With an audience of over 25 million combined followers, TikTok influencer Josh Kukula and his childhood friends are on a mission to spread kindness and positivity. Josh has made a name for himself by creating content featuring random acts of kindness like complimenting strangers and leaving huge tips for servers that are as inspiring for their viewers as they are for their recipients. Josh and his friends have even set up a collaborative creator home called ThePoundLA where they live and work together on projects and content. I caught up with Josh to ask him about his mission to spread kindness through his creative content.
Josh, you are such a rising superstar on TikTok and other platforms. You could have chosen any theme to focus on and you chose kindness. Why?
My whole life growing up I was a troubled kid. I wasn’t the nicest kid by any means. As I grew up I started to realize that, and since then I have always wanted to spread kindness and positivity.
You’re an influencer with 3.3 million followers on TikTok. Can you explain why TikTok has become so popular and maybe give us one tip on how to get more followers?
I personally believe that TikTok became such a big platform because it was sort of a “new Vine.” One thing I can say to help with gaining followers is to make sure you stay consistent with posting daily content and make sure to grab the viewers’ attention in the first two to five seconds of your video!
There are now creator houses where TikTok influencers all live together and create content; you live in one yourself. How does that look, and are you the only one doing videos around kindness?
My creator house (@thepoundla) is made up of me and my five other childhood best friends. Kindness videos are mostly my thing, however everyone else in the house loves to spread kindness and positivity.
You and your housemates are also helping feed the homeless, is that correct?
Yes, our content house loves to give back to others, especially those who need it more. We have made a few videos where we give back to the homeless. We do this in the hopes that others will take inspiration and do similar acts.
In your opinion as an influencer, what’s the key to making a good TikTok?
I think that creating content that you truly care about and content that means something to you is the key to good TikToks.
What kind of response do you get from people when you compliment them or give them a surprise tip?
Normally when I surprise someone with compliments or tips they are so shocked that they have a hard time reacting. After this, people get very happy; you can see the joy in their faces.
As an 18-year-old who has seen the power of kindness at work, what advice do you have for people on how they can incorporate kindness into their own projects, content, and businesses?
Find a way to spread kindness and creatively and put it together or into a video. The main thing I could say is to not re-use someone else’s idea; it is always better to create your own.
How do you define kindness?
I would consider anything that somebody does that leaves a positive impact to be kindness.
Do you have any other projects you are working on?
Yes, I almost always have some other stuff I am working on in the background. One of the bigger things I am working on right now is my own merch. We are still in early stages of designing, but we are working super hard to get it out as soon as possible.
To keep up with the work that Josh and his friends at ThePoundLA are doing in their community, you can follow him on TikTok, Instagram and Youtube.
