Lilly Singh

Lilly Singh (born September 26, 1988) is a Canadian YouTuber, television host, comedian and author. She began making YouTube videos in 2010. She originally appeared under the pseudonym Superwoman (stylized IISuperwomanII), her YouTube username until 2019.

Singh released her documentary '' A Trip to Unicorn Island'' (2016) and her first book '' How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life'' (2017), which was a ''New York Times'' Best Seller. From September 2019 to June 2021, Singh acted as executive producer and host of the NBC late-night talk show '' A Little Late with Lilly Singh''. She is the first person of Indian descent to host an American late-night talk show.

Early life and education

Singh was born and raised in the Scarborough district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Her parents, Malvindar Kaur and Sukvindar Singh, are Indian Punjabi immigrants from Hoshiarpur, Punjab, India and raised her as a Sikh. Lilly's older sister, Tina (born 1982), is also a YouTuber; she makes videos about her family life with her husband and their three sons, under the name 'The Tina Singh' (formerly 'MOM BOSS OF 3'). Singh had said she was a tomboy as a child. She attended Mary Shadd Public School during her elementary years, and in 2006 she graduated from Lester B. Pearson Collegiate Institute in Malvern, Toronto. She was a member of Girl Guides of Canada and participated in their youth programs. In 2010, she graduated from York University in Toronto with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology.

Career

YouTube channel and breakthrough (2010–2014)

In October 2010, Singh started a YouTube channel under the pseudonym "IISuperwomanII". Starting out, She had intended to go to graduate school as her parents had requested, but chose to make YouTube videos and decided that she would return to graduate school if her YouTube career did not progress. In December 2011, Lilly created a second channel called "SuperwomanVlogs", now titled "Lilly Singh Vlogs", where she chronicles her daily activities and includes behind the scenes footage from her videos. She used it as a second channel to upload videos until August 2014, when she began uploading vlogs. Singh appeared as a background dancer in the movies '' Speedy Singhs'' and '' Thank You'' in 2011. When Singh acquired 100,000 subscribers in 2012, she applied to YouTube for monetization on her videos. When YouTube accepted, Lilly "became more career-minded" and bought her first camera for $699.

In August 2013, Singh was featured alongside Jassi Sidhu in his Punjabi song ''Hipshaker''. She rapped in the song ''Mauj Ki Malharein'', which played in the Bollywood drama '' Gulaab Gang'' in August 2014. In July of the same year, Lilly released a song titled ''#LEH'' in a collaboration with her friend, author and rapper Kanwer Singh, who is known by the pseudonym " Humble the Poet". In 2014, Singh appeared in a small role in the Canadian production '' Dr. Cabbie''. In the same year, she was nominated for a Shorty Award and a Streamy Award.

In 2015, Lilly Singh ranked 8th on ''Forbes'' list of World's Top-Earning YouTube Stars. In 2016, she was included in ''Forbes'' list of world's highest paid YouTubers ranking third and earning a reported $7.5 million. In 2018, she was once again ranked on the ''Forbes'' list of the world's highest-paid YouTube stars, in tenth place, earning a reported $10.5 million. As of February 2022 she has 14.7 million subscribers and over three billion video views.

Career expansion (2015–2018)

Singh recorded and released another music video in February 2015 titled ''The Clean Up Anthem'' in collaboration with Canadian artist Sickick.
In March 2015, Singh began a world tour called "A Trip to Unicorn Island", adapting her YouTube content and including singing, dancing, music performances, comedy, and her parent characters. Her tour covered India, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, the United Kingdom, and the United States. She documented the tour in her first feature movie, '' A Trip to Unicorn Island'', which also describes how YouTube fame is affecting her life. The movie was released on February 10, 2016, on YouTube Red (now called YouTube Premium). Lilly describes the film as being very "raw and genuine".

In April 2015, Singh released a song about her hometown Toronto in collaboration with Humble the Poet titled ''#IVIVI'' (roman numerals for 416, Toronto's area code). Lilly received her first MTV Fandom Award, was nominated for two Teen Choice Awards, and won her first Streamy Award later that year. In December 2015, she moved to Los Angeles to further her career. In July 2016, she won two Teen Choice Awards from her three nominations.

In 2016, Singh voiced miniature unicorns named Bubbles and Misty in the animated film '' Ice Age: Collision Course'' and played a cameo role in the film '' Bad Moms''. In January 2017, she won a People's Choice Award for "Favorite YouTube Star". In September 2017, Singh won her fourth Streamy Award. Her first book, '' How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life'', was released on March 28, 2017. The book reached No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list. Lilly won the award for Best Non-Fiction at the 2017 Goodreads Choice Awards. Her 2017 world tour was centered around the book release and key concepts she discussed. A successor book, titled ''Be a Triangle'', was released on April 5, 2022.
Singh was cast in HBO's film adaptation of ''Fahrenheit 451'' after recording an audition outside an Internet café in Melbourne, Australia. She was in the region to promote her book and rushed the audition at her agent's urging around 2 a.m. in May 2017. She plays the character of Raven, "a tabloid blogger who works with the fire department to spread the ministry's propaganda by broadcasting their book-burning raids to fans".

