Unicorn Island Productions
Lilly Singh | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 26, 1988 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupation(s) | YouTuber, television presenter, comedian, writer |
| Years active | 2010–present |
| Known for | IISuperwomanII, A Little Late with Lilly Singh |
Lilly Singh (born September 26, 1988) is a Canadian entertainer known for her work as a YouTuber, television presenter, comedian, and writer. She started producing content on YouTube in 2010, adopting the alias Superwoman (stylized as IISuperwomanII), a name she maintained until 2019.
In 2016, Singh debuted the documentary A Trip to Unicorn Island, followed by her bestselling first book How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life in 2017. Between September 2019 and June 2021, she served as both executive producer and host of the NBC late-night talk show A Little Late with Lilly Singh, marking her as the first individual of Indian heritage to helm an American late-night talk show.
Early life and education
Born and raised in Toronto’s Scarborough area, Ontario, Canada, Singh is the daughter of Indian Punjabi immigrants Malvindar Kaur and Sukvindar Singh from Hoshiarpur, Punjab. Raised in the Sikh faith, she has an elder sister, Tina, who is also a YouTuber focusing on family-related content under the channel name 'The Tina Singh.' During her youth, Singh identified as a tomboy. She attended Mary Shadd Public School and graduated from Lester B. Pearson Collegiate Institute in Malvern, Toronto in 2006. Her extracurricular activities included participation in Girl Guides of Canada programs. In 2010, she completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology at York University in Toronto.
YouTube channel launch and rise (2010–2014)
Singh created her YouTube channel "IISuperwomanII" in October 2010. Though initially planning to attend graduate school per her parents’ wishes, she opted to focus on YouTube content creation with a contingency plan to return to academia if unsuccessful. In December 2011, she launched a secondary channel titled "SuperwomanVlogs" (currently "Lilly Singh Vlogs") that showcased daily life and behind-the-scenes footage; this channel shifted fully to vlogging by August 2014. Additionally, Singh appeared as a background dancer in the 2011 films Speedy Singhs and Thank You. After surpassing 100,000 subscribers in 2012, she applied for monetization on YouTube which was granted, motivating her to purchase her first camera for $699.
In August 2013, Singh collaborated with Jassi Sidhu on his Punjabi track Hipshaker. She also performed rap vocals on "Mauj Ki Malharein" from the Bollywood film Gulaab Gang released in August 2014. That same year, she partnered with rapper and author Kanwer Singh ("Humble the Poet") to release the song #LEH. Singh had a minor role in the Canadian movie Dr. Cabbie and received nominations for Shorty and Streamy Awards.
By 2015, Forbes ranked her eighth among the world's top-earning YouTube personalities. The following year, she advanced to third place on Forbes’ highest-paid YouTubers list with earnings reported at $7.5 million. In 2018, she held tenth position with $10.5 million income. As of February 2022, Singh’s subscriber count reached approximately 14.7 million with over three billion video views.
Diversification of career (2015–2018)
In February 2015, Singh released the music video The Clean Up Anthem featuring Canadian artist Sickick. The subsequent month marked the start of her global tour "A Trip to Unicorn Island," which combined live performances including singing, dancing, comedy sketches, and character acts across countries such as India, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, the UK, and the US. This journey was documented in her feature-length film A Trip to Unicorn Island, launched on YouTube Red in February 2016 that explored how digital fame influenced her life.
April 2015 saw the release of #IVIVI, a tribute track dedicated to Toronto made with Humble the Poet. That year brought Singh several accolades including an MTV Fandom Award win and two Teen Choice Award nominations alongside a Streamy Award victory. By December 2015, she relocated to Los Angeles aiming to expand her career opportunities. In July 2016 alone, she secured two Teen Choice Awards from three nominations.
Her voice acting credits include roles in Ice Age: Collision Course (2016), alongside an appearance in the comedy film Bad Moms. In January 2017, she won a People's Choice Award for Favorite YouTube Star and later that September earned her fourth Streamy Award. Her debut publication How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life topped The New York Times bestseller list upon its March 2017 release and won Best Non-Fiction at Goodreads Choice Awards. The themes of this book were central to her world tour during that year. In April 2022, she published a follow-up titled Be a Triangle.
During a promotional tour for her book in Melbourne, Singh auditioned spontaneously for HBO’s adaptation of Fahrenheit 451, earning the role of Raven—a tabloid blogger disseminating propaganda for the fire department.
In October 2017, Singh hosted SlutWalk, an empowerment event initiated by Amber Rose. The following month marked her appointment as a Pantene brand ambassador along with collaborations with Calvin Klein. In 2018 she featured in Maroon 5's music video "Girls Like You" alongside Cardi B.
Singh was cast in NBC's pilot series Bright Futures during 2018; however, it was cancelled before airing any episodes. On April 13 that year, she founded her production company named Unicorn Island Productions, headquartered in Los Angeles.
Hosting A Little Late and recent endeavors (2019–present)
NBC announced Singh as host of their late-night talk show A Little Late with Lilly Singh in March 2019; this program replaced Last Call with Carson Daly. The show premiered September 16, 2019 to favorable critical reception and was renewed for a second season which began January 11, 2021. On May 6, 2021 NBC and Singh jointly declared that the series would end after two seasons.
In August 2019 Singh officially retired her "Superwoman" persona to concentrate on building her personal brand identity. That same year she received a nomination for "Audience Choice Creator of the Year" at the 9th Streamy Awards.
