There’s a young man in Hartford that’s using social media to put Connecticut on the map.
His name is Jimmy Robinson, but you can find him online as @jimyofficial, showing off both restaurant food and places to visit around the state.
“Today we’re here in New Haven, Connecticut at Bear’s Smokehouse, one of Connecticut’s most popular local barbecue restaurants,” the influencer said Wednesday afternoon outside of the barbecue restaurant.
More than 400,000 followers on his social media platforms look for the Hartford native to do what he’s grown pretty good at doing: reviewing food.
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“Seasoned pretty good. Very crispy. I love crispy wings, I love smaller wings,” Robinson said as he tasted the wings at Bear’s Smokehouse. “I think my favorite thing might be between the chicken and the wings,” he said pointing to the sliced chicken breast and the wings on the tray that was also filled with ribs, pastrami and “moink balls,” meatballs wrapped in bacon.
NBC Connecticut spent the afternoon with the influencer to find out the secret recipe to his success. He started out filming Vines in high school and now, the college grad has grown his content and audience over the years.
“I’m like, 'maybe I can change the game by actually experiencing it and letting people see me, actually at these places in real time,'” he said.
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He travels to cities and towns, sometimes on his motorcycle, shooting and editing videos of his visits. He said his content has helped local businesses along the way, boosting sales through his followers.
“I’m happy I can have that power, that voice for the state of Connecticut to help these small businesses continue to support their families and their community," he said.
He’s mapping out his future, considering law school to help people that are wrongfully convicted. But for now, he has found his niche online.
“The food thing is working right now, and people are listening to me, so I have to keep going. Keep my credibility up,” Robinson said.
And his true dream is to one day go from online to on TV.
For me, I can’t let myself fall off, I just gotta keep pushing so I really want to be on TV one day, on a show, and make a name for myself in this whole world.”
He doesn’t always think about what he does in terms of color, but he said he’s glad to be a positive representation online of what is possible.
“Coming from my background, you can do it, too. Color doesn’t matter. Sometimes it may be hard for opportunities, but you can make it happen if you put the work into it and network with everybody and that’s what I do," Robinson said.
