The first time Yasmine Sahid popped up on my For You Page, she was imitating herself « visiting home during the holidays as the main character. » She shyly pushed her hair behind her ear, pretended to be famous, and generally acted like the world revolved around her while Lana del Rey played in the background. I watched the video at least 20 times. Then I sent Sahid’s follow-up video about meeting old friends at a hometown bar to my younger sister, who laughed so hard she cried.
Sahid has a special knack for making the personal universal, especially for women who were teens in the 2000s and 2010s. Whether mocking Twilight or the dramatic « Dis-knees » of Disney Channel stars, Sahid’s videos are humbling and hilarious reminders that none of us have ever had a unique experience.
Earlier this week, as her cat August zoomed around behind her, Sahid told Mashable why Main Character Syndrome is so intoxicating, and why she recently released a song about it. « Everyone thinks they’re the main character when not everyone can be the main character, » she laughs. « So it’s just kind of like poking fun of myself and having those moments where you feel like everyone’s looking at you. And just just basking in the delusion because, why not? Like is so short. »
So, what’s on the TikTok virtuoso’s For You Page? In no particular order, here are all the videos Sahid’s been delighting in lately.
1. « 2000s Disney Halloween movies be like »
This video made me go back and look up all my favorite Disney Channel Original Movies. I remember Xenon and the Cheetah Girls, obviously, but I forgot that Motocrossed was my shit. Do you remember Cadet Kelly? Eddie’s Million Dollar Cook-Off? Smart House?
Yes! I also loved Halloween Town and Don’t Look Under the Bed. I feel like this guy got the mannerisms right. The floating glasses? Oh, my God, that shit cracked me up. The different monster characters, the tropes, the lines. It pretty well done, too. I’ve done videos kind of like that, and it takes a lot of time and effort.
You bring back memories for me that I don’t even remember. Where do you pull inspiration stuff from?
Honestly, things just pop in my mind. I don’t have a method or rhyme or reason. A lot of it is watching Disney Channel shows or scrolling on Instagram or TikTok and then something from a nostalgia page pops up.
It’s been nice to see that you’re not just a ’90s baby, but you’re a Tumblr girlie, too.
Oh, for sure. My friends in grade school read a lot of books and would go on Tumblr to see people talk about them. I would just watch them scroll through, and they got me into 1D. This was during the X Factor days, way before they even got popular. The first video I remember watching of them on Tumblr was from their video diaries, the one where they were all in different onesies. Then I got more into Tumblr in high school — the fanfics, the writing — I was just obsessed with it, scrolling on my little iPod touch. Marina. Twilight. One Direction. Vampire Weekend.
2. #catsofTikTok
I quote the exact line from this video all the time which is Mike Wazowski’s « You and me, me and you, both of us together! » from Monsters, Inc. I have a bunch of things that I say in conversation that I every once in a while realize are from Disney movies. What are some of yours?
I say « Good morning, everyone! The tank is clean and we are… gasp the tank is clean! » all the time. I quote a lot of That’s So Raven. Like the episode with that babysitter [season 3, episode 33] where the characters says, « I just put a little dash of cinnamon! » and Chelsea pretends to choke as if it was poison… Tears are coming out of my eyes! I recently rewatched the whole series and listening to the jokes now as an adult, I realized there were a couple of innuendos so cleverly written in. It’s so good.
Obviously, you’re in love with your cat, August. So maybe these cat videos are an extension of that?
Ever since I got him, cat videos have been all over my For You Page. I grew up with a bichon and was always a dog lover. But I rescued August. A friend discovered him in the bushes in front of her apartment building and was trying to find him a home. She was like, « I just want to show you the cat. » The first time I met him he was so cute and ran up to us, started rubbing my legs, bumping his head into me, just super sweet. And I was like, ‘Oh, I can’t leave. »
3. « lash extension💋💅🏻 »
OK, so this video… there’s no way that any cat that I’ve ever had would have sat still for this long.
I know! I tried putting bat wings on August and he doesn’t even like having the collar on him. This creator said she just placed the lash on the cat’s eye lid, there was no lash glue.
Did you see that recent TikTok video of a cat in the full costume that’s sitting at the edge of a table while his owners coo at him and take pictures?
Yes! And then he fell down? Yeah, August could never. He’s getting chunky, too. I started cutting down his kibble.
Have you tried a laser for exercise?
No! I got a $30 like electric mouse that just roams around on its own. But it just keeps getting stuck. Some of these places are selling these high-tech toys that are so expensive. But [cats] just want the dumbest thing. He was recently playing with a ball of tape.
4. « The Grim Gallows of the Whaley House » | Ghost Files
What do you like about the Watcher duo, Shane and Ryan?
I’m obsessed with them and started watching them on « Buzzfeed Unsolved. » When they released this new ghost-hunting show, I was so excited. You’ll be scared, and then they have a comedic break that makes you feel more comfortable. So you can watch it and laugh at it and be spooked at the same time.
Are you obsessed with ghost hunting in general? Did you ever watch Ghost Adventures on TV?
I loved watching them when I was growing up, but it was always too masculine for me, too abrasive. I love this new wave of YouTube ghost hunting where it’s less in your face. There’s more of a discovery to things. I was watching Garrett Watts, and he makes a really good example of how [shows like Ghost Adventures] go into these places and are like, « show yourself you little bitch! » And of course, you’re not gonna get any [paranormal activity that way] because who wants to show themselves to someone who is yelling at them?
[Watts] enters spaces with more respect and is more conversational. His videos are long, but I always put them on whenever I’m doing makeup or my hair. They’re more empathetic
Do you believe in ghosts? It sounds like you do.
I do.
Have you had an encounter?
I haven’t had a crazy one. In my West African culture they say if you smell cologne or perfume, it means you’ve been visited by someone. I was visiting my friend for my birthday dinner. I get in my car ,and I get this huge waft of lavender. After that, it smelled like my grandma’s perfume on my car ride home. That night I was picking up my friend from work and was like, « Do you smell that? » and she was like « Yeah, it kind of smells like old lady perfume. » I think it was my grandma coming back to say happy birthday to me. I had another instance where I smelled my dad’s cologne in the room he died in. I asked my mom, « Did you spray something? » and she said no. She said she has smelled it herself a couple of times.
5. #rodgercleyeedit
Finally, I love Rodger Cleye edits.
Oh, my God, I’ve been obsessed with this trend. People comment suggestions of songs to cover, and he does it. Then accounts like this take the clip and edit him into situations that are so specific. There’s one I saw that was like, « you learned that your celebrity crush is in a relationship, » and he was singing a Lana del Rey song with candles and a bag of Cheetos. And I was like, this is so true! God, they’re so fucking funny.
