The D'Amelio family — comprised of sisters Charli and Dixie, along with their parents Marc and Heidi — have captivated viewers on TikTok and beyond.
The sisters were some of the platform's first viral stars, and their success led to the creation of The D’Amelio Show, a Hulu series that follows all four members of the family as they navigate newfound fame, business opportunities and relationships in Los Angeles. Originally from Connecticut, they moved to California after Charli and Dixie started gaining a following on social media.
Among other topics, the show explores how Marc and Heidi are supporting their daughters, both of whom have publicly shared some of their respective struggles with mental health.
“You want to take away the hurt or the pain that they're feeling,” Heidi told PEOPLE in September 2022. “But the only thing we could do is be there for them and let them know that we're here for whatever it is that they need. … Outside of that, we find professionals that can help them in other ways.”
Their efforts haven't gone unnoticed. "There's no one in my life that I know who works as hard to protect me as my parents," Charli shared with PEOPLE in May 2023. “I know they're always looking out for the best in me and us as a family. I love that."
From their early beginnings on the East Coast to pursuing their passions in L.A., here’s everything to know about the D’Amelio family: Charli, Dixie, Marc and Heidi.
Marc and Heidi met at a gym in New York City
The couple first crossed paths at a New York City gym in 1997. At the time, Marc was working as a salesman for the sportswear company Mitchell & Ness, while Heidi had recently moved to the Big Apple to pursue modeling.
During an episode of Dancing with the Stars, she described 1997 as the year she started falling in love with Marc and “falling in love with [her]self.” They got married a few years later, on May 13, 2000.
Marc’s career began in the apparel industry
According to his LinkedIn profile, Marc has spent most of his career in the apparel industry. He founded Madsoul Clothing Company in 2000 and left in 2007 to start Level 4 Collective Showroom, where he continues to be part of the leadership team.
Currently, he’s the CEO of D’Amelio Brands LLC, which includes D’Amelio Footwear, DAM FAM MERCH and ZitsAllright.
Heidi was a model
During her time on Dancing with the Stars, Heidi opened up about her decision to relocate to N.Y.C. According to the mother of two, she took a leap of faith when she left her hometown of Lafayette, Louisiana, to become a model.
“To leave home, leave my family, go out on my own — anybody who knows me back in Louisiana would know that just wasn’t something I would do, but I didn’t want to wake up in 40 years still in Louisiana and never have tried," Heidi shared on the ABC reality competition series.
She continued: “It was terrifying. But to make it in the modeling world, I had to be fierce. The first job I booked was runway, which is crazy ’cause I was short. That was amazing.”
Marc ran for state senate in Connecticut
In 2018, Marc ran for election to the Connecticut State Senate to represent District 25 as the Republican candidate. He cross-filed to run as an Independent party candidate as well, according to Ballotpedia.
“When elected, I will stand up to Democrats, Republicans and the President if I disagree with policies that are not in the best interest of the majority of the people I represent,” read a statement on his campaign website. “With that stated, we need elected officials that look past political party and can find common ground without special interests guiding their decisions.”
He lost the election to Democratic incumbent Bob Duff.
Marc and Heidi welcomed their older daughter Dixie in 2001
A little over a year after their wedding, the couple welcomed Dixie to the family on Aug. 12, 2001, in Norwalk, Connecticut.
In honor of Dixie turning 22 in 2023, Heidi posted an Instagram video with clips of her older daughter celebrating her birthday throughout the years. She captioned it, “I am so incredibly proud of you and so insanely lucky I get to be your mom! 🩵 I love you so much and getting a front row seat to your journey is the best place I get to be 🩵.”
They welcomed their younger daughter Charli in 2004
A few years after Dixie was born, the family welcomed Charli on May 1, 2004, in Norwalk, Connecticut.
In a post celebrating Charli’s 19th birthday in 2023, Heidi shared photos of the festivities and wrote, “I love you to pieces!! I’m so unbelievably proud of the young woman you are 💗 I’m so proud to be your mom💗 I hope this is your best year yet 💗."
Charli became the first person to hit 100 million followers on TikTok
The younger D’Amelio sister first began posting on TikTok in May 2019, where she regularly shared videos of herself dancing and lip-syncing to different songs.
“I remember Dixie was so embarrassed to have a sister on TikTok,” Charli told The Guardian in June 2020. “And then ... all my friends started making TikToks. They asked me for help copying some of the dances."
She continued: "They said, ‘Oh, you’ve got to teach us.’ And I said, ‘I don’t want to, it’s weird, I don’t even have my own account.’ But then I started making videos and I guess I started having a lot of… fun?”
Fast forward to November 2020, Charli reached the milestone of 100 million TikTok followers. "IS THIS REAL LIFE RIGHT NOW," she posted on X (formerly known as Twitter). "100 MILLION PEOPLE SUPPORTING ME!! I TRULY CANNOT BELIEVE THAT THIS IS REAL."
