Social Media Influencer runs the Ingham County Fair

• People from across the country come into our neighborhoods because of a young man going viral.
• The Skerbeck Entertainment group has been bringing carnivals to Mid-Michigan for over 180 years.
• Video shows Joey Skerbeck, a 19-year-old from Michigan who has found success highlighting the carnival on TikTok.
  

(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)

The Ingham County Fair is a once-a-year celebration for families across Mid-Michigan to spend quality time together, but for one neighbor, it's his whole life.

"I work at a carnival, that's kind of my job," said Joey Skerbeck.

Joey Skerbeck, A 19-year-old native spends his time traveling the country.

"It's been in my family's business for over 180 years."

Born into a family of entertainers, the Skerbeck family started off by running a circus in the late 1800s that has since transformed into the Skerbeck Family Carnival, bringing entertainment to cities across the state, including the Ingham County Fair.

Skerbeck said as a kid, it was tough to make friends as he had to move around a lot.

"The upside is that I have such a unique and interesting lifestyle."

But through that lifestyle, he built a community through content creation on TikTok.

"It was kind of a rainy day, and I was bored, and I was scrolling on my For You page, and I thought to myself, I bet I could make a dorky video like that."

Now, Skerbeck says people from across state lines are descending on Mid-Michigan to see this influencer in the flesh.

"Moving from Washington to New York, so they were coming on I-90, all the way across the country, and I happened to be about 15 miles south of the freeway, and they're like, we follow this guy on TikTok, let's go stop at the fair."

All because of, TikTok.

"It's like county fair famous."

231,000 followers and counting, and it's paying off.

"I am also now starting to make money off of it, and it's helping me pay for college."

Skerbeck says he learned how to create content through originally studying journalism at Michigan State University. He has since changed his major and is on a pre-med track but found his niche on For Skerbeck's high school sister, she just loves that he has been able to utilize his talents.

"It's just super crazy how connected social media makes us. I have people come up to me and say, oh, are you Joey Skerbeck's sister from TikTok," said Sophie Skerbeck.

Joey Skerbeck says, ultimately, he is just grateful he can showcase all the amazing people working behind the scenes at the fair.

"I think it's cool that I am able to make content that shows this is just like any job, you know these are people who have passions, who are just regular down-to-earth people."

So whether it's running the Pop N Win, teaching followers how to successfully beat the basketball game, or stopping for a bite to eat, Joey Skerbeck says it's just a way of life.

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