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To get an idea of the magnitude of the feat achieved on TikTok by the Italian Carmen Fiorito, 25 years old (known on the platform as @NewMartina) just start typing her name in any Internet search engine. Among the suggestions, only the New York Times will be found first. It is inevitable, given the 4.1 million followers he has managed to accumulate in record time, from January until today. How? Simply, installing protectors to the screens of smartphones and tablets live.

NewMartina is the name of the family shop where he has been working for three years, a stone's throw from Naples Central Station.

Not just ASMR

The most successful videos on his channel have two strengths: the fact that they are mute, so they do not create language barriers for international viewers, and can be considered "strangely satisfying videos". In fact, if on the one hand they capture a well-executed precision work, on the other they appeal to a pleasant Asmr effect.

Not even Carmen herself would have ever expected to reach similar figures: "I started making these kinds of clips about three years ago on Instagram," she says, "then I left it for a while. I resumed in September on TikTok, managing to reach 100,000 followers. Three months later, however, my profile was inexplicably banned. I was discouraged, but I did not give up: on January 14 I opened another one and started posting many videos. That same night it already had two million views."

Breakneck growth

Its first boom in popularity came with a video on January 27, with which it added 70 million users. The record, however, was set by an April 3 video that approached 400 million (with more than 21 million likes): "It was at that moment that I really realized that I had reached an international audience, with all that that entails in terms of increased followers."

A virtual follow-up that soon produced its effects also in the real world: "Now people stop me on the street, and that can only make me happy," says the 25-year-old: "They look at me happy, they consider me a good girl and I like to be a reference for those who follow me."

Carmen also has clear ideas about the future, she would like her store, NewMartina, to become a franchise. He says, however, that he cannot give an exact explanation for his success: "Actually, I have yet to understand it," he observes, "that's why I would also like the store to open other locations. However, I am as I show myself on social media, and I believe that my authenticity, along with my way of doing things, has allowed me to reach people's hearts. I don't work for money, but mostly because I like it. That's why, perhaps, people love me."

"Sometimes I don't understand the criticism I get," he says, "in fact, I work very hard, even more than before: I never refuse any request, even after hours, because I owe everything to my fans. If I have come this far, it is thanks to them. It can be stressful, but I'm happy about it: having millions of them doesn't happen to everyone. I will never take it for granted."

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