Rhode Island Influencah
Ian Brownhill brings Little Rhody institutions — and characters — into the national limelight with his brand of humor and a killah accent . By Paul E . Kandarian
CityState : Current l Edited by Dana Laverty
If you ’ re a fan of funny stuff on TikTok with a wicked Boston / New Englandish accent touting local faves like Dunkin ’ and Iggy ’ s , or you like sultry beach reads that have hunky men on the cover , you should know about Ian Brownhill . The actor / model / funnyman / Rhode Islander is thirty-one , and one of Little Rhody ’ s hottest influencers creating online content daily that gets millions of likes providing just as many yuks .
What started you down the influencer road ? When TikTok was really getting going and the term influencer was coined , I thought it would be really cool to try that . I hate saying this , but the pandemic really helped because people were home looking for entertainment online , and I ’ ve never been afraid to try anything new ; my mother , who is my rock and number one fan , always stressed trying whatever you want to try . So I did . And knock on wood , I ’ ve been super fortunate so far .
The numbers reflect that , right ? Yes , I have a million followers on TikTok and more than 90,000 on Instagram ; that sounds insane just saying it ! I ’ ve just been super fortunate and am most grateful .
Brownhill , third from left , with Boston sports mascots .
You ’ re an influencer making money at this . How ? Through TikTok mainly . I ’ m lucky , I ’ m like a video billboard for marketing companies or brands . Dunkin ’ is one of them , Papa Gino ’ s and D ’ Angelo are others . But Iggy ’ s is the one that really got me going ; they were one of the first to take a chance on me when I was close to giving up and had actually taken a security job part time . Other companies saw that and now I work for them . Iggy ’ s honestly is like family to me — that job sparked a fire for me and I ’ m so happy that candle is still burning .
Your ubiquitous ‘ New England Guy ’ is your best character , isn ’ t he ? Absolutely . Through him , with the accent and all , I make stuff up every day and poke fun at stereotypes New Englanders have . My intent is not to be offensive , but if you ’ re having a tough day and see my stuff and it reminds you of your funny uncle or your crazy sister and you laugh , that ’ s a great thing to do for people .
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF IAN BROWNHILL .
Dude , those sexy book covers . Really ? ( Laughs ) Hey , social media has taken me many places and that ’ s just one of them and I ’ m so grateful for it . Super cool , no doubt … but I don ’ t think I ’ ll ever read them .
To catch more of the funny stuff , visit ianbrown hill . com .
RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l SEPTEMBER 2023 19