To watch Benny Drama's videos is to love him. But to video-chat with him is to really love him.
The viral superstar, whose real name is Benito Skinner, was not prepared to be on-camera when we were scheduled to talk about his partnership with Visible, the wireless cell phone provider for single-line users.
"I thought these were just calls and then saw they were video," Benny says. "I'm haggard! But I love this. Just know I'm cuter than this, you know what I mean? I promise."
For the record, the 29-year-old comedian who became the Internet's obsession thanks to his impressions of the Kardashians and Shawn Mendes, is totally cute via Google Hangout. And, oddly, not at all intimidating or aloof, despite having 1.4 million Instagram followers, 35 million likes on TikTok and a collaboration with the White House to his name.
We quickly bonded over our respective vocal fries—"Mine are rotting!" he proclaims of his vocal cords—and within minutes he's inviting me to an upcoming comedy show in New York City, which I regrettably must decline due to geographical limitations. (Though I did seriously consider rearranging travel to make it happen. Time with family will always be there, but when would I next have the chance to hang with The Benny Drama, Aunt Jeaneen?!)
That immediate (and imagined, at least on my end) sense of familiarity is clearly why Visible tapped Benny as the face—and personality—of their Singles Awareness Day campaign (Feb. 15), which finds him taking on a new persona: Youpid, Cupid's estranged brother.
"They really don't f--k with each other," Drama says of the dueling deities. "Cupid is seen as this brother that thinks you need someone else to be fulfilled and Youpid's more your gay best friend that's, like, 'Baby girl, you only need you!'"
While he's created many of his beloved characters on his own, Visible approached Benny with the initial concept of Youpid, but it was their willingness to collaborate that really made the team-up feel like a great fit, despite the fact that Benny has been in a relationship for six years with director Terrence O'Connor. ("Your culture is my costume for that day," he jokes when I point out that I am single yet he is the one working on a Singles Awareness Day campaign.)
"There was so much play within it and Visible really championed what I do and what I've done in the past," Benny explains. "They let me play within this character, which I think is how these turn out well. That's the mark of a good partnership."
Acknowledging he's been approached by other companies with concepts that he turned down, Benny says he really "respected" Visible and found himself quickly growing attached to Youpid after the idea was presented to him.
"I had seen Visible work with great people in the past and their support of trans people and the queer community, I was just like, 'this makes a lot of sense,'" Benny explains. "It was fun because sometimes I feel like if someone just comes to you and they're like, 'Make something up from scratch,' it can be daunting. So to have at least a little of a character to play with, just allowed me the opportunity to have so much fun with it."
An essential part of Benny's creative process is coming up with the look of his characters, which was one of the "most fun" aspects of bringing Youpid to life, wings included.
"I knew we were going to do Visible blue, let's go!" he shares of the spokespersona's wardrobe. "I want it to see a little '70s-y, a little talk show host-y, but obviously with a sequined shirt and some wings and then we went for this '20s hair." (For the record: He kept the Dries Van Noten top that he wears in the ads. "It comes in women's," he adds. "Get it." I later looked it up. It's over $1,000, so sadly, I will not be wearing matching shirts with my new BFF anytime soon.)
While he rose to prominence for his impressions of Kris Jenner, Kourtney Kardashian, Austin Butler and other celebs, Benny admits he finds more enjoyment in the process of coming up with original characters, like Kooper, the Gen-Z intern, and Jenni the hairdresser.
"There's so much more room for your own creativity to come into it," he explains. "Getting to do the costuming, the makeup, the hair, those things are all very exciting to me and allow me to flex other muscles that I really always want to."
Not that he doesn't delight in finding a "twist" to add to his impersonations, like Kris being in cahoots with the devil. But the key to Benny's success is that his videos always come from a place of admiration.
"I never want it to be a bully," Benny says. "I do impressions of people that I really respect and obviously I'm invested in their work. I always know where the line is and I want it to feel like a friend is maybe poking at you and you can laugh with them. Not that I'm getting a bunch of people and we're all laughing at you, that won't be fun to watch and it won't be fun to make. I'll just feel awful."
Benny's delicate-yet-effortless walking of that fine line led to a "really surprising" call from the Kardashians, inviting him to collaborate with Kourtney and appear in the first season of their eponymous Hulu series.
"I was like, 'Um, okay, I think someone's phishing. They are trying to take my social security number or something!'" he admits. "That first email, I was like, 'This is surreal!' That's probably the most surprising. I had done them for so long and they had commented, but for them to want to make something with me and for Kourtney to be so down and open to that, I think was definitely very special and felt like this communal win for all the people who had supported those videos and me for so long."
Benny began amassing that community during the pandemic, when his videos provided much-needed comedic relief as we all stayed indoors and in front of our screens. But as his following continued to grow, the writer's relationship with social media had to evolve, as he admittedly struggled early on with feeling like his worth was tied directly to his work.
"It can be really tricky because, obviously, I love what I do and I love making videos," he says. "But just knowing if you need a break and you need a day, a month or six months for yourself, that's okay! The internet will most likely still be there when you come back. It's really hard for a lot of people who are constantly feeding the beast."
Which is why Benny prioritizes self-care and not just on Singles Awareness Day, though he offers his suggestions for how to spend the holiday should you need a way to treat yourself.
"I am such a proponent of baths and skincare and I have to meditate," Benny shares. "Anything that just makes you feel good that's not hurting anyone and it's not for other people is definitely what you should do on that day and every day. Do those things that feel good and that nourish the damn soul."
Like a video call with your new Internet best friend, for example.