Influencer
Magaly Rodriguez on Starting the Amanda Hashtag and Representing the Latino Community
Magaly Rodriguez is an advocate for chasing your dreams, which she demonstrated by making the daring move from Chicago to Los Angeles alone. Previously, she worked as a medical assistant but decided to quit and pursue her dreams of being a full-time social media influencer after her TikTok took off. Once in Los Angeles, her content became well known for her famous Amanda and 7-11 videos. Today, Magaly shares her journey representing the Latino community and starting the Amanda hashtag trend on TikTok.
About Magaly Rodriguez
Magaly Rodriguez is a full-time medical assistant turned social media star. During the pandemic, she downloaded TikTok and began entertaining herself on the app.
She began posting her own videos, first of her job, then following different trends. After a few months, she started getting more into digital marketing and developed a following.
Magaly Rodriguez explains, “I always tell this to my followers or my family, like I moved from Chicago to LA to pursue a dream, and it has been working out great, and I always tell them if you have a goal, just go for it. Don’t let nothing stop you if it works out, great. If not, at least you tried.”
When she started creating TikToks, she lived between Chicago and Mexico but decided to move to Los Angeles to pursue her social media career full-time.
@magaly.rds Harers will say is not my car 😏 #7elevengirl #amandabailaconlabanda #whatyoudoforaliving 🎥: @JOSE ♬ Yo Quiero Quebrarte – Los Felinos
She shares, “One day, I was live on TikTok, and I already had followers watching me, and this guy messaged me. He was like, “Hey, you’re new to LA. I would love for you to make a video at my store at 7-11.” I was like 7-11? That’s such a weird place to make content, and then I thought, why not? It’s really unique.”
After posting her first video at 7-11, she received a lot of positive feedback and went back to film another. Her second 7-11 video received around half a million views in less than 24 hours.
“I kept going back, and people just loved it so much. Until one day, I posted a video, and in 24 hours, it already had over one million [views].
The Amanda Hashtag
Magaly Rodriguez has her name, Magaly, on her social media accounts. However, you’ll find many of her followers call her Amanda instead.
Many people have seen her posts using the “Amanda” song, leading them to call her Amanda. These posts even led to the popular Amanda hashtag on TikTok, which allowed Magaly to gain even more followers and become a full-time content creator.
Delivering Fun Content about 7-11
Magaly shares, “I always try to represent my background, the Latinos. I just always wanted to deliver [good] vibes [with my content] and always have fun with your coworkers even though I don’t work there [at 7-11] and they’re not my coworkers, but at the end of the day, we all became really good friends.”
Magaly Rodriguez adds that people always comment on her 7-11 posts, saying how the TikToks represent their fun relationships with their coworkers.
@magaly.rds 7-eleven baila con la banda 😏💃🔥#amandabailaconlabanda🕺 #latinostiktok #latinos #7eleven #7elevenmexico #goodvibes #cashapp13plus ♬ sonido original – Maricruz Guevara 🦋
“I feel like right now, we’re in the moment where things are not always good, but if I could just make someone stay for a few seconds, and especially representing my culture, then it feels great.”
Magaly shares that her signature content delivers fun vibes and commentary about being Hispanic and representing her culture.
Her most popular post is a TikTok with a friend that received over seven million views. In this TikTok, Magaly wears a 7-11 shirt, and her friend showed up in a FedEx uniform.
@magaly.rds Reply to @realgamerttv Perate, perate, perate Is that @abiud_sando ♬ sonido original – Maricruz Guevara 🦋
“His viral dance was going viral at that moment. It was trending, and mine [dance] too. We got together, and people just loved it, and they were like, this is perfect. We did not expect this collab. That’s something that stood out for people.”
Brand Deals
Magaly Rodriguez shares that she recently finished working with Adidas. The Adidas collab included a photo shoot for their new jersey.
She has also worked with a soccer team from Mexico, which has been her favorite collab so far because she loves soccer and is proud to represent where she comes from.
“They [the soccer team] reached out and wanted me to bring my Amanda with the bucket hat and just represent who I am and my TikToks. I’ve been getting a lot of great brands.”
Magaly’s strong and loyal followers give her a great fan base for brand deals because the brands quickly see the love that Magaly’s fans have for her and her content, which helps her campaigns be very successful.
As a Latina, Magaly feels that Latinos are finally starting to get recognized and offered more opportunities by brands.
@magaly.rds #ad Show me who you ❤️ sharing @IHOP with! Spread smiles for a chance to win FREE 💰🥞😋! #IHOP ♬ KING MERENGUE – Abaco
“They [brands] are working with us, and they’re really trying to put us out there and just get as many people as they can to represent our community and our people. So, I don’t think it’s been hard [for Latinos] anymore. Maybe back a few years, but from what I’ve seen right now, everything’s been good. If anything, I feel like a lot of people want more Latinos or different cultures.”
The Most Challenging Part About Being a Creator
Magaly Rodriguez shares, “When you enjoy something so much, you don’t really feel forced. You just enjoy it so much.”
However, she notes that there are times when she does feel the need to take a small break from social media because posting frequently can be exhausting.
“At the same time, this is my job now. I think there are times I want not to post, just go for a week not posting. That’s probably the hardest thing because I really can’t stop posting.”
Magaly adds, “But I love it. I love filming. I love editing my videos. I love coming out with new ideas. Everything is amazing.”
Closing Thoughts
Magaly shares that there is still a lot of room for growth for opportunities available to Latinos.
“I think [we need] to just kind of keep going, pushing more, and more until we’re satisfied. Until it’s equal.”
Magaly shares that she is excited about what the future holds. Recently, many people have reached out to her about posters featuring her showing off new jerseys in the Adidas store.
“I think that’s something big. I love receiving photos of my fans or followers [being] like oh my gosh, I saw you at the store. Congrats!”
