Juilliard Reject to Internet Sensation: Axel Webber and the Power of White Mediocrity
New York City transplant Axel Webber found himself in a unique position after posting a TikTok showing off his tiny, 95-square-foot, $1,200 a month NYC apartment on Dec. 15 of 2021. The 22-year-old Georgia local has amassed over 4 million followers since making his TikTok account in 2019, with the vast majority of his following being the product of his recent virality. Within days, ABC aired his very first interview.
According to Webber, he moved to NYC in hopes of attending The Juilliard School, a prestigious performing arts conservatory that has an acceptance rate of 7.6%. In a rejection letter from the school, they said “dear Axel, on behalf of the Juilliard division, thank you for your interest in our program and for sharing your talent with the faculty…as you are already aware due to our callback process, you are no longer under consideration for admission for fall 2022.”
By the time he announced his rejection in a teary-eyed TikTok on Jan. 10, Webber had a strong following on the platform, which led to hundreds and thousands of fans spamming Juilliard’s social media posts.
On top of the thousands of comments of support from complete strangers and millions of likes on TikTok, Webber received words of encouragement from Grammy-nominated artist Charlie Puth. In a video response to Webber’s rejection video, he said “not only did I not get into Juilliard, but I didn’t get into five of these prestigious schools that I wanted to get into that I thought would better my career…we experience rejection every day of our lives, and as hard as it is to swallow in the moment, it’s the thing that pushes you further creatively. It pushes my music, and it’s going to push your acting as well. You, Axel, do not need to worry at all. I like your videos a lot, there’s something very special about you, and I like your tiny apartment. You’re gonna be OK bro, I promise.”
Nearly immediately after sharing his rejection letter to the world, even more news outlets began to cover Webber’s story along with releasing back-to-back live interviews with him. With his journey getting more traction, many creators on TikTok, including someone who was accepted to Julliard but couldn’t afford to attend, started to post their own perspectives on the entire situation. Most of the themes in these videos revolve around white privilege, entitlement, and class.
In addition to criticisms made about Webber’s lack of acting experience, many began to point out the working-class lifestyle the TikToker exhibits on his social media. In many of his TikToks, Webber shows his audience how he finds cheap food in NYC. In a TikTok posted on Jan. 3, Webber films his trip to a “street market,” where an older woman sells him peanut butter at a cheap price. A few seconds after he pays for his peanut butter, Webber says “it is so empowering to afford to be able to live, and to get a good deal!”
In another video, Webber made a tutorial on how to make a “ramen breakfast in an apartment without a stove.” The caption? “I bought this stove from a fairly energetic guy on the street for $10.”
As we have seen time and time again, social media users are a powerful force when it comes to finding all types of information on anyone with a digital footprint. With many of his family members having public social media accounts, folks started pulling out all the receipts. Online, there are photos of him and his family vacationing in Haiti as well as several other places. Additionally, Instagram Stories in and outside the Webber home shows us that the family lives a comfortable life in Georgia.
Although it is not clear if Webber is financially supported by his family, critics make the point that the language he uses and the way he documents performing certain tasks such as cooking can be interpreted as glamorizing and cosplaying poverty. Even if Webber is not currently financially supported by his family, it is apparent that he has a safety net to fall back on in case anything were to ever go wrong while chasing his dreams in The Big Apple.
While Webber can control the way he portrays himself on TikTok to a certain extent, he does not really have much agency over how others react to him and his content. A prime example of this is the modeling contract he recently secured with the NYC modeling agency The Society. Of course, Webber most likely never thought he would ever become a viral sensation overnight. However, since that is now his reality, people can point to him and describe him as the epitome of white mediocrity. Is it his fault? Not necessarily. The larger conversation that needs to be had should delve into the reasoning behind Webber’s success. Would a non-white, disabled, or LGBTQ+ individual receive the same type of attention and opportunities if they were in his shoes?
