Dubai resident and car influencer Alexandra Mary Hirschi, also known as Supercar Blondie, has been given the title of Best Breakout YouTuber at the Shorty Awards.
The winners – who included comedian Trevor Noah, environmentalist Greta Thunberg and actress Jameela Jamil – were announced on Sunday during a digital ceremony streamed on Periscope and YouTube.
The annual awards celebrate the best content creators and producers on social media in entertainment, music, technology, business, fitness, fashion, beauty and philanthropy. This was its 12th virtual awards ceremony.
Past winners include Taylor Swift, Malala Yousafzai, JK Rowling, Adele and DJ Khaled.
Hirschi, 34, who was born in Australia and moved to Dubai in 2008, has about 3.5 million subscribers to her YouTube channel, which offers an insight into supercar culture.
She works with carmakers such as Bugatti and Ferrari, and regularly posts videos driving luxury vehicles, although it's widely reported that her first car was a Mitsubishi Lancer.
A former radio presenter on Dubai Eye, she has always been a car fanatic. Her love for cars grew from the 14-hour drives she would take with her family growing up in the small Australian town of Boonah.
She told The National this year that growing up in a driving culture from a young age did her few favours. The industry was a cold house for women when she began posting her videos. "The majority of people at the events I would be asked to cover were men," she said. "I was the only woman on trips that would have up to 50 people at them."
She also told us, pre-pandemic, that she would get "stopped every few metres for photographs" when shopping in Dubai.
Here is a full list of this year's Shorty Award winners:
Best Actor
Rebel Wilson
Best Animal
Maya the Samoyed
Best Breakout YouTuber
Supercar Blondie
Best Celebrity
Zendaya
Best in Activism
Greta Thunberg
Best in Arts
Dave Pollot
Best in Beauty
Nikita Dragun
Best in Comedy
Trevor Noah
Watch Noah accept his award while holding a potato here:
Best in Dance
Benny the Bull
Best in Fashion
Aquaria
Best in Food
Juns Kitchen
Best in Gaming
NoisyButters
Best in Health and Wellness
Wheels2Walking
Best in House and Home
Our Faux Farmhouse
Best in Lifestyle
Les Do Makeup
Best in Music
TWICE
Best in Parenting, Family and Kids
The Bramfam
Best in Sports
Megan Rapinoe
Best in Travel
Haley Dasovich
Best in Weird
jackstauber
Best Journalist
Mona Chalabi
Best LGBTQ+ Account
Rose and Rosie
Best Meme/Parody Account
Thoughts of Dog
Best Podcaster
Emma Chamberlain
Best YouTube Ensemble
Kian and JC
Best YouTube Musician
Pomplamoose
Gif of the Year
And I Oop
Instagram of the Year
Lizzo post AMAs
Instagrammer of the Year
Wolfgang
TikToker of the Year
Avani Gregg
Twitch Streamer of the Year
MrFreshAsian
YouTube Comedian of the Year
Morgan Adams
YouTuber of the Year
MrBeast
Phenom Award
Jameela Jamil, PK Subban and Eugene Lee Yang
