would happen in my life, anything that I was going through, I just felt like reporting it, and that was just my way of expressing myself until I got back home to Jersey. I just wanted to report my life—[even] if it was a minor struggle like my car bumper falling off—I would show that. The numbers of followers never really meant anything to me. It was more like I appreciated the love, so I just continued doing what I was doing. The love that I was getting was different. People started treating me different. Back in the day, it was still new for people to [use] Instagram like that. Now, a lot of people are doing it, but back in those days it was rare. People would want to act like it was a big, huge deal, and I would want to humble them. I would tell them that, “Yes, I have 750,000 followers but I don’t have $750,000. I have a nine-to-five.” I wanted to make it known that I still lived a real life.
‘LL: Speaking of a nine-to-five, what do you do when you’re not speaking to your followers online?
Aggy: Well, I’m like 24/7 on Twitter. If not, it’ll be on Instagram, I’ll comment back here and there when I have some time. My job is pretty much that and hosting. That’s how I make my money. Also, through my website, I have my own clothing line. It’s more like I’m living life and documenting it as I go. If I’m not reporting it, it’s probably because I can’t or it’s because I’m not doing anything worth showing.
‘LL: Once you began generating a following, what was the next step?
Aggy: I was just going with the flow with everything. I was just taking opportunities as they were coming to me. Some things I had to say no to just because it didn’t feel right, it wasn’t genuine, or it wasn’t in my lane. Then, there were things that I pursued and began working towards it. I really do take opportunities as they come because you never know what will pop off.
‘LL: How would one go about building a larger than life presence such as yours on social media?
Aggy: I’ve seen people blow up, but they take the easy route, the ingenuous route. I know the reasons why they’re doing it. With me it takes a lot longer because I try to be genuine about it. I deleted my Instagram, which had about 750,000 followers last year. I’ve only had this page for about a year now. And, it’s basically that what I wanted to do was just document my life and keep it real. Show them the rawness. Show them that you can live this Instagram fame and get money, but at the end of the day, you still come home to family and live a regular life. Everybody’s human at the end of the day. No matter how many followers you have, everybody still bleeds the same type of blood.
‘LL: Where would you like to take this entire experience some day?
Aggy: Some type of positive platform, because what I do, and what I’ve been doing for the past few years, is showing my struggle and showing that I’m not going to stop at anything. People are seeing my biggest ups and my biggest downs. I’ve documented it through Snapchat and Instagram, and I want people to be motivated by that and not stop at nothing. I want to take it to a positive platform where I can help people.
Aggy’s thoughts on Latino men, a great first date and proper ink after the jump…
Photo by Abstract