Creator Highlight: Drue Hill

By: MyriamAkbar 

Meet Andrew Hill—a hilarious, bold content creator who goes by the name of Drue. He was born in Virginia, but currently lives in Massachusetts. He’s a veteran and father of four. Hill is known for his authenticity, humor, and vulnerability. He posts about childhood nostalgia, life as a millennial, pop culture, society, and film. He also shares honest and relatable story-time videos. Initially, he was only on social media because he was working in the music industry and used it for promotion. For him, it was all about the business. Not for entertainment or reaching out to old classmates.

 During the pandemic, Hill was seeking new hobbies and began to consider a career change. His daughter recommended that he make a TikTok account; she showed him the app, and that’s when he started making content. “Slowly, I started building a community and eventually realized that I could use my voice to make a difference. Making content that brings people joy became a focus of mine,” Hill says. He ended up reaching 200,000 followers before his page was banned. He made another account, got back half of his followers, and then that page was banned too. This resulted in a break from content creation. Despite his frustration, he began making content again. He found a community in the following he built, and many people have been following him since he first started. “I was homeless for a little while, and there were people who helped me raise the money for an apartment deposit. They did this because they love and support me. Those people mean so much to me, even if I don’t talk to them every day,” he shares.

When it comes to making content, Hill says the hardest part is simply “getting started.” Although it may sound cliché, the biggest challenge to him is taking a leap of faith and not caring what people think. The most rewarding part, on the other hand, is seeing the final product. Hill enjoys reading the comments, especially those where people express laughter. He also likes bringing people together from all walks of life. “I feel very deeply; it fills my heart to know that what I’m doing is reaching people and making them happy,” he says. 

The way that I met Hill was through TikTok, seeing a few of his best-and-worst films of the year videos. To my surprise, he says that he wasn't allowed to watch a lot of media when he was growing up. His love for television and cinema developed when he was older. “I watched a lot of MTV and Disney movies. I really immersed myself in the different worlds, because I didn’t have friends or people to lean on. I used movies and television to keep me happy. That’s why I like to incorporate nostalgia into my content,” he explains. His favorite genres are horror, comedy, and action, especially martial arts films. He highlights Zombieland, Shaun Of the Dead, Idle Hands, and Tremors. For a while, Hill says that he didn’t like horror because it used to terrify him. However, over the years, he grew to love it. One of his favorite horror films is Night of the Living Dead. It’s one that still scares him to this day. As for television, his favorite shows are The Walking Dead, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, Bobby’s World, David, The Gnome, How to Get Away with Murder, Scandal, and Heroes. 

I always ask film content creators if they’re interested in filmmaking, because I would say that more than half of us are. Although it’s not a priority for Hill, he says that directors like Jordan Peele and Ryan Coogler have made him consider the craft. He has been a fan of storytelling and photography, so it’s certainly within his interest. Because he worked in the music industry, he also has some experience with piecing together art. For example, the process of creating music videos that fit a song correctly. This is similar to piecing together scenes into an act and several acts into a complete script. The issue Hill comes across when writing is knowing where to start and his perfectionism getting in the way. The kinds of genres he thinks he would explore are dark dramas, psychological thrillers, and horror. “I’d want my horror to mean something. I want it to scare and entertain, but also have deeper meaning,” he says. Hill is inspired by his experience of being a veteran to tell stories about trauma, grief, and identity. Additionally, he wants to explore relationships, addiction, abandonment, and choices. “I am especially interested in gray areas of human nature; for example, fate and coincidence. I wonder how much control we have over our lives and how our past can shape our decisions,” he shares. 

Looking forward, Hill doesn’t have a clear vision of what he wants to accomplish with social media. What he is sure about is that he wants to continue to create content that makes people happy and laugh. He wants to tell stories that make others reflect. “I believe in fate, so I’m not trying to force myself into a predetermined idea of what I’m supposed to become,” he says.