Coolest Person in the Room: Amelia Dimoldenberg

You’ve been on this sort of US mainstream press wave. I saw you on Seth Meyers and all these big shows. What has it been like coming to America as this huge online star having grown up in the UK?

Well, the press trip so far has been amazing. It's been such a dream. To go on a massive late night show in New York, it’s like, wow. It's just something that you think, Oh, would that ever happen? I've not even been on late night shows in the UK. First of all, it was just such a fun experience, especially because it's so well-produced. All of these shows that you go on, you have a pre-interview before where they go over the conversation with you. It's very different to how I conduct an interview myself, which is like, you’ve never met them before. You don't speak to them before. They don't know what the questions are, and you just sort of vibe from there. Sometimes it's awkward and sometimes you get amazing bits, but you just don't really know anything about how the conversation's going to go. This way of working was completely different, which made it actually kind of more relaxing, because I knew what I was going to be talking about.

But yeah, it was really fun. Honestly, I feel like I'm on such a high from it. I was running on adrenaline last week, going to so many different things, and I got to go and see SNL for the first time. I went to a Broadway play to see Oh, Mary! I went to a concert at Madison Square Garden. I just did so many other fun things in New York. And in terms of the second part of the question about America, I think the UK obviously has such a strong affinity to the US. I feel like we have so many cultural overlaps and obviously a shared language. And most people who consume culture in the UK are intrigued by America because it comes up so much. When you first go to LA and New York, your first thought is, wow. I feel like I'm in a movie, because so much of what we see in the movies is filmed there. My family and I have always loved America, and I'm actually a massive Disney World fan, and me and my family have been to Disney World in Florida about five times. We love it, but we also love watching TV and films, and I think that that's just a big through line in my childhood — watching things on television and wanting to be in them.

When was the first time you came to America?

Oh, I must have been a teenager. I don’t know, actually. Maybe I was, like, 10.

Oh, okay. So you’ve been here.

Yeah. I've been going consistently with my family, and then I’ve been coming for work as well. Honestly, I have felt like I’ve been able to predict lots of things that have happened in my career, because I’ve had a plan of what I wanted to do and then I worked to make it happen and make it a reality. But I honestly never thought that having an audience in America would be something that would happen. I’m so grateful for that, because so many of my comedy heroes and things are American. Obviously growing up watching so many American things, basically American culture has influenced my work so much, so it’s really amazing to have a fanbase here. Being able to grow more here, I just want to be able to do more in America. I do really love it.

Yeah, I mean it’s like you got the golden ticket.

I know! Because yeah, obviously there are some British people out here, but mainly it’s actors and directors. People doing what I’m doing, there’s not as many. So I feel grateful and I feel welcomed. I think people think that I’m more interesting here because of the accent. It makes me sound smarter or something.

You’ve built this audience that loves to watch you when they’re sitting on the sofa eating snacks. But what do you watch, say, when you get home from a long day?

I've been watching Couples Therapy at the moment. Do you watch Couples Therapy? I don't know what channel it's on in the US, but it's on BBC here, and it's basically this incredible couples therapist called Orna. Can't remember her last name, but basically you watch different couples have therapy and it's so interesting and well-made and insightful. It's my comfort show. I love watching it.

What’s been the most surreal American experience you’ve had since doing these press trips, or just in general?

Going to SNL was kind of wild because it's so quintessential New York, that show, and as I said, growing up watching it, some of my comedy heroes started out on Saturday Night Live. So to be able to go and see a taping and see how it all works, and then go to the after party, like the famous after party. We stayed out until six in the morning, and it was just so epic. I need to start journaling. I do journal a bit, but I need to start journaling more, because I need to remember these moments. Sometimes I just have to pinch myself and be like, What the hell? Sometimes I feel like I'm in The Truman Show. Someone's going to cut the cord out of this and be like, “Ah, it was all a lie,” because it seems too good to be true. But at the same time, it's been a 10-year journey to get to this stage in my career, and I'm just grateful. The reason I'm getting invited to these things is because I'm making things that resonate with people, that people like, and they're like, “Oh, we really like the videos you're doing, you should come to this thing,” and so I feel grateful that I'm able to connect with fans and then also peers in the industry. I get to meet up with them and talk about ideas, talk about work, and also just have fun. Watch comedy. So yeah, I would say SNL.

A lot of people probably don’t realize that you’ve been doing the show for a decade now, but that’s just a testament to putting in the work and longevity. What would you say to creators who are just starting out and trying to do something like you’ve done?

