How TikTok Star Nathan Apodaca Became the Feel-Good Story of 2020
In the final days of 2020, very few people can look back and say they’ve had a good time. (Dua Lipa, maybe... or soap wholesalers). One member of that fairly selective club is Nathan Apodaca, the TikToker known as @420doggface208 or just doggface208, who shot to viral fame over a video of him skateboarding, drinking cranberry juice, and listening to to Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams.”
Through TikTok’s mercurial algorithm, Apodaca became a celebrity overnight, transforming from indie-vibe hero to brand sponsor in record time. When fans found an old tweet of his, from a time when Apodaca was living in a Walmart parking lot, they mobbed his PayPal with donations. In the weeks that followed, Apodaca got a free truck from Ocean Spray, proposed to his then-girlfriend, and bought a house. The Idaho Falls native nevertheless has a fairly wry view of his viral fame. He sees sponsorships as a means to an end. “I’m no puppet,” he said, “I still do what I like and what I want.”
Apodaca spoke to The Daily Beast, for example, after arranging for Boston Market to donate meals to unhoused residents of Los Angeles. Shortly after talking to The Daily Beast, Apodaca announced that he’d tested positive for COVID-19. He shared the news with a clip of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.” Two weeks later, he seems to be doing just fine.
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