How MrBeast YouTube star Chris Tyson has fearlessly embraced their sexuality and gender journey
MrBeast YouTube star Chris Tyson says that hormone replacement therapy (HRT) saved their life. (Robin L Marshall/WireImage)
MrBeast YouTube star Chris Tyson has been making waves after opening up on social media about their gender journey.
The online influencer, who uses any pronouns, has made headlines after revealing they have been on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) since February 2023 and vocally supporting trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming rights online.
Hormone therapy is typically used by trans and non-binary people to make their bodies align with their gender identity.
Tyson has a total of 13.7 million followers across Twitter, Instagram and TikTok and regularly appears in the videos of the hugely popular MrBeast, who boasts more than 144 million subscribers on YouTube alone.
In April 2023, Tyson announced publicly they had started gender-affirming healthcare while responding to a fan who posted two photos of them on Twitter with the caption: “Bro what happened?”
Tyson replied simply: “HRT, and it’s only been two months,” with a shocked-face emoji.
Since then, Tyson has received an outpouring of support from fans and fellow YouTubers, including friend and co-star MrBeast himself. As for the haters, Tyson has not hesitated in calling them out while offering candid thoughts on how life-changing their gender journey has been.
Who is MrBeast sidekick Chris Tyson?
Chris Tyson, 26, grew up in North Carolina and was a childhood friend of viral YouTube sensation Jimmy Donaldson aka MrBeast.
MrBeast’s YouTube channel started in 2012 and consists of viral challenge and stunt videos. It has since become one of the most popular YouTube channels on the planet.
Tyson first appeared in MrBeast’s videos in 2015 and, along with Karl Jacobs, Nolan Hansen and Chandler Hallow, has become part of a core crew that assist MrBeast with his stunts – which recently including flying on a variety of increasingly extravagant planes.
Tyson has separately cultivated their own fan following over the years, but has remained a vital part of the MrBeast crew.
MrBeast has shown his support for Tyson’s gender journey, commenting under a post: “Gotchu” with three heart emojis.
Is Chris Tyson still married to their wife Katie?
In May 2018, Tyson announced their marriage to Katie Tyson, a fellow influencer.
Two years later, Chris and Katie Tyson welcomed their child, Tucker, into the world. Chris Tyson has regularly uploaded photos of the three of them together and, more recently, shared video footage of themself spending time with their son.
In March 2023, just two weeks before sharing their gender journey publicly, Chris Tyson announced on Twitter that they and Katie had been separated since early 2022.
“For a little over a year now, me and Katie have been separated,” they tweeted. “We are finalising things soon but these things take time.
“We like to keep our personal lives private, which a lot of people don’t understand because we share so much, but this is the only time I want to discuss it.”
In January 2023, Tyson took a break from social media after being criticised for wearing nail polish around Tucker.
“I can take all the jokes and hate comments and stuff, no problem, But people sending me messages telling me I’m the reason my kid is going to kill himself one day is way too f**king much,” they tweeted, slamming hurtful trolls.
When did they come out as bisexual and gender non-conforming?
Two and a half years before sharing their gender journey, Chris Tyson came out publicly as bisexual in November 2020 during the lead up to the US presidential election.
They wrote at the time: “All us kids who were suppressed and shamed for being who we are, or told our opinions didn’t matter, are finally standing up and letting our voices be heard.
“I am bisexual and when I told the few people I did when I was 16, I got a lot of negative backlash from friends/family. Just know if the people around you don’t love and support you, we always will.”
In April 2023, they shared a reminder of their sexuality online in response to social media comments, noting that, “unless I missed something new in my own life, I’m 99.9% sure I still like both genders lol”.
They added: “I’ll see you next time I come out as bi for the 483905 time”.
In mid-March 2023, Tyson tweeted in support of gender-neutral bathrooms and revealed that they had been growing out their hair for the past 18 months. They then shared a comparison photo of them between the start of the pandemic and now, with their appearance notably changed.
After retweeting several tweets in support of trans rights and arguments against anti-trans dog-whistles, they finally took to Twitter to share their own experience with HRT after Republicans threatened to bring legislation against gender-affirming healthcare into force.
“Informed consent HRT saved my and many others’ lives. The hurdles gnc [gender non-conforming] people have to jump through to get life-saving gender-affirming healthcare in a first-world country is wild to me. Just let people make informed decisions about their own bodies,” Tyson tweeted.
In a follow-up tweet, they admitted to being “super nervous” about going public because they have “always been private when it comes to this”.
Since the initial tweet, Tyson has hit back against cruel accusations that Tucker has lost a “father figure”, stating that such comments are “more dog-whistling that somehow trans and gnc folks aren’t safe around kids” and that Tucker is “so loved and happy”.
They added: “I know I’m going to be a great parent, and so is every person who puts the love of their child before everything. I made this decision because I wanted to show up as my best and happiest self for him.
“In a way, this way FOR Tucker”.
In a message sure to inspire many of their fans and followers, they shared a picture of their younger self, writing: “It’s never too late, to start being yourself”.