Amid her growing following, the creator kept her focus on sharing positivity through her work. "It’s important, since I’ve been given this platform, that I use it to spread good, important messages that teenagers need to hear," Charli told Vogue U.K. in April 2020. "I just think: ‘Who would I be listening to if I didn’t have this platform? What would I want them to say to me?’ ”
After Charli hit a million followers, Dixie started making TikToks
“Every conversation was about TikTok,” Dixie told The Guardian. “‘Oh my God, Charli has 100,000 followers. Oh my God, she has 200,000.’ I said, ‘I’m done! If Charli hits 1 million followers, I’ll start posting because I’m done being left out like this.’ "
After about six months, Charli accomplished this feat — and Dixie held up her end of the bargain. She started appearing in her younger sister's videos and making TikToks of her own.
As of September 2023, Charli has just over 151 million followers on the platform, while Dixie has nearly 57 million followers. Despite their social media status, Dixie has shared that she and her sister offer distinct kinds of entertainment.
"I just try to show my personality, because I'm not a dancer, and a big portion of [TikTok] is dancing. And also, Charli and I are two different people, and we've always tried to never be in competition," she told Insider in April 2020. "I don't want to do what she's doing. I don't want to be a dancer, because that's her thing and I have my thing."
Still, the sisters have been on the same page about their endeavors. Both Charli and Dixie joined the Hype House when it first launched in December 2019, a collaborative content creation house that had other notable members, including Addison Rae Easterling. The D'Amelio sisters left a few months later in May 2020, citing work reasons.
"When the Hype House started to become more of a business, Charli and Dixie stepped away from that aspect," a rep told The Hollywood Reporter. "While their businesses are separate, their friendships with the members continue."
Both sisters are also singers
In addition to being social media personalities, Charli and Dixie are also singers.
On Dixie’s first song “Be Happy," released in June 2020, she sings about her mental health struggles. “I remain so grateful for the people that surround me and the opportunities I've been given, but some days, as we all know, it's not easy to be happy,” she shared at the time.
She’s also released singles, including “Psycho” and “Older.” Dixie later debuted her first album, titled a letter to me, in June 2022, featuring 13 songs.
Charli is following in her older sister’s footsteps as a musician, with a track called “If You Ask Me To.” In 2022, she said in a statement, "I've always loved music and performing. Once my online following started growing I was able to showcase my passion for dance, but I felt that with so many other people entering the music space there wasn't room for me.”
She explained that she started pursuing singing as a hobby but ended up really enjoying it. After some tinkering and fanfare around the potential release, Charli made the decision to release it as a single.
The family has a reality show called The D’Amelio Show
The D’Amelio Show premiered on Hulu in September 2021. The series follows Charli, Dixie, Marc and Heidi as they handle fame, business, and relationships. The latest installment, season 3, digs deeper into how the family is managing being in the public eye.
“Hollywood could chew you up and spit you out, but this is the life that everyone asked for,” Marc says in one clip from the show.
The new episodes also explore what it was like for Charli and Heidi to compete against each other on Dancing with the Stars season 30, an experience Charli called “hard.” They were the first mother-daughter pair to do so in the series’ history. Though Heidi was eliminated in week 8 of the competition, Charli and her partner Mark Ballas went on to win the Mirrorball Trophy.
Charli is dating Landon Barker
Charli has been dating musician Landon Barker since June 2022. Barker is the son of Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker.
“Since the first day we ever started talking you have changed my life!” he captioned photos of them together in a since-deleted Instagram post celebrating Charli’s birthday in 2023.
“[You're] such a kind, strong loving person and that has brought me and so many others so much happiness and love," he added. "I love you so much hope you have the best day ever you deserve it so much ❤️."
Dixie previously dated Noah Beck
Dixie dated actor and fellow social media personality Noah Beck from September 2020 to November 2022. "We can confirm that the pair are no longer together but remain close friends," Beck's publicist told The New York Times.
Several months later, Beck shared that they ended on "good terms." During a podcast appearance on The School of Greatness in July 2023, he spoke about their relationship warmly. “Everyone has their first true love,” the fellow TikTok star said. “And she was mine.”
Beck continued: "It’s life. Things just don’t last, always. Things aren’t forever. I still have so much love for her. It’s just one of those things where we both have stuff to figure out and we both have a lot of growing to do.”
The D’Amelio family is very candid about mental health
All four members of the D’Amelio family have been frank in their conversations about mental health and bullying. Charli has spoken publicly about struggling with panic attacks and disordered eating, and Dixie has discussed her anxiety and depression. They also frequently speak about mental health on their show.
"I think it's important because it's hard to talk in a YouTube video or a TikTok about my mental health because it's just not everything, I could never show every part on like a short-form platform," Dixie shared with PEOPLE in an August 2021 interview. "So being able to do this on the Hulu show has really shown every step of the way, and I've seen my personality change and how I am as a person."
“I think young people are starting to talk more about mental health, and it comes over truthful and it's exactly what happened,” Marc added. “As a dad, as a parent, you're always try to fix things — that's the hardest part about mental health is you can't just wave a magic wand, and you have to be supportive."