The New Faces of Pride: TikTok Stars Chris & Ian Share the Kind of Love Story They Want to See More Of

With the world slowly beginning to come out on the other side of the coronavirus pandemic, this Pride season is one of tremendous celebration. And yet, the spirit of a movement itself born out of a protest lives on. As the month of June comes to a close and International Pride Day nears, E! News has asked some of Hollywood’s newest generation of LGBTQ+ stars to share what Pride means to them in 2021.

Welcome to The New Faces of Pride.

Chris Olsen and Ian Paget found love in a hopeless place.

Oh, no, no—not quarantine. We just mean the Internet.

The performers and artists first crossed paths uneventfully on Instagram, Chris—who was living in Maryland—liking a few of Ian’s pics without much of a reaction. Then Ian glimpsed Chris at a WorldPride event in 2019. They didn’t talk then, but Ian was inclined to message Chris the next day. Still, it wasn’t until Chris visited New York that July that they actually met and went on a real first date.

“I like to say that’s our one-year anniversary,” Chris said in their inaugural YouTube video after amassing millions of followers on TikTok. “It’s not, because [Ian] did not agree to be my boyfriend until two months into the relationship.”

But they’ve been together ever since, having joined forces both online and off, moving in together in L.A. and becoming one of the most adored social-media-star couples, their popularity quickly transcending the gay fandom they had guessed they’d attract to encompass people of all ages, lifestyles and identities.