There’s no better time for a heavy release than Valentine’s Day. Although they have inspired dating rumors since last year, Emma Chamberlain and Tucker Pillsbury are going public with their relationship. In an interview with GQ published Feb. 14, Chamberlain and Pillsbury, who goes by the stage name Role Model, talked about falling in love, their first date and what it’s like to date in the public eye.
“I don’t think we need to be secretive anymore.”
The relationship started with an Instagram DM followed by a vegan pizza date in 2020. “I didn’t want to be around him, because I thought, ‘He’s going to see I’m shaking, so I have to stay away. ,” Chamberlain said, adding that their long text conversations before their first date contributed to his anxiety. “Like, what if I let him down? What if he doesn’t like me personally? What if I’m weird? What if I’m weird? What if I’m ugly? What if I smell bad?” Thankfully, they resisted, going out a second time in a more casual setting with mutual friends, nerve-soothing drinks and a “Too Hot to Handle” marathon.
The duo first teased their relationship in the cryptic music video for Pillsbury’s song “Neverletyougo” in March 2022. The video quickly went viral, heightening speculation without actually making anything official. This early phase allowed the couple to maintain some privacy, particularly for Chamberlain, who has made a career out of documenting her entire life on YouTube.
“There are parts of our relationship that will forever be private, and those things that we keep sacred. But I don’t think we need to be secret anymore. It’s like I’m over this shit,” Chamberlain said. . “That used to be my mindset: ‘I’m protecting this at all costs and not letting anyone see it.’ But really, that’s not fun. It’s not fucking fun. And what is life? Have fun as fuck, okay?
Chamberlain was once romantically linked to fellow YouTuber Ethan Dolan, although they never officially confirmed their relationship. Rumors started after Dolan said he was dating someone in October 2018, and fans assumed it was Chamberlain due to his many collaborations. Chamberlain was also connected to Aaron Hull after appearing on his TikToks and later posting a video called “Learning to Skateboard to Impress a Boy”.
So while she may have been quite private about her personal life, Chamberlain is tired of keeping everything behind closed doors. “Shit should be fucking fun!” she said as an additional reminder. “Why stop yourself from doing this?”