She is young, successful and an inspiration to many young girls: the Albanian Dea Manaj (27) has managed to earn a living far from her homeland. The Albanian quickly became an internet star.
The journey of the Albanian who grew up in London started on YouTube. She immediately inspired the network: Manaj broke 500,000 followers in a very short time – the videos she published have already been viewed millions of times, as “Albora” reports.
Her passions are fashion, photography and travel. Manaj has now visited 35 countries and speaks fluent English in addition to Albanian. She is currently learning Spanish.
Quit office job
Her internet career started in 2017. After graduating from college in media and communication, she started using social media and creating content online. “I enjoyed making and editing videos and getting feedback on them too,” Manaj said of Albora.
Her videos seemed to get people excited. “Almost every day I watched the success of my videos increase.” Therefore, the 27-year-old decided to turn her passion into a profession: she gave up her office job and concentrated completely on YouTube. When the Albanian also owned a high-quality camera and her mother became a photographer, nothing stood in the way of her professional internet career.
«I create authentic content»
Manaj was so absorbed in her new role that she was even “addicted” to creating content on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook. Her diligence paid off: “One of my record-breaking videos got ten million views in one month.”
The secret of their success? “I create authentic content and am natural.” Being close to her viewers is especially important to her. And she seems to be able to: “I feel like my followers feel like they’re one of my friends.”
The content of the Albanian is not only authentic, but also unique. Unlike Albanian YouTubers, she also comments various songs and video clips on the platform. “I started communicating with the artists I was responding to and understanding them.” She is also said to have met several artists for interviews.
Albanian woman even has her own clothing brand
In addition to YouTube, the Albanian also presents itself on Instagram and Tiktok. However, in order to showcase different aspects of her personality, Manaj sheds light on other aspects of her life on these platforms.
Manaj is active not only on the internet but also in the fashion industry. “From an early age I was interested in fashion and design.”
Her streetwear brand MANAJ Design focuses on sustainable clothing that should be affordable. Manaj also wants to promote the culture of her homeland with her clothes: she recently released a collection with a Kosovar-Albanian architect. (dzc)