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Issue link: https://digital.miamilivingmagazine.com/i/1127416
For Gigi, it all started in high school, on the internet. Growing up in Ontario, Canada, Giselle Loren Lazzarato never thought that starting a YouTube channel as a ninth grader would lead to a booming career. And no one else did either. "People were asking, 'What's a YouTuber?' When I would travel and tell people what I did, they wouldn't believe me." Creating videos was a way that Gigi could express her true thoughts, before she even knew she wanted to. "I'd been suppressing how I was feeling. When I started to open up, I got positive feedback, so it was easier to share more. They had my back." After a few years of creating, in 2013, Gigi opened up to the whole world that she was transgender and took everyone on her journey through her transition, which she writes about at length in He Said, She Said. "I was always fascinated by books, but I never thought I'd write my own. It's just a testament to what YouTube has done for me. I almost think I overshared in this book —to a fault —but I really want people to know that you can achieve anything you set your mind to. I overcame a lot." Gigi's following began to grow as she documented her transition on her social media. In addition to YouTube, she began to dabble in acting and modeling and in 2015, she starred in fellow YouTuber Shane Dawson's short film, I Hate Myselfie and its sequel. She also had guest appearances on television series: Project Runway All Stars, Me and My Grandma, Good Work, and Trailblazers. "I was always fascinated by books, but I never thought I'd write my own. It's just a testament to what YouTube has done for me. I almost think I overshared in this book —to a fault —but I really want people to know that you can achieve anything you set your mind to. I overcame a lot."