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 his high school band.
He said his desire to become “somebody” was sparked by Michael Jackson’s death in 2009.
“He died and my whole family just freaked out,” he said. “We were having this really nice day. And then you see everybody going into the living room. My family’s crying. And I just remember being like, “I want to have that impact on the world when I die.”
After graduating from Boston University in 2017, he returned to New York City and tried to get into “the scene,” sneaking into runway shows during Fashion Week and performing at V-Files, a media company, trying to get a record deal. He even produced his own pop album.
Jean-Luc Lukunku is pictured here with his roommate Manny Gomez.
Precious Fondren / Gothamist
In 2019, Lukunku tried to get one of his singles, “On Time,” to go viral on TikTok. But he didn’t see success on the platform until his first video – about trying to date a girl who lives in the East Village – went viral, with over 500,000 views.
Encouraged by his success, he kept making videos, eventually introducing his first “NYC clout guy” video, which went viral in August 2022 with 250,000 views.
Lukunku’s videos satirize the fact some young men spend a lot of time, energy and money on trying to seem cool. NYC clout guy name drops celebrities and asks potential love interests things like “Want to be my muse?”
And – in Lukunku’s world – even though many of these young men talk as if they have money, their parents are often the ones keeping them afloat financially.
Lukunku said his day job producing videos for GQ magazine was also a source of inspiration.
He also added that he’s making fun of himself.
“I had just been exposed to that lifestyle for a while, so it was me making fun of this type of character that I was friends with. I knew that I was a little bit of that character,” he said. “As it kind of went on I ended up becoming this ‘clout guy.’”
Fans of his videos said they can relate.
Angelina Hazzouri, who works in merchandising at the fashion label Coach, said that at the end of a bad Hinge date, her suitor’s card was declined.
“He literally said to me, ‘It’s OK, daddy’s got this!’ she said. “This man was literally 29. Then I saw a TikTok that Jean-Luc made where his card gets declined or he says “I’ll put it on my dad’s credit card.”
She said that Lukunku captures some of the city’s characters in a way that feels true.
Lukunku said that while he’s grateful for the clout he gained so far, he hasn’t yet achieved his goals.
“I’m not where I want it to be at all,” he said. “I’m still very much fighting for my spot, but I’m super thankful.”
As for what he wants to do with all this clout, Lukunku said he’s inspired by Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri, Cardi B, and others – whose careers took off after they achieved social media fame.
He said he hopes to turn “NYC clout guy” into a TV show, similar to how Issa Rae used her “Awkward Black Girl” videos as a launching pad for her TV show “Insecure.”
“I think about Kim Kardashian’s career and she had a reality show and was doing commercials for cupcakes,” he said. “It’s like a snowball that you have to continue to make bigger and bigger and bigger. I think that’s what next year is about, just doing a hundred times what I was able to do this year.”
