On January 12, 2021, New York Magazine ran a story with a grabby headline:
Hearken back to this strange, not-so-distant epoch, and you’ll realize that the timing of the article was, to put it succinctly, perfect. TikTok was a trendy, upstart social media platform known best for making either the most creative kid from your high school or the most annoying kid from your high school Internet Famous™ (with absolutely no room in between). On top of that, due to the pandemic, rent prices in New York City had cratered, creating a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for artists of all shapes and sizes to move to the Big Apple—and actually afford living there.
Daren Vongirder, a filmmaker, and Ava Gordy, a dancer, were two such artists. And as they started a new adventure together in New York, they decided to capture their day-to-day adventures through cinematic, slice-of-life videos, from trying bacon, egg, and cheeses at their local bodegas to dancing on the rooftop of their unfinished apartment.
That series, Being New Yorkers, blew up, gaining Daren and Ava a newfound notoriety around the city. Most viewers enjoyed living vicariously through the couple, as they approached each day with a sense of wonder. Others chafed, though, at the transplants’ audacity to label themselves “New Yorkers” after moving there mere days prior.
I knew all of this going into our first interview with Daren. I also knew that he eventually left New York for Grand Rapids, Michigan—a move he documented in his beautiful series Miles Away, which dropped on a new YouTube channel throughout 2024.
What I didn’t know was that executives at NBC had been watching Daren’s TikToks as far back as 2021. And when the company started an “Emerging Artists” program to begin developing original, scripted series with creators, Daren was one of their top candidates.
Over the last six months, we interviewed Daren three separate times as he approached a fascinating inflection point in his creative journey. The first, conducted in December 2024, focused on gaining a comprehensive understanding of his background. The second, taped in May 2025, saw Shua drive out to Grand Rapids and speak with both Daren and Ava, meeting the couple in their new home. The third, recorded in June 2025, saw me catch up with Daren one month after his show, People Like Me, released on Peacock.
To me, these conversations illuminate the path of a true artist who toiled behind-the-scenes (sometimes to his detriment) for years in the contemporary creator world. He’s lived countless lives, from landing his first job via tweet to a rapper under the pseudonym DVG.
In conversation, Daren seamlessly bounces between portraying a sense of hyper self-awareness to laying his soul bare. And as we logged off our last call in June, he struck me as someone who’s reached the other side of the proverbial mountaintop, only to find more mountains directly ahead in the near distance. “I hope you find whatever it is you’re searching for,” he said.
Yet through all of the restlessness, Daren and Ava have inspired millions to live their own lives to the fullest. We hope these conversations with them—spanning topics from taking swings to leaning on partners to dueling with self-criticism—make you reflect on your own creative journey, too.
This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Daren Vongirder, a filmmaker, and Ava Gordy, a dancer, were two such artists. And as they started a new adventure together in New York, they decided to capture their day-to-day adventures through cinematic, slice-of-life videos, from trying bacon, egg, and cheeses at their local bodegas to dancing on the rooftop of their unfinished apartment.
That series, Being New Yorkers, blew up, gaining Daren and Ava a newfound notoriety around the city. Most viewers enjoyed living vicariously through the couple, as they approached each day with a sense of wonder. Others chafed, though, at the transplants’ audacity to label themselves “New Yorkers” after moving there mere days prior.
I knew all of this going into our first interview with Daren. I also knew that he eventually left New York for Grand Rapids, Michigan—a move he documented in his beautiful series Miles Away, which dropped on a new YouTube channel throughout 2024.
What I didn’t know was that executives at NBC had been watching Daren’s TikToks as far back as 2021. And when the company started an “Emerging Artists” program to begin developing original, scripted series with creators, Daren was one of their top candidates.
Over the last six months, we interviewed Daren three separate times as he approached a fascinating inflection point in his creative journey. The first, conducted in December 2024, focused on gaining a comprehensive understanding of his background. The second, taped in May 2025, saw Shua drive out to Grand Rapids and speak with both Daren and Ava, meeting the couple in their new home. The third, recorded in June 2025, saw me catch up with Daren one month after his show, People Like Me, released on Peacock.
To me, these conversations illuminate the path of a true artist who toiled behind-the-scenes (sometimes to his detriment) for years in the contemporary creator world. He’s lived countless lives, from landing his first job via tweet to a rapper under the pseudonym DVG.
In conversation, Daren seamlessly bounces between portraying a sense of hyper self-awareness to laying his soul bare. And as we logged off our last call in June, he struck me as someone who’s reached the other side of the proverbial mountaintop, only to find more mountains directly ahead in the near distance. “I hope you find whatever it is you’re searching for,” he said.
Yet through all of the restlessness, Daren and Ava have inspired millions to live their own lives to the fullest. We hope these conversations with them—spanning topics from taking swings to leaning on partners to dueling with self-criticism—make you reflect on your own creative journey, too.
This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
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