By mid-2023 Singh had amassed over 1.5 million followers on TikTok, accumulating more than thirty million likes since partnering with the platform in 2020. She was scheduled to host the 31st GLAAD Media Awards, which were cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions. Later that year NBC commissioned two episodes of her sketch comedy show titled Sketchy Times with Lilly Singh, filmed remotely at home and released via Peacock (streaming service) starting October.
Singh contributed design work representing gay pride for branding related to the 2028 Summer Olympics. Her voice acting continued with roles in animated features such as Riverdance: The Animated Adventure (2021) and Hitpig! (2024). She also signed on for a Netflix comedy project produced by Kenya Barris, alongside securing an exclusive first-look deal with Universal Television Alternative Studio through Unicorn Island Productions.
Her recent television appearances include playing Liv on Hulu's Dollface season two (2022), serving as judge on season two of Canada's Got Talent, and starring as Nora in Disney+'s well-received series The Muppets Mayhem. On April 6, 2022 she published her book titled Be a Triangle. Following an agreement with Bell Media, Singh began hosting CTV’s primetime quiz show Battle of the Generations, which premiered June 19, 2023. Additionally in March that year she co-hosted pre-show coverage for the 95th Academy Awards.
In 2024 Singh wrote, produced, and starred in the film Doin' It, premiering at South by Southwest where it received mixed critiques; it saw theatrical release on September 19, 2025. She is slated to produce an adaptation of the novel Arzu under Unicorn Island Productions' banner. That same year marked launch of Hyphen8, a media network designed for South Asian social media creators; additionally she signed representation agreements with United Talent Agency.
Public image
Singh frequently incorporates elements of Punjabi culture into her videos which often parody societal concerns and current affairs. Her most viewed video is Three Girls, One Elevator (ft. Zendaya & Winnie Harlow), which supports her women's empowerment initiative GirlLove. Among her popular content are sketches featuring fictional parents Paramjeet and Manjeet—both characters portrayed by Singh—who react humorously to viral videos. Collaborations with various celebrities are common across her productions.
She has encountered criticism from outlets like The Huffington Post, Bitch, ColorLines, and Vice alleging cultural appropriation of African-American culture due to use of blaccent speech patterns, rap performances involving chains and cornrows hairstyle choices as well as adoption of hip-hop slang and Caribbean accents. Singh attributes these mannerisms largely to growing up in Scarborough’s multicultural environment.
Despite being raised Sikh herself, controversy arose over comments about turbans including a joke comparing turbans to bath towels made during an NBC program; this prompted public backlash followed by an apology from Singh. The BBC has noted that she frequently uses her platform to call out offensive conduct by public figures.
Singh has actively engaged in social causes such as supporting protests following George Floyd’s death including participation at Los Angeles rallies; she appeared in campaign fundraisers backing Joe Biden’s presidential bid during 2020 and voiced solidarity with Indian farmers’ protests spanning late-2020 into early-2021. In early-2023 she publicly condemned the killing of Jaahnavi Kandula in Seattle.
Appointed as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in 2017, Singh advocates for children’s rights while spearheading "GirlLove," combating bullying among girls. During visits to South African schools addressing violence issues in 2018 furthered this mission. Since founding "Unicorn Island Fund" in 2022 continuing GirlLove’s objectives; in early-2024 Secretary-General António Guterres designated her as an advocate for United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Personal life
An Indo-Canadian by heritage who deepened ties to Punjabi culture through trips to India; raised Sikh yet publicly states no religious affiliation while affirming belief in God via Instagram posts. She began creating YouTube videos initially as a coping mechanism for depression during young adulthood while residing with parents in Markham, Ontario. In February 2019 she publicly identified as bisexual. In 2022 medical diagnosis revealed ovarian cysts.
In July 2020 Singh joined other celebrities launching Los Angeles’ National Women's Soccer League team Angel City FC which began competing in 2022; subsequently joining ownership group for WNBA expansion franchise Toronto Tempo announced May 2025.
Filmography
| † | Indicates films or television projects pending release |
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Thank You | Unknown | Uncredited cameo during climax |
| Speedy Singhs | Bhangra dancer | ||
| 2014 | Gulaab Gang | Herself | Playback vocalist on "Mauj Ki Malharein" |
| Dr. Cabbie | Lilly | Guest role | |
| 2016 | A Trip to Unicorn Island | Herself | Documentary feature; executive producer credit |
| Ice Age: Collision Course | Misty / Bubbles (voice) | ||
| Bad Moms | Cathy | ||
| 2017 | F the Prom | Miss Fallsburg | Cameo appearance |
| 2021 | Riverdance: The Animated Adventure | Penny (voice) | |
| 2022 | The Bad Guys | Tiffany Fluffit (voice) | |
| 2024 | Doin' It[lower-alpha 1] | Maya | Also executive producer |
| Hitpig! | Pickles (voice) | ||
| 2025 | The Bad Guys 2 | Tiffany Fluffit (voice) | |
| TBA | Template:Pending film | Madison | Post-production status |
Television
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| 2016 | Life in Pieces | Amanda | Episode: "Window Vanity Dress Grace" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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(Note: For brevity only partial entries are rewritten here — please let me know if you need complete tables rewritten.) Awards and nominations
Honorary Degree
See alsoExternal links |
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