Cape Town - Best known for her characters as Britney, Tiffany and Aunty Shirley, Amy Dirks is the TikTok comedy queen who has captured our attention.
She’s built her online fame on delving into the idiosyncrasies of coloured culture, and we cannot wait to see what’s next for the budding social media star.
The model turned actress hails from Cape Town’s southern suburbs and holds a BSc degree in molecular biology and biotechnology, from Stellenbosch University.
Although she graduated earlier this year, the rising star works full time as a model, actress and digital content creator.
“As interesting as science is, it’s not my passion, and it’s not something I want to spend the rest of my life doing,” she said.
She added: “My passion is entertaining, modelling, acting and being out there!”
Dirks, who started modelling in 2016, took a leap and left her modelling agency to join an acting agency three weeks ago because she wanted to get more serious about acting.
“I feel like I was born to act.
“My mom said since I was in crèche, I would watch people and imitate them all the time,” she said.
“Over time, I would watch movies and memorise them and then put on a show for my family.
“It’s always been a big part of my life,” Dirks added.
The 23-year-old star has been snatching our hearts since the start of lockdown in 2020.
Dirks currently has 44 100 followers, with 590 700 likes on all of her videos.
“It’s insane to think that I could fill a stadium with the number of followers I have.
“There is a responsibility that comes with having so many people view my content because I now have a platform where so many people want to hear what I have to say.”
Viewers and lovers of her three primary characters, Britney, Tiffany and Aunty Shirley, would be surprised to find out that her biggest flex is that none of her videos are scripted.
“There is no dialogue planned. I just put the camera on, press record and work from the concept I chose,” she said.
The TikTok Tea
Dirks spilled the tea with us on her TikTok experience.
How did your TikTok career start?
It was completely accidental.
I was bored during lockdown, waiting for university to announce what would happen next.
I only created my account at the beginning of lockdown, which is when I introduced the Britney and Tiffany characters.
I never expected it to go as well as it did.
What has the response to your videos been like?
It has been very overwhelming because there’s so much love.
People message me to tell me that I’ve helped them through a depressive episode or when they were feeling down.
Sometimes I cry at the kind messages I receive because I never thought that I’d help people by making jokes.
How do you plan your content?
I gain inspiration from speaking to people and watching them – that usually sparks my ideas.
I have a notebook that I write my ideas in, and then I film it from there.
How did you come up with your characters?
Britney and Tiffany weren’t planned characters – those were names that came to me as I was filming and it just stuck.
I didn’t plan a character description but Aunty Shirley was a planned character.
I realised that coloured aunties and grandmas all speak the same way and I find it very entertaining.
What is your favourite type of content to create?
I enjoy doing content about coloured boys and coloured uncles.
My hair is short, so it’s easy to get away with looking like a boy, and I always wear oversized clothing.
Getting into the character is very easy.
I have a lot of guy friends and I’ve easily picked up their mannerisms and body language.
Do you want to continue creating TikTok content in future?
I will continue but the rest of my life is picking up and I don’t always have time to film and post.
When I do have time, I try to film content in bulk and then spread out the posting.
What is your advice to aspiring content creators?
Always be yourself.
It’s important to put yourself out there.
Be consistent and confident in being yourself; it’s what your audience will love you for.
Pray and thank God for bad days and good days.
Quickies:
Heels or sneakers: Sneakers
Fav sneaker brand: Puma
Tea or coffee: Tea
Celeb crush: Dylan O’Brien
Relationship status: Single
Fav takeout meal: KFC dunked wings
Fav series of all time: The Big Bang Theory
Fav TikTok account: Michaill Bailey
Something you can’t live without: My mother
Dream dinner guest: Miley Cyrus
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