In October 2017, Singh hosted SlutWalk, an initiative started by Amber Rose. In November 2017, she was also chosen as an ambassador for Pantene shampoo and partnered with Calvin Klein. In 2018, Singh appeared in the music video for Maroon 5's " Girls Like You" featuring Cardi B.

In 2018, Singh was to star in NBC pilot ''Bright Futures''. The show was later cancelled by NBC and the pilot episode was left unaired. On April 13, 2018, Singh announced that she had launched her own production company ''Unicorn Island Productions''. The company is based in Los Angeles, California.

''A Little Late'' and other ventures (2019–present)

In March 2019, NBC announced that Singh would host a new late night talk show, '' A Little Late with Lilly Singh'', which succeeded '' Last Call with Carson Daly'' following its series finale later in the year. She promoted the show during the season finale of '' America's Got Talent''. The show premiered on September 16, 2019, to positive reviews by critics but low audience ratings. On May 13, 2020, NBC renewed ''A Little Late with Lilly Singh'' for a second season. It premiered on January 11, 2021. On May 6, 2021, Singh and NBC announced that ''A Little Late with Lilly Singh'' will end after 2 seasons.

In August 2019, Singh dropped the name "Superwoman" in an Instagram post. Singh was also nominated for "Audience Choice Creator of the Year" at the 9th Streamy Awards.

In 2020, Singh partnered with the video-sharing app TikTok to start creating videos on the app. As of July 2023, she has over 1.5 million followers and over 30 million total likes on the app.

She was scheduled to host the 31st GLAAD Media Awards in March 2020 before it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On August 18, 2020, Singh announced on the '' Today Show'' that she would star, write, and produce, a sketch comedy show titled ''Sketchy Times with Lilly Singh''. NBC ordered 2 episodes of the show and was shot and filmed in Singh's home. The show was released on October 29, on Peacock.

On September 1, 2020, Singh and other celebrities partnered with the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics organizing committee to create one of many emblems for the 2028 Summer Olympics. Lilly's "A" represents pride.

On September 11, 2020, it was announced that Singh will voice Penny in '' Riverdance: The Animated Adventure'', released in 2021. It was also announced in October that Singh would be voicing a Pickles in another film, titled '' Hitpig!'', released in 2024. In 2021, Singh signed onto a comedy project (produced by Kenya Barris) on Netflix. She and her Unicorn Island Productions banner struck a deal with Universal Television Alternative Studio.

Lilly appeared as Liv in the second season of the Hulu series '' Dollface'', which premiered on February 11, 2022. In October 2021, it was announced that Singh would be a judge on the second season of '' Canada's Got Talent'', which premiered in March 2022. She also starred in '' The Muppets Mayhem'' for Disney+, which was announced on March 7, 2022. The show received mostly positive reviews.

On April 6, 2022, Singh released her new book, ''Be a Triangle''. Following the signing of a first-look deal with Bell Media, it was announced that Singh would host CTV's new primetime quiz show titled '' Battle of the Generations'', which premiered on June 19, 2023. In March 2023, Singh co-hosted the 95th Academy Awards pre-show.

In 2024, Singh starred in the film ''Doin' It'', directed by Sara Zandieh and premiering at South by Southwest, receiving mixed reviews from critics. She is set to produce an adaption of the novel ''Arzu'' under her Unicorn Island Productions banner. In 2025, she launched a media network for social media content creators with South Asian descent, named ''Hyphen8''.

In May 2025, Singh joined the ownership group for the Toronto Tempo.

Public image

Punjabi culture is frequently portrayed in Lilly's videos, which contain satires on people's complaints and prominent issues. Her most popular video is ''Three Girls, One Elevator (ft. Zendaya & Winnie Harlow)'' which also promotes her women's empowerment campaign GirlLove, and her most popular series features her fictional parents, Paramjeet and Manjeet, both played by Singh herself, reacting to trending and controversial videos. She also frequently collaborates with celebrities on her videos.

Singh has been accused of cultural appropriation of African-American culture by such publications as '' The Huffington Post'', '' Bitch'', ''ColorLines'', and ''Vice''. Anna Silman of '' The Cut'' accused Singh of appropriating both Black and Indo-Caribbean culture on her channel because of her tendency to don a " blaccent", whilst making rap videos sporting chains and cornrows. Tayo Bero of ''Teen Vogue'' wrote that " inghfalls into a category of non-black people of color in entertainment who have built massive followings often by mimicking black culture and leaning heavily into Black stereotypes." Rachna Raj Kaur and Radheyan Simonpillai of '' Now'' similarly criticized Singh's appropriation of black culture due to her use of braids, hip-hop slang and Caribbean accents. Singh has responded to the criticism by stating her mannerisms are due to her upbringing, adding "all my friends from Scarborough orontoact exactly like me."

