For comedian and content creator Scott Kress, humor isnt just a form of entertainment its a pathway to authenticity.With over four years of full-time content creation under his belt and a growing digital audience, Kress is quickly becoming a standout voice in LGBTQ+ online spaces. But his journey to this point, filled with viral comedy, self-discovery, and the confidence to be unapologetically out, didnt happen overnight.In a recent conversation with Gayety, Kress opened up about his evolution online, the slow and sometimes uncertain road to coming out, and why queer representation in digital media isnt just important its essential.Ive been doing it full time for about four years, Kress shared. But two years before that, I was making YouTube videos very unsuccessfully, might I add. They were getting maybe 10 views, girl.Everything changed when TikTok entered the picture. Like many other creators, Kress found the platform to be fertile ground for building a dedicated following. Thanks to TikTok. Shout out TikTok. Love you, girl, he said with a laugh.In the early days, Kress was producing trend-based content funny, yes, but not fully his own. I wasnt really doing my own thing yet, he said. But the past two years or so, Ive been doing more skits that I come up with. I just feel like they relate to people a lot more. And the girls like it more not just trends.Kresss humor, often infused with LGBTQ+ themes and experiences, resonates with a community eager to see itself represented in the content they consume. But his queer identity wasnt always front and center.When I first started making content, I actually wasnt out yet, he admitted. It was a lot more demure. I wasnt talking about as many explicit things as I do now. But now Im online saying the most heinous things Ill make a TikTok and Im like, were suckin dick, whatever it is.Despite not intentionally making content for the gays, Kress says his identity naturally shines through. I think it just comes out regardless because Im talking about relationships or whatever it is, which of course theyre going to relate to.Coming out publicly, especially as an internet personality, came with its own set of challenges. It took me a while to start being me even after I came out, he said. I wasnt fully myself right away.That transformation accelerated when he moved to Los Angeles and was embraced by a vibrant community of queer creators.A lot of my friends when I first moved out to LA were all very open and proud and out, he said. Making videos with them helped a lot. It made me more confident. It was a long journey, for sure.For someone who grew up in Missouri where LGBTQ visibility was scarce-finding a queer community online and in real life was a revelation.I was thrown into a group of creators and 99% of them were gay, Kress said. I didnt even realize there were that many gay people out in the world. I knew maybe one gay person back home. Suddenly I was like, OK, everybodys gay. I love this.While he didnt have a single aha moment that pushed him to come out, the overall presence of confident, queer creators online played a major role. Just seeing them be authentically themselves really helped, he said.In terms of inspiration for his comedic work, Kress turns to both real life and the internets endless well of absurdity. TikTok, of course. Suddenly everybodys a comedian. People are so funny nowadays, he said. But also my friends. All of them are the funniest ever. Real-life events, people on TikTok it all feeds into the comedy.When asked why LGBTQ+ representation in online media matters so much, Kress didnt hesitate.If we didnt have LGBTQ+ people, the internet wouldnt be near as funny as it is right now, he joked. But seriously, its really important. If there werent a lot of gay creators, I think I wouldve taken a lot longer to come out.By simply existing online as his authentic self, Kress knows hes playing a part in helping others feel seen-and that, he says, is the point.Just showing kids that you can be out, nothings going to change, youre going to be okay its so important. I know it helped me so much.And with each video, Kress continues to pay it forward, one perfectly timed punchline at a time.Source