Even if you haven’t met Jean-Luc Lukunku, you may know a status-obsessed New Yorker like the one he portrays on TikTok.
Lukunku, 28, is known as the “NYC clout guy” — his over-the-top parody of a 20-something social media influencer who is desperate to join the New York City party scene’s “in” crowd.
Since he started posting videos as “NYC clout guy” in 2022, he has garnered over 2 million likes on TikTok.
A running bit in his videos is that he’s been making fun of the actor Luka Sabbat – who stars on the TV show “Grownish” and whom Vogue once designated the “No. 1 NYC cool kid.”
The two finally met in November at Complex-Con, a festival that unites “influential brands and artists for an immersive and unforgettable weekend” in Long Beach, California, according to its website.
“He’s like, ‘I love your stuff,’” Lukunku said. “And then I was like, ‘Yo, we should make a video.’”
What resulted was a funny and slightly awkward TikTok where Lukunku is desperately trying to befriend Sabbat, even telling him, “We’re homies,” while the actor tries to keep a distance.
“So many people were like, was that a real video? Was he in on it? Did you actually just bombard him? But he actually was acting,” said Lukunku on a recent Friday afternoon at his apartment in Lower Manhattan.
Lukunku’s performance has garnered him real-life clout, including modeling gigs for the shopping platform Basic Space, social media gigs for Dazed magazine and voiceovers with Chipotle. The model and actor Evan Mock appeared in one of his TikToks.
Lukunku, who was born Jean-Luc Hodari Lukunku in the Bronx, was raised in Port Chester, New York by his Congolese father and Puerto Rican mother.
He’s the oldest of two children and loved music early in childhood. He sang in his church’s choir and middle school choruses, and was also the president of…
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