Eight Brooklyn-based creators to follow … like, yesterday

By Cole Habersham

Every so often our social feeds get stuck in a run, subjecting us to a scroll of sameness. Same old profiles, same old poses, same old photos. If that sounds familiar—if you’re in need of an algorithm-shattering jolt—there’s no need to look beyond the borough for must-follows to brighten your feed. Here are eight to check out now.

Clifton Mooney

Handle: @gauchecowboy
Platform: Instagram
Followers: 33K
Niche: Photography

Clifton Mooney is a nurse and photographer who got his start taking polaroid portraits in the spring of 2020, soon after he moved to New York from New Orleans. Since then he’s developed an aesthetic—moody, intimate, and sexy—and following that led to him shooting Christopher Meloni, Jeremy O. Harris, and Bowen Yang in 2020. Follow to feel something. (Photo courtesy of Clifton Mooney and collaborator Spencer Clark.)

Mandy Lee

Handle: @oldloserinbrooklyn 
Platform: TikTok and IG
Followers: 313.9K TT, 12.9K IG
Niche: Trends

Trend analyst and fashion writer Mandy Lee’s TikToks are equal parts educational, empowering and entertaining. Lee is a zealous advocate for everyone developing a personal (and sustainable) sense of style, which sets her apart from the app’s usual trend-chaser crowd. Follow to guide your personal style discovery and adopt trends before they’re trending.

Brandon Osorio & Richie Eisenberg

Handle: @brandonandrichie
Platform: TikTok
Followers: 84.2K
Niche: Relationship and vibes

Instagram couple Brandon Osorio and Richie Eisenberg have a dreamy relationship, wardrobe and Bushwick
loft apartment, now generously shared on TikTok. It’s the kind of feed you can scroll aimlessly for an hour (or hours?)
for the serotonin-generating vibes and video cuts of their life together. Follow for general life inspo (or envy?).

Amanda Murray

Handle: @londongirlinnyc
Platform: Instagram
Followers: 60.9K
Niche: Style

Amanda Murray is arguably the best-dressed person on Instagram. More than offering style inspiration via her frequent OOTDs, Amanda enlightens brands, publications, and everyday people who visit her stories to know what’s happening in fashion: the clothes, the business moves, the celebrity sightings, and more. Her looks are so sought-after they launched a fan account last year, @sightingsoflondongirlinnyc. Follow both for a crash-course in style.

Bettina Makalintal

Handle: @crispyegg420
Platform: Instagram
Followers: 21.5K
Niche: Eggs

You may like eggs, but food writer and editor Bettina Makalintal lives eggs. Her beautifully curated Instagram is an oasis of fluffy, crispy, and sometimes runny egg-based dishes. Both egg and non-egg recipes have a home on her jazz-filled TikTok @bettinamak (13,500 followers), which is sure to inspire some munchies. Follow to do more than scramble.

Ryan Winter

Handle: @yung_fontina
Platform: TikTok
Followers: 167.1K
Niche: Heart eyes

If Brooklyn has a collective TikTok boyfriend it’s model and (soon-to-be) cafe owner, Ryan Winter. Winter’s ‘Tok is full of how-to’s; how to construct an effortless fit, thrift, lift, and emanate good energy, all of which will soon be on-display at Sweetbee Brooklyn, a Prospect Heights cafe Winter’s opening later this year. Follow for heart eyes.

Jessie Zapo

Handle: @jessiezapo
Platform: Instagram
Followers: 12.8K
Niche: Running

Jessica Zapotechne (aka Jessie Zapo) is a performance running coach at Adidas Runners NYC and founder of Girls Run NYC, a collective of women from all running levels that focuses on inclusivity. Zapo’s feed is filled with snaps from her runs across New York, travels across the globe and mantra-like captions. Run, don’t walk.

Jake Cornell

Handle: @jakewcornell
Platform: TikTok
Followers: 249.7K
Niche: Comedy

When comedian and podcast host Jake Cornell introduced the world to the characters living in his mind in 2020, they became the break from a then-tender reality we needed. Today “Gay Brooklyn Dad” and his other “talking head” characters are more than a distraction—they’re bona fide Brooklyn residents. Follow to keep up with (and laugh at) Cornell’s adventures with Chris, Roman and gang.

This article first appeared in the winter/spring 2022 issue of Brooklyn Magazine. Click here to subscribe today.