Indonesian YouTube star Ria Ricis on her social media rise, controversies and why she needs security guards
- Ria Ricis is Indonesia’s No 1 creator of gag videos, celebrity home visit videos, and reviews of soft foam toys, but has courted controversy along the way
- She initially tried to follow in the footsteps of her famous older sister Oki Setiana Dewi and become a soap opera actress, but was unsuccessful
Going from simple Instagram reviews of squeezable toys to a YouTube channel with more than 22 million subscribers, Ria Ricis is one of Indonesia’s biggest self-made celebrities.
The 25-year-old, who moved from Riau province to the capital city of Jakarta with a dream of making it big, is Indonesia’s No 1 creator of gag videos, celebrity home visit videos, and reviews of soft foam toys – all while growing her popular brand of cutesy silliness.
Like the best of YouTube’s content creators, Ria Ricis knows how to play the game, creating a variety of different videos and powering on despite several controversies.
“The key to my popularity is that I’m always sharing information and my experiences with fellow creators,” she says. “For instance, if another YouTuber comes for a shoot at my house, we always ask them, ‘Do you want to also shoot videos for your own content?’ Or, ‘Do you want to do any collaborations?’ It’s symbiotic mutualism.”
Born Ria Yunita, Ria Ricis’ stage name comes from a combination of the Indonesian words for “pretty” and “sweet”, which is presented with a winking self-awareness that is more playful than serious.