I would say trust your instincts. And your gut. If something doesn't feel right, just don't do it. That’s how I think you're going to remain authentic and be true to yourself. And that's really what you need to be doing to make something that not only you like, but other people like. So yeah, I would say trust your instincts, really. If someone's telling you to do something and you feel like that doesn't really resonate with you, you can have the power to say no. Because that's kind of what I've tried to stick to in my career. If it doesn't feel genuine, I don't do it.

Does your life just feel like one big interview?

Yes. It’s just the interview that never ends.

Do you have any niche hobbies that you do in your free time?

I was doing dance classes for a while. I've actually stopped because my dance instructor went on tour with Dua Lipa. I love to dance. I'm trying to get better at it, basically. It came out of dancing on TikTok. And then I was like, “Oh, I really love dancing on TikTok. Maybe I should just do more of that because it makes me really happy.” It's also something to do where you can move your body and not be on your phone and stuff. So I want to start that up again. I can horse ride. I was horse riding for a long time when I was younger, but I don't do that anymore either. And then what else do I do? I love going to the cinema. That's something I love doing. And then, other than that, I don't really have many hobbies. I feel like all of my interests I've turned into my job. So that's on my list of things to do, is to get some more hobbies. Because I do think that I need to sort of reframe my work life balance a bit.

What’s your favorite movie of all time?

Oh my god. My favorite movie of all time is probably Mean Girls.

I just watched it.

I was gonna try to say something really high-brow, but the truth is that it's Mean Girls. To me, that film encapsulates everything that I want to see in a movie. And it's also just so unbelievably funny. It's like, women being funny, the funniest they can be. Written by women, starring women, and that's really my truth of the way I live in the world. All the funniest people around me are women. I don't know, when I watched that movie in the theaters for the first time when I was 12 or something, I just thought, Oh my God, this is the best thing I've ever seen.

Growing up, what other pop cultural moments really impacted you?

I think watching MTV music videos. Just having that on the television. Music videos have always been something that have really stuck out to me in terms of their cultural impact and a way to see your favorite artist inhabit their own world, create their own world and their own visual identity, and feel like you're just buying into them even more than before. You know, watching Christina Aguilera’s “Dirrty” for the first time, I literally cut the crotch out of my jeans and my mum was like, “What the fuck?” And then seeing Britney and Madonna kiss for the first time, and being like, alright, so it's okay for girls to kiss. Like, that happens.

And then Mary Kate and Ashley [Olsen], to me, was just the biggest cultural moment of my life. Waiting for their new movies to come out. I was so obsessed with them. I wanted to be them so badly and kind of modeled my whole life off them. I wanted to have multiple different hobbies and, you know, try and be the best in my career, because they did. And then, going to Glastonbury Festival for the first time. That in the UK is a massive cultural institution. I love music festivals in general, and going to see live music is something that I find so fulfilling. So getting to go to Glastonbury, which is kind of one of the best places to watch live music, was a really formative experience, especially as I broke in for the first time. I didn't even have a ticket.

What’s the biggest cultural difference you’ve noticed between the US and the UK?

I don't know, everything's just bigger in the US. Literally, like the buildings, the sidewalks, the pavements. The fact that you have to drive everywhere, it feels just much larger scale. Everything is sort of supersized. And I think that is also something to be said for the personalities of people and the culture. Everything is just sort of pushed to the extremes here. And another thing as well is people in America are much more positive. They have a positive energy that maybe in the UK sometimes we lack, in terms of if you're somebody who's hyper-ambitious, that's rewarded in American culture in a way that it's not as much in Britain. But yeah, my first impressions of the differences were just that everything is so big. Even the billboards are such a big thing here, especially in LA. Everything is just supersized.

Besides chicken, what’s your favorite source of protein?

Well, it is chicken, and that's the only real meat that I eat. Well, what else is protein? I like eggs. I like chicken and I like eggs, because you can't have one without the other. And I like my eggs all different ways. So, yeah, if egg is protein, then I want to say that as well.

I’ve always hated eggs.

Yeah, some people hate them, but I absolutely love them. Love scrambled eggs, dippy eggs, sunny side up, omelets. Like, oh my God, the list is endless.

Do you go on dates yourself? What’s your dating life like now that you’re known for Chicken Shop Date?

Yeah, I like to date. I think dating is really fun. I see the fun in it, and I think it's always great to meet up with someone that you think is cute, and have dinner and drinks. So yeah, I love to date.

You have your production company Dimz Inc. Where do you see this going in, say, five years?

Photography: Diego Villagra Motta
Styling: Angelina Cantú
Hair: Marin Mullen
Makeup: Cassandra Lee

Styling assistants: Heidi Cannon, Autumn Woody

Editor-in-chief: Justin Moran
Managing editor: Matt Wille
Editorial producer: Angelina Cantú
Story: Ivan Guzman
Location: The Waverly Inn