By Ela Jalil
TikTok star Chris Olsen visited the University of Maryland Thursday to answer questions and share advice with students at Student Entertainment Events’ annual Spring Lecture.
Olsen blew up on TikTok after his breakup with another prominent creator, but has since continued to create humorous and relatable content that has now garnered him over 10 million followers. He’s known for his public friendship with Meghan Trainor, his videos surrounding therapy and his videos where he brings coffee to various celebrities.
“Chris was a perfect person to be our Spring Lecturer. Of course, we love his social media content and feel it resonates with a lot of college students,” incoming SEE Lectures Director and current Funding Director Helen Wang said. “He does a great job at balancing humor and entertainment with important topics such as mental health and therapy.”
At the lecture, Olsen balanced humor and seriousness. He talked about downloading TikTok his junior year of college for a creative outlet during the pandemic. Olsen attended the Boston Conservatory and graduated with a BFA in musical theater, and he discussed how although he became disillusioned with his dream of performing, TikTok gave him a platform to be creative again.
A large part of Olsen’s platform is mental health, and he went into depth on the importance of therapy and taking care of yourself. He mentioned that one of his proudest accomplishments is his five years of sobriety, something that he struggled with earlier in his life that led him to have a one-year stay in rehab.
“I personally enjoyed the audience q&a at the end. I liked how those questions were more personable and fun and allowed the audience to connect more with Chris,” freshman criminal justice and criminology and psychology double major Ashley Weidner said. “ I also really liked how it somewhat contrasted the structured interview that the event started with, and allowed Chris to talk to the audience himself rather than us just listening to him.”
SEE holds two annual lectures: the Back to School Lecture in the fall semester, and the Spring Lecture. The event contains a moderated Q&A that is hosted by SEE’s Lecture Director and then an audience Q&A if time permits.
“The featured lecturer is a famous person such as an actor, author, activist, athlete, or like Chris Olsen, an influencer. The person chosen to be the lecturer has an important message to share and will make a positive impact on campus,” Wang said.
Omicron Delta Kappa was one of the sponsors of the event, and felt that Olsen’s openness and advocacy around mental health aligned with their focus. ODK has partnered with SEE for the past few years regarding the Spring Lecture and provided a monetary sponsorship to pay for the cost of Olsen’s visit, along with aiding with advertising about the event.
“Many members have asked for speakers or resources when it comes to managing mental health challenges, especially as very involved leaders on this campus, so to bring Chris who can speak to his own story and journey as well as relate to our population, is a great opportunity that we have partnered with SEE to do,” ODK’s Circle Co-Coordinator Sarah Williamson said.
Olsen brought together the UMD community to not only laugh, but to also give valuable advice regarding mental health. As an influencer, his connection with audiences is unique to other “celebrities,” and was an intentional choice by SEE to bring in.
“One thing we always try to focus on as a programming board when curating events for the community is how we can create events that are unique and reflect the diverse interests of UMD students,” Wang said. “TikTokers and digital creators are able to reach such a broad audience thanks to the internet, so we thought someone like Chris could give a great lecture that would resonate highly with the campus community.”
Featured Image: Photo courtesy of Student Entertainment Events.
This story has been updated.