A paisley teenager, who amassed more than 700,000 followers on social media, says being named a Young Scot Award finalist is “her proudest moment”.
Kristen, who is a massive star on the video sharing website TikTok, says being shortlisted for the entertainment award has been the pinnacle of what has so far been an exceptional career.
The 15 year old lost out on the top award to actor Ncuti Gatwa from Dunfermline at the first ever virtual Young Scot Awards last week, where fellow Buddie Aidan McGrogan was also a finalist in the environment category.
Kristen told the Express it was an honour to share a platform with so many other talented teens.
“Being shortlisted for a Young Scot Award is the proudest moment of my career,” she said.
“With fantastic nominees with such worthy stories in the various categories, it made me proud to be Scottish.
“It was fantastic to see the age range of individuals and the diversity of talent that young people have in the entertainment industry in Scotland.”
Kristen has been dabbling in the world of social media videos since she was just eight years old.
She started using musical.ly - the previous name for TikTok - when she was 12 years old and even then had attracted 70,000 followers to her page.
That audience has since grown to 710,000, with the teenager’s videos liked a phenomenal 33 million times.
It is the messages Kristen has shared on her platform that caught the attention of the Young Scot Award judges, with the teen calling out cyber bullying on her page and highlighting the Black Lives Matter movement.
“TikTok is sometimes seen as slightly ‘frivolous’ in terms of entertainment,” Kristen said.
“Hopefully people might now realise that TikTok influencers also use their platforms to get important messages across on a variety of subjects from anti bullying, positive body image, equality, climate change and black lives matter.
“Going forward, I hope that I can continue my career as a social media influencer, be my unique self and be considered as a finalist again in the Entertainment category in 2021.”
Renfrewshire was also represented at the awards by Aidan McGrogan who has been boosting the green credentials of families in Ferguslie for over a year.
Secretary of Own Yer Bike, Aidan was recognised for helping the initiative keep old bikes away from landfill through its free repair and maintenance workshops - where young people can also learn vital skills
He ultimately lost out on the environment award to the group of young people who established the Scottish Youth Climate Strike in September 2019, but said the whole experience has been amazing.
The 16 year old told the Express: “I felt really proud of myself and to be shortlisted alongside other amazing finalists was just an honour. I’m happy for every one of them.
“I was very inspired to learn about what the other two finalists were doing in Scotland.
“My plans for the future is to continue working with Own Yer Bike when possible and continue to help the environment.”
Aidan and Kristen were among all those at the awards ceremony who were congratulated for their achievements by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.
“I want to offer my heartfelt congratulations and thanks to each and every one of the finalists,” she said.
“The work you’ve done is remarkable and whether your story is one of volunteering, excelling at a particular activity or campaigning on an important issue, you all deserve enormous credit.
“The contributions you have made to your communities, both locally and nationally, is both inspiring and hugely appreciated.”
