Jennifer Ann McAllister (born July 9, 1996),[1] also known by her former pseudonym and YouTube username jennxpenn, is an American internet personality, actress and comedian. She is known for her work on YouTube,[2] for which she has been nominated for a Shorty Award and four Teen Choice Awards.
McAllister created her YouTube channel jennxpenn at the age of 12 on January 15, 2009, but already had prior YouTube experience through a channel created beforehand with a friend.[3] The channel has since amassed over 3.5 million subscribers,[4] and her internet work has earned her nominations for the Shorty Award for YouTuber of the Year, and four Teen Choice Awards.[5][6][7][8]
In March 2013, McAllister signed a YouTube partnership deal with AwesomenessTV;[9] she appeared primarily in skits and segments on their YouTube channel. She also starred in the pilot episode of AwesomenessTV's sketch comedy series of the same name,[10][11] which premiered on Nickelodeon on July 1, 2013.[12]
Beginning in April 2014, she went on 16-city North American tour in celebration of reaching 1 million subscribers on YouTube with fellow YouTuber Tyler Ward, which took place at the beginning of May and the entirety of June.[13] In June 2014, McAllister signed a YouTube management deal with Fullscreen.[14][15]
At the 2015 Playlist Live convention, it was announced that McAllister and fellow YouTuber Lauren Elizabeth Luthringshausen would be starring in a film titled Bad Night, which serves as McAllister's acting debut.[16] The film was produced by GRB Entertainment,[17] McAllister, and Luthringshausen, among others.[18] It was released through Vimeo on Demand in July of that same year.[19][20] In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, she described the project as an "amazing experience" and that seeing herself on screen left her "cracking up at the fact that this is a real thing because I can’t take myself seriously. So we’re going to be hot messes, but I think we’ll make it through."[18] Also in 2015, McAllister made her writing debut with the autobiographyReally Professional Internet Person,[21][22] which was released in August 2015 and became a New York Times Best Seller.[23]
In February 2016,[24] it was announced that McAllister would portray the leading role of Addie Fixler in the YouTube Red original series Foursome.[25][26][27][28] In an interview with TheWrap, she described her relationships with the series' cast, stating that "I grew really close to everyone. It was kind of like a summer camp … I was on set for 12 and a half hours every day, so you’re really close with these people."[29][30] She created content for her channel five to six weeks before production on Foursome began in order to exclusively focus on the series.[29] The series was released in March of that same year, and ran for four seasons until 2018.[31][32] For her performance, she won the Streamy Award for Best Actress at the 6th Annual Streamy Awards,[33][34][35] which was presented to her by frequent collaborator Andrea Russett. She was also apart of an ensemble nomination for the cast of Foursome.[33]
In 2018, McAllister was cast in the role of Deanna Hoffman in the Hulu series All Night, which was the second collaboration between AwesomenessTV and Hulu.[36][37][38] The series premiered in May 2018, and ended after it was not renewed for a second season.[39] In the year following, she competed in the first season of The Reality House,[40][41][42] a web series inspired by Big Brother where several YouTubers compete for $25,000.[40]
At the end of 2021, McAllister stopped posting on her YouTube channel jennxpenn, instead focusing her attention on live-streaming on Twitch. She quickly rose to the top 0.04% of streamers on the platform, streaming primarily in the Just Chatting category. [43] She posts edited versions of her live streams on a second YouTube channel that has since amassed over 500 thousand subscribers.[44]
Personal lifeedit
In July 2013, McAllister moved from her home in Pennsylvania to Los Angeles, California.[9] In September 2014, McAllister partnered with the nonprofit organization Our Time, releasing a video telling her viewers aged eighteen or above to register themselves to vote in the United States.[45][46]
In November 2020, in a video titled "addressing your assumptions about me...",[47] McAllister came out as bisexual.[48][49]
McAllister, Jenn (2015). Really Professional Internet Person. Scholastic. 224pp. ISBN 9780545861137.
