These 2 girls are blowing up on an app you've never heard of
BY LESLEY HAULER
This article is a part of #KanvasLive, an interactive, cross-platform content series brought to life on the Kanvas app and AOL.com. See more on coverage here.
It seems like there is always a brand new viral app on the horizon that has every teen's attention. 2012 had Vine, 2014 had Snapchat, 2015 had Dubsmash and it looks like 2016 is the year for musical.ly.
musical.ly is a combination of all of the aforementioned apps (Vine, Dubsmash and Snapchat), which allows users to record 15-seconds of a song and share it on social media. And millions of teens are flocking to it.
SEE ALSO: Vine comedian Brandon Bowen prepares for his movie debut
At first glance, Arii and Ariel look like normal teenage BFFs. You would never guess that these high schoolers are two of the biggest "musers" on the app.
Ariel, better known as "Baby Ariel" and Arii -- or "TheyLoveArii" on the app -- have used their musical.ly skills to build followings on their respective YouTube channels, as well.
Arii and Ariel's autograph game is on point:
AOL.com had a chance to catch up with Ariel and Arii at Playlist Live, an annual conference in Orlando, Florida that brings together online video creators with their biggest fans.
And with millions of followers on social media, it's safe to say that the girls had a lot of fans!
AOL.com chatted with the teens about how they got started in social media, their advice for young girls and plans for the future.
Is this your first year at Playlist Live and how is it going so far?
Ariel: This is our first year at PLL we came because we are social media influencers. We're having a really good time! It's really overwhelming, but I love it. We met a lot of new people, we've talked to a lot of people and it's been really fun.
Can you each talk about how you got started in social media?
Ariel: I found musical.ly through Instagram actually. A friend of mine posted a video using musical.ly on Instagram, and I downloaded it and from that day I kept making lip sync videos every single day and then I introduced it to Ari.
Arii: Yeah! Ariel introduced it to me and to a group of friends that we have, and we were the only ones out of that group that kept it going. So, when she introduced it, I went on and I had no idea what to do, but then it just went on from there. It's fun!
What is your favorite thing about musical.ly?
Ariel: My favorite thing about musical.ly is that there's such a wide variety of videos that you're able to make, like comedy, lip sync, you can sing, you can just talk, you can dance. So, it really allows people to express themselves.
Arii: Mainly, it's an app where you can go on and express who you are and not care what anyone says. It's a really positive platform, and you can make a whole bunch of different kinds of videos, like Ariel mentioned.
Did either of you have a moment where you realized social media would be what you wanted to do?
Ariel: The first time I really realized that this was a real thing was when I first got noticed in public. I was at Wal-Mart and this girl took a picture of me. I was with my parents, and I was in pajamas or something, and then I went on Instagram and they posted the picture, and then I saw the picture a bunch of times. I kind of started freaking out, and I realized this was actually a thing.
Arii: Kind of similar to Ariel, I was at the mall with my mom and like three girls came up to me asking for a picture. It was so weird, but it was fun too. It's been crazy since then.
What advice would you give to other young girls getting started on social media?
Ariel: My advice would be to be yourself, be creative, and make content that you enjoy making. Don't ever try to be someone that you're not to please someone else. Post things that you like to post. If you keep going with it, it may become something that you really love to do. Just be yourself, really.
Arii: Just show your personality and also keep it positive.
The crowds were popping at Playlist Live!
%vine-url="https://vine.co/v/iUznKgJm0L7"%
What have been some of your favorite moments at Playlist live so far?
Ariel: I don't even know my favorite part! It's our first time, so everything is so cool. To me, it's really cool being in a place where you can meet other people who do the same thing as you, and maybe not the exact same, but it's people you can relate to. It's cool seeing people you look up to in person and get a chance to talk to them.
Arii: From being behind the screen and watching these people, to then being in the same event with them is kind of crazy. Everything is hectic, because there's so much going on, but I like it too. You get to meet a lot of new people. The meet-ups are fun too because you get to meet a lot of new supporters you haven't met. It's the best thing ever.
What do you have on the horizon? What's next for the future?
Ariel: For the future, I want to keep improving my content and my YouTube videos. I want to try some different things. I also want to keep doing my anti-bullying campaign which I have, there's information on my website. I hope to work with organizations to keep doing that, because I love to help people with anti-bullying. I hope to do more meet-ups, and keep meeting supporters.
Arii: I wanted to do a campaign to work with organizations for animal rescue, because I hate seeing animals on the side of the road. I do have a couple big productions for YouTube in the summer that I want to do. I want to just make my content better on YouTube.
Check out this gallery for more photos from the star-studded convention:
More from AOL.com:
Social media stars reveal their favorite emojis
Vine star Meghan McCarthy is not stopping at 1.6 billion loops
Adelaine Morin and Chelsea Crocker are celebrity #FriendshipGoals
