SAO PAULO — Khaby Lame, recognized as the most-followed TikTok influencer globally, relocated to Brazil after facing detention by U.S. immigration authorities. He is currently spending time with friends in the country, according to local sources on Thursday.
Lame is staying with Emerson Royal, an AC Milan football player, and is enjoying interactions with fans in the area. This update was provided by Paulo Eduardo Dias Junior, a city councilman from Americana, a city situated approximately 78 miles (125 kilometers) from Sao Paulo, as reported by The Associated Press.
On Wednesday night, they played a friendly soccer match with locals.
On June 6, Lame departed the United States after being detained at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas due to visa overstay issues. The Senegalese-Italian social media star, legally named Seringe Khabane Lame, was granted permission to exit the U.S. without a deportation order, as stated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Junior organized Wednesday’s match on behalf of the nonprofit he leads, Instituto Jr Dias. He said that Lame and Royal’s participation helped collect 150 food baskets for vulnerable families.
“Emerson Royal is a role model for the children in our community, and so is Khaby, who is globally known through social media. He’s a sensation among kids today,” Junior said. “He had a lot of fun with the kids and played a lot.”
The councilman said that the team that Lame and Royal were on won 3-1. Everything went smoothly, he added, except for the post-match celebration. As is tradition in Brazil, players gathered for a barbecue. But Lame preferred a parmegiana, so they took him to a local restaurant, Junior said.
This is not Lame’s first time in Brazil. Last year, he traveled to the country to attend Royal’s wedding.
Met Gala and then detention
Lame arrived in the U.S. on April 30 and “overstayed the terms of his visa,” an ICE spokesperson told the AP, which sent a message seeking comment Tuesday to the email address listed on Lame’s Instagram account. He hasn’t publicly commented on his detention.
His detention and voluntary departure from the United States comes amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s escalating crackdown on immigration, including raids in Los Angeles that sparked days of protests against ICE, as the president tests the bounds of his executive authority.
A voluntary departure — which was granted to Lame — allows those facing removal from the U.S. to avoid a deportation order on their immigration record, which could prevent them from being allowed back into the U.S. for up to a decade.
The 25-year-old Lame rose to international fame during the pandemic without ever saying a word in his videos, which would show him reacting to absurdly complicated “life hacks.” He has more than 162 million followers on TikTok alone.
The Senegal-born influencer moved to Italy when he was an infant with his working class parents and also has Italian citizenship.
His internet fame quickly evolved. He signed a multiyear partnership with designer brand Hugo Boss in 2022. In January, he was appointed as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador.
Last month, he attended the Met Gala in New York City, days after arriving in the U.S.