Referencesedit
^ abCid, Martin (July 8, 2014). "Famous Birthdays Today, July 9: Tom Hanks, Mitchel Musso, O.J. Simpson, Courtney Love, Jenn McAllister, Georgie Henley, Douglas Booth". Yareah Magazine. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
^Moss, Caroline (September 13, 2014). "19-Year-Old YouTube Star Says She 'Doesn't Need A Real Job'". Business Insider. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
^Jaworski, Michelle; Votta, Rae (August 31, 2014). "Meet the YouTube class of 2014". The Kernel. The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on September 7, 2015. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
^Selvin, Rachel. "YouTuber Jenn McAllister Finger-Painted With Us & Here's What Happened". www.refinery29.com. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^ abSteiner, Amanda Michelle (August 16, 2015). "Teen Choice Awards 2015: See the full list of winners". EW.com. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^ abCrist, Allison; Nordyke, Kimberly (July 31, 2016). "Teen Choice Awards: Winners List". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^ abNordyke, Kimberly (August 10, 2014). "Teen Choice Awards: The Complete Winners List". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^ ab"YouTuber of the Year in Social Media - Shorty Awards". shortyawards.com. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^ abMcAllister, Jenn (March 18, 2014). "Moving-Out Teen: A Survivor's Guide". The Huffington Post. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
^ ab"17-Year-Old YouTuber JennxPenn Premieres First Episode Of New AwesomenessTV Show 'JennxPenn's Top 10's' [VIDEO] | New Media Rockstars". newmediarockstars.com. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"AwesomenessTV Jumps To TV With Half-Hour Nickelodeon Series". Tubefilter. June 24, 2013. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"Nickelodeon Orders 7 More Episodes of 'AwesomenessTV' (Exclusive)". August 27, 2013. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^Salud, April (May 24, 2014). "jennxpenn on 1 Million Subscribers and Going On Tour". Strawburry17. Archived from the original on March 23, 2015. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
^Gutelle, Sam (June 27, 2014). "JennXPenn's Fullscreen Deal Is Not An Ordinary YouTube Partnership". Tubefilter. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
^Spangler, Todd (July 18, 2014). "JennXPenn, Connor Franta and Other YouTube and Vine Stars Featured in Fullscreen's First In-Real-Life Festival". Variety. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
^Bloom, David (February 8, 2015). "YouTube Stars JennXPenn, LoveLaurenElizabeth Cross Over To GRB's First Film". Deadline. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^Gutelle, Sam (February 9, 2015). "Lauren Elizabeth, Jenn McAllister To Headline Feature Film 'Bad Night'". Tubefilter. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
^ ab"Q&A: Jenn McAllister, Lauren Elizabeth Luthringshausen talk YouTube, Molly Ringwald, and explosions". EW.com. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
^Manly, Lorne (June 26, 2015). "Can 20 Million YouTube Fans Make 'Smosh: The Movie' a Hit?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^Hurtado, Alexandra (July 9, 2015). "First Look: Bad Night Movie Trailer Starring YouTube Sensations". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"JennXPenn is latest YouTube star to land a book deal". March 30, 2015. Retrieved December 23, 2016 – via AFP Relax News.
^Zumberge, Marianne (March 27, 2015). "YouTube Star JennXPenn Strikes Book Deal". Variety. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
^Ballin, Sofiya (August 25, 2015). "YouTube star JennXPenn is building an empire". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^Spangler, Todd (February 10, 2016). "YouTube Slates Original Gigi Gorgeous Documentary, JennxPenn Series". Variety. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^ ab"YouTube's Jenn McAllister Is Making Her Jump From Home Videos to a Whole New Series". Teen Vogue. March 30, 2016. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^Hamedy, Saba (March 31, 2016). "AwesomenessTV's 'Foursome': If 'Sex and the City' were set in high school". Mashable. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^Jarvey, Natalie (February 10, 2016). "YouTube Red Picks Up Gigi Gorgeous Documentary, High School Comedy 'Foursome'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
^Greenberg, Julia. "YouTube's New Original Programming Doesn't Make It Netflix". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^ abSolsman, Joan E. (March 30, 2016). "JennxPenn Explains Why Her YouTube Red Series Made Her Sick". Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"Jenn McAllister dishes about her hysterical 'Foursome' castmates". aol.com. March 29, 2016. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
^"The Trailer For 'Foursome,' YouTube Red's Latest Original Series, Has Arrived". Tubefilter. March 7, 2016. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"The Trailer For 'Foursome' Season 4 Will Transport You Back To High School – Exclusive". Elite Daily. October 10, 2018. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^ ab"6th Annual Nominees". The Streamy Awards. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^Spangler, Todd (October 5, 2016). "Streamy Awards 2016: Full Winners List". Variety. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
^ ab"Liza Koshy, Lilly Singh, and More Won Big at the Streamy Awards". Teen Vogue. October 5, 2016. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"Hulu Picks Up, Casts 'All Night' Graduation Comedy Series From AwesomenessTV". August 24, 2017.
^ abLloyd, Robert (May 10, 2018). "Review: Grad night goes 'All Night' in a new Hulu comedy with YouTube stars and a classic teen story line". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^Otterson, Joe (August 24, 2017). "Hulu, AwesomenessTV Partner for High School Comedy Series 'All Night'". Variety. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"'All Night' on Hulu Is The New 'Can't Hardly Wait' of 2018 [Exclusive]". Decider. April 11, 2018. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^ abc"YouTubers are competing for $25,000 in a 'Big Brother'-like reality series - these are the 13 contestants". Business Insider. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"With 25 Million Views On Season 1, Kian And JC Are Readying Another 'Reality House'". Tubefilter. November 7, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"Meet the Cast of Kian and JC's 'Big Brother'-Inspired YouTube Show". Distractify. July 15, 2019. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^DeSimone, Evan (September 24, 2014). "jennxpenn Targets Teens For National Voter Registration Day". New Media Rockstar. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
^Moss, Caroline. "YouTube Stars Are Replacing Hollywood A-Listers In Campaigns Encouraging Young People To Vote — And It Just Might Work". Business Insider. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^addressing your assumptions about me..., retrieved February 22, 2022
^McAllister, Jenn [@jennmcallister] (November 2, 2020). "and i'm bi not gay, don't mislabel please. cya" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
^Little, Kendall. "YouTuber Comes Out As Bi, School For Trans Opens In Asia". southfloridagaynews.com. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^McNary, Dave (June 17, 2015). "YouTube Stars Jenn McAllister, Lauren Luthringshausen's 'Bad Night' Gets Release". Variety. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"Anthony Padilla, Jenn McAllister Lend Voices To Lionsgate's 'Hedgehogs' Film". Tubefilter. December 18, 2017. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^"Jenn McAllister on Twitter: "GUYS go check out my new movie, Guardians of Oz on iTunes!!!"". Twitter. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
^Cusick, Ryan T (November 8, 2016). "Web Series 'Sleep Tight' Holds The Ingredients For Nightmares!". iHorror. Retrieved February 22, 2022.