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Mercury Stardust
Born (1987-12-08) December 8, 1987 (age 36)
Madison, Wisconsin
Other names"Trans Handy Ma'am"
Occupation(s)Home repair educator, TikToker, activist, burlesque performer
Years active2021–present
TikTok information
Page
Followers2.4 million
Likes67 million
Last updated: January 4, 2024
Websitemercurystardust.com

Mercury Stardust (born December 8, 1987)[1] is an American author, TikToker, transgender activist, burlesque performer, and home repair and maintenance educator.[2] Known on TikTok as the "Trans Handy Ma'am", she provides tips and advice on DIY home repair.[2]

Life

Stardust grew up on a farm in northern Wisconsin, where she learned maintenance skills from her father, a truck driver and farm hand.[3][4] Although raised as a boy, she was drawn towards feminine aesthetics from a young age.[4] In college, she studied theater and became a cabaret performer.[3] Stardust took an internship as a maintenance technician at the age of 19, as she needed a day job while she traveled and performed in gay bars on weekends.[5] In 2015, Stardust founded the Wisconsin Burlesque Association.[6] Stardust chose her name in 2014.[3] She came out as a transgender woman in 2019.[4] Her spouse, Ari, is non-binary.[3]

Stardust began posting on TikTok in March 2021.[2] Initially using the platform to promote her weekly burlesque show in Madison, she shifted her focus after going viral in April 2021 for a video explaining how to use a ratchet strap.[4] Her content largely focuses on home repair and DIY solutions to common household problems, earning her the nickname "Trans Handy Ma'am".[2] She reached one million followers by July 2021[5] and 1.5 million by February 2022, at which point content creation became her full time job.[5] As of September 2023, Stardust had over two million followers.[7] She received the 2021 Trans* Activist of the Year award from the OutReach LGBTQ Community Center.[8]

In March 2022, Stardust hosted a "Tiktok-a-thon" coinciding with International Transgender Day of Visibility, during which she raised more than $120,000 for Plume, an organization which funds gender-affirming care.[9][10] During the event's second iteration in March 2023, she co-hosted a 30-hour livestream on both TikTok and Twitch to raise money for Point of Pride, an organization which funds gender-affirming care for transgender individuals.[11][12] Guests for the event included V Spehar and makeup artist Darius Hall.[9] The livestream raised over $100,000 in its first hour and $1 million in its first six hours.[9] In total the event raised over US$2 million.[12][13] In March 2024, the event's third iteration aimed to raised US$4 million for Point of Pride, with appearances from guests Ve'ondre Mitchell, Dylan Mulvaney, and Zaya Perysian.[14][15] However, within the first ten hours of the event, Stardust's and co-host Jory's TikTok accounts were banned nine times due to mass reporting from trolls, resulting in multiple interruptions.[15]

Since November 2022, Stardust has hosted the podcast Handy Ma'am Hotline, where she discusses home maintenance.[16] In April 2023, Stardust announced that she had authored a book, Safe and Sound: A Renter-Friendly Guide to Home Repair, set to be published on August 29, 2023 by Penguin Random House.[2] Within a few days of its presale, the book became a Number 1 Bestseller in Amazon's Home Repair category.[2] In August 2023, Stardust's book Safe and Sound: A Renter-Friendly Guide to Home Repair, became a New York Times best sellers book. Stardust went on a 52-city book tour in the United States in fall 2023.[17]

References

  1. ^ "Happy Birthday Mercury!", Handy Ma'am Hotline (podcast), Acast, Dec 8, 2022, retrieved 2023-04-11
  2. ^ a b c d e f Hayward, Ryan (2023-04-10). "Mercury Stardust, TikTok's 'Trans Handy-Ma'am,' Is Releasing A Book On Home Repair". House Digest. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  3. ^ a b c d Stardust, Mercury (2021-07-15). "'I'm a Trans Handy Ma'am—I Share DIY Tips On TikTok'". Newsweek. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  4. ^ a b c d Valle, Jay (11 January 2022). "'Trans Handy Ma'am' goes viral on TikTok after sharing home improvement tips". NBC News. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  5. ^ a b c Syed, Armani (9 February 2022). "Viral TikTok maintenance expert 'Trans Handy Ma'am' shares the biggest home improvement mistakes people make". Insider. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  6. ^ "Wisconsin Burlesque Association". madstage.com.
  7. ^ Negley, Erin (2023-09-29). "Mercury Stardust, the Trans Handy Ma'am, brings her renter-friendly home repair tips to Lancaster". LancasterOnline. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
  8. ^ "OUTREACH AWARDS". lgbtoutreach. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  9. ^ a b c Jaeckels, Beck. "TikTokers are hosting a 30-hour livestream to raise money for trans healthcare — they hit $1 million in just 6 hours". Insider. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  10. ^ Baska, Maggie (2022-03-25). "TikTok's 'trans handy ma'am' is fighting for equality while solving your DIY woes". PinkNews. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  11. ^ "TikTokers raise over $1M for trans healthcare, gender-affirming surgeries". NBC News. 31 March 2023. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  12. ^ a b Riedel, Samantha (2023-03-31). "These Trans Creators Have Raised Over $2 Million for Trans Healthcare on TikTok Live". Them. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  13. ^ "From Fundraising to Impact: How Point of Pride will utilize TikTok-a-Thon funding". www.pointofpride.org. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 2023-04-19.
  14. ^ Lopez, Quispe (2024-03-29). "Last Year, This TikTok Duo Raised $2 Million for Trans Healthcare. This Year, They're Doubling It". Them. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
  15. ^ a b Mills, Emily (2024-04-02). "Mercury Stardust's annual fundraiser for trans health care hit with troll attack and TikTok ban". Our Lives. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
  16. ^ "Handy Ma'am Hotline". shows.acast.com. Retrieved 2023-04-10.
  17. ^ Piche, Gail (2023-11-28). "The Trans Handy Ma'am: the home repair TikToker championing renters". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
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