Behind the scenes with Olivia Neill

When Olivia Neill touches down at our Kentish Town studio, the YouTuber-cum-model is fresh off the back of Paris Fashion Week. These days, Neill is no stranger to the fashion world. She has worked with an impressive smattering of brands, including Burberry, Boss and, now, Longchamp. But, according to the 23-year-old, this trip marked something of a milestone moment. “I went to
my first ever couture show,” Neill says. “It was insane. Every time I go to a fashion show, I’m looking around, like, this isn’t real life. I grew up seeing these things on TV and then to actually be in the room!” Going back six years, Neill would probably have been talking about a very different room — the one where the then 17-year-old would chat to her camera and create YouTube videos back in her hometown of Belfast. YouTube videos that led to her current digital reach — almost 2.5 million people, for those wondering — and chart- topping podcast, Inner Monologue.

Like anyone who grew up in a “normal” environment would, Neill notes that working with “powerhouse brands” comes with a fair dose of imposter syndrome. However, it’s undeniable that she is part of a new generation of fashion. Case in point? The model’s AW24 campaign for the Brit-girl brand Peachy Den, which went viral, racking up over a million views on Instagram in less than a week. While the Devil Wears Prada-inspired clothing and Neill’s aptitude for modelling are both obvious factors in that, it’s also undoubtedly down to her personality — one aspect of which comprises an unlikely interest in piloting aeroplanes. “At the end [of the Peachy Den shoot], the director was like, ‘Oh, we actually want you to fly a plane,’” Neill recalls. “And I was like, ‘Are you guys sure? Like, you want me to fly?’ That was amazing because they made the campaign a bit more personal to me.”

Another key element of the model’s personality is, as any of her viewers will know, her openness. “My relationship with my audience has always been very personal, very open,” Neill says. “When I meet people who watch my things or follow me in person, it’s so funny because they know everything about me.” When I ask her where her drive to be so honest comes from, she flags the YouTubers she used to watch as a teenager. “Everything that people posted online was so polished, like TV honestly,” she says. “And I think that messed up a lot of people.”

We both agree that, thankfully, the mediascape is becoming much more candid, and the podcasters Neill listens to these days, such as Emma Chamberlain (the host of Anything Goes) and Sophia and Cinzia (The Girls Bathroom — “just so cute and girlie and honest”, Neill says), are a testament to
that. It’s also a fortification of her own work philosophy. “I hold them in high regard because of what they do and how successful they are,” she says, “and then they come on their podcasts and talk about, like, how they pick their nose and stuff, and it makes me feel like, wow, we’re all human. It’s just comforting to break that wall of perfection online.”

This excerpt was taken from HUNGER Issue 34: Fight Back. Stay tuned for the full story.

Clothing and accessories throughout available at LONGCHAMP.com and LONGCHAMP boutiques.