Born to Sikh parents and raised Sikh herself, Lilly Singh nevertheless garnered controversy for her remarks on turbans. During a visit to Jessica Alba's home, Singh met Alba's two young daughters who were both wearing twisted towels on their heads, to which she responded "They look like my Punjabi friends .. On September 27, 2019, ''BBC'' reported that Singh had apologized for an on-air joke that compared turbans to bath towels, in which members of the Sikh religion, who wear turbans for spiritual reasons, were angered by her remarks on NBC, with the BBC remarking that " inghhas used her platform to often call out public figures who she says deserve to be 'cancelled' for their offences."

Singh expressed her support for the George Floyd protests, and attended one herself in Los Angeles. She was featured in a campaign fundraiser for the Joe Biden 2020 presidential campaign. Singh also expressed her support for the 2020–2021 Indian farmers' protest, in various social media posts. In 2023, she expressed her outrage over the killing of Jaahnavi Kandula in Seattle, Washington, on social media.

In 2017, Singh was announced as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, to advocate for children's rights. She has led a campaign called "GirlLove", promoting girls to end girl-on-girl bullying. In July 2018, Lilly travelled to South Africa to meet the students of elementary schools who spoke against bullying and classroom violence. Since 2022, Singh created the "Unicorn Island Fund", a non-profit charity that continues the work of "GirlLove". In 2024, she was appointed as a United Nations Sustainable Development Goals advocate by Secretary-General António Guterres.

Personal life

Singh is an Indo-Canadian who developed a strong connection with her Punjabi heritage during visits to India. Although raised as a Sikh, she stated in an Instagram post that she does not follow any religion, but she strongly believes in God. She struggled with depression and arachnophobia and began making YouTube videos as a way of dealing with her feelings. As a young adult, Lilly lived with her parents in Markham, Ontario. In February 2019, Singh came out as bisexual via social media. In 2022, she was diagnosed with ovarian cysts.

In July 2020, Singh announced that she and other celebrities were bringing a National Women's Soccer League team to Los Angeles, called Angel City FC, which began playing in 2022.

Filmography

Film

Television

Web

Music videos

Discography

Singles

Bibliography

* '' How to be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life'' (2017)
* ''Be A Triangle: How I Went From Being Lost Into Getting My Life Into Shape'' (2022)

Accolades

In 2014, Lilly's channel ranked at #39 on New Media Rockstars Top 100 Channels. In September 2015, ''People'' magazine included Singh on their annual "Ones to Watch" list. She was also featured in Fast Company Magazine as the 100 Most Creative People in Business. '' Variety'' magazine recognized her as one of their ''10 Comics to Watch'' for 2016, and she was honored at the Just For Laughs Film Festival in Montreal. ''Forbes'' named her one of the 40 most powerful people in comedy in 2019. On October 19, 2019, Singh was named one of ''Vogue India''s Women of the Year. She also was placed on the Time 100 Next list. She has received an MTV Fandom Award, four Streamy Awards, two Teen Choice Awards and a People's Choice Award. In addition, Singh has received nominations for a Daytime Emmy Award and two Canadian Screen Awards.

Awards and nominations

See also

* South Asian Canadians in the Greater Toronto Area

Notes

References

External links

*

Lilly Singh
at YouTube

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Lilly
1988 births
Living people
21st-century Canadian actresses
21st-century Canadian comedians
21st-century Canadian LGBTQ people
21st-century Canadian non-fiction writers
21st-century Canadian women writers
Actresses from Toronto
Actresses in Hindi cinema
Angel City FC owners
Bisexual comedians
Bisexual women writers
Canadian actresses of Indian descent
Canadian bisexual actresses
Canadian bisexual writers
Canadian bloggers
Canadian expatriate actresses in the United States
Canadian film actresses
Canadian game show hosts
Canadian LGBTQ comedians
Canadian people of Punjabi descent
Canadian television actresses
Canadian television talk show hosts
Canadian voice actresses
Canadian women bloggers
Canadian women comedians
Canadian writers of Asian descent
Comedians from Toronto
Comedy YouTubers
Former Sikhs
Late night television talk show hosts
LGBTQ bloggers
LGBTQ YouTubers
Streamy Award winners
UNICEF goodwill ambassadors
Women writers of Indian descent
Writers from Scarborough, Ontario
York University alumni
YouTube channels launched in 2010
YouTube vloggers
YouTubers from Toronto