This is a story of what happens when a teenager tells someone they are too old to be on TikTok. In the case of Dillon White ’16, he started making videos to prove a high school student wrong. His videos went viral, and over time, this lark has resulted in a following of 3.4 million people on several social media channels.
White did not set out to be a social media influencer. The head of business development at the law firm of Messerli Kramer and a former professor at Minnesota State University–Mankato, White came to realize how much he likes connecting with people through stories. On his @dadchats videos, White covers some of his favorite topics: parenting, marriage, pet ownership, legal issues, and current events. He often shares the limelight with his wife, Suzanne White, who posts under @momchats.
White’s social media presence means that he often gets recognized in public or when he is doing law firm outreach. But that is not why he posts; for White, it’s about storytelling — a thread woven throughout his career.
“What I like most about the platform is I’m allowed to act how my brain feels most often, which is thinking about 1,000 different things,” White says. “I’m fortunate that it keeps growing and I’m constantly reaching different audiences. The central current is that I’m always trying to tell a story. It’s the only common language we all share.”
White got his storytelling start when majoring in journalism at Northwestern University. He worked at marketing and communications agencies and owned his own public relations and advertising firm before pursuing a legal education. After graduating from Minnesota Law, White operated his own practice, where he primarily worked on Title IX and First Amendment cases and corporate law transactional matters.
Over time, White realized that he could best contribute by applying his talents at the crossroads of communications, marketing, law, and business development. He also felt that being a full-time practicing attorney at a firm was not a fit for him and his family life. The Whites have four children under age 7— their youngest was born this summer.
White’s TikTok journey began in early 2020. He and his wife were coaching high school speech and debate when he saw students making TikTok videos. Curious about the platform, White started creating videos, too. Before long, his followers surpassed his students, thanks to a viral video of his dogs. TikTok challenge unlocked.
Eventually, White set @dadchats aside in favor of other creative outlets. He wrote and sold two screenplays that were headed into production until Covid shut down the world. White started making videos again to connect with others.
Early on, much of White’s content followed TikTok trends. But he started getting more eyeballs on his posts when he forged his own path, telling stories from his work and home life. Before long White developed his signature format of filming in his car while holding a cup of coffee that perpetually looks like it is about to spill. “It felt most comfortable talking to the camera and not trying to be some version of myself, doing dances or skits or scare-prank videos with my wife — all things that were funny but not a community-building experience,” he says.
White added Instagram, and then he and his wife started posting on Facebook together as The Chats Fam: Momchats and Dadchats. They built a community of followers by taking a light-hearted approach that embraces the chaos of their lives, adhering to their early rule to never post their children’s faces. On @dadchats, White intersperses family and pet life fun — including a running theme with his canine nemesis, Goose — with videos on topics such as the First Amendment, bullying, and artificial intelligence.
He never really knows when or why a video suddenly attracts millions of views. But White regularly feels the love from his audience — more than 80 percent female — through messages and comments. “The most popular dad creators’ audiences tend to be moms because they are attempting in some way to normalize fathers being involved in their children’s lives and being in tune with the mental load of being a parent,” he says. “Parents will say, ‘Thanks for making me feel normal.’ Or a new parent will write to me, ‘I’m struggling right now and your video about this helped me laugh for the first time in a week.’”
White’s social media prowess extends to work, too, both in helping Messerli Kramer promote its services and partnering with individuals and businesses on client endeavors. Engaging in platforms like TikTok has helped White understand the way younger generations think. He has applied those learnings to his law firm work. Where things go from here is unclear — though both Whites plan to hold on to their day jobs. Perhaps they will keep at it until TikTok is banned. Or perhaps they will make good on their recent book deal and ride off into the social media sunset. In either case, White has enjoyed his time in the spotlight and hopes he has made people think, commiserate, or smile.
“When I’m thinking about what to talk about, I think, ‘Does it educate, inspire, or entertain?’ and if it doesn’t do any of those, people probably don’t want to hear about it,” White says. “We’ve always done it for fun. It’s helped my wife and I keep the exuberance about our relationship because we’re able to laugh and share stories in a way that makes us feel like we’re not crazy. And if it helps others feel like what they are going through is normal, too, then I think that’s the best kind of story any of us can tell.”