Khabane Lame, a TikTok superstar who was born in Senegal, officially became an Italian citizen on Wednesday during a ceremony in his birthplace of Chivasso.
The 22-year-old was raised in a neighborhood in Chivasso, a town outside of Turin, after being born in Senegal and moving to Italy as a young child.
Lame expressed his pride, “I am really proud.” He “already felt Italian” after more than 15 years in the Alpine country because his Senegalese parents immigrated there when he was a young child.
“Little has changed”, he said, “not that I didn’t feel Italian before signing.”
Lame received a new citizenship in the Chivasso city hall. He was born and raised in an impoverished area of the city outside of Turin. After the Covid pandemic, he lost his job and switched to social media, where he eventually gained notoriety.
“Since I’ve always lived in slums, it’s extremely different from now, but even though we had nothing there, we were content and glad and played in the courtyard anyhow. Anyway, it’s a brand-new reality that I still have to get accustomed to, but I’m adjusting to it gradually.”
Similar to many Italian immigrants’ children, Lame had to wait until he was an adult before becoming a citizen.
It is a new chapter in the life of the social media celebrity. Thanks to his 148.5 million TikTok subscribers, Lame collaborates with brands and lands endorsement and sponsorship deals.
