How Avani Gregg and Anthony Reeves Went From Likes to Love

After a wave of are-they-or-aren’t-they speculation, Anthony Reeves and Avani Gregg finally confirmed their relationship the only way any teenager knows how: with an Instagram post. Known as LuvAnthony and Avani to their combined 60 million followers on social media, they emerged from his and hers TikTok houses—Sway House for him, Hype House for her—to form a relationship that’s pure #couplegoals.

 

“People refer to us as ‘The TikTok couple,’” says Reeves. “It obviously has its ups and downs. But when I’m with Avani, I just ignore the hate and the things people make up.” Adds Gregg, “It’s weird to have people give input on your relationship. I see Anthony every single day, but people don’t know that because I don’t post him all the time. We don’t want anyone else in our relationship.”

“We met on social media, about two or three years ago,” says 19-year-old Reeves. “I think I DMed him to ask him where he got some of his stuff, because we were both into fashion back then,” says Gregg, who is a year younger. “We weren’t, like, good, good friends on social media. We would ask each other a few questions and then not talk for months. When we finally met in person, that was the start of everything.” Below, learn more about the Internet’s it couple.

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INTERVIEW: How does it feel to be dubbed the Tik Tok couple?

GREGG: People do use that term a lot, even for me and Anthony, that we’re the TikTok couple, which I get that we are both on TikTok, but it’s just weird because we don’t really push our relationship out on social media as much as a lot of people do. We didn’t even meet on TikTok. We met on Instagram, which is even weirder.

REEVES: It obviously has its ups and downs, but it’s usually not too bad because, for instance, when I’m with Avani, I just ignore the hate that people say and makeup. It’s usually just the same with my friends.

INTERVIEW: Does having millions of eyeballs on your relationship add any pressure?

GREGG: You feel like you need to do what your audience tells you to do. Like, it’s kind of weird to have people put input in your relationship when they don’t have a say in it. That’s why we avoid posting so much just because we don’t want anyone else in our relationship. We just want it to be us two.

INTERVIEW: What is one thing people don’t know about you yet?

REEVES: Modeling and fashion designing was the first thing I ever wanted to do since I was like 12. Now this year I actually finally have the chance. Oh, probably also that I’m the biggest Star Wars fan. I have three giant shelves full of rare, dope Star Wars collectibles.

GREGG: I started by doing my makeup at like age 11, I really loved drawing, painting, and sculpting things. I started drawing on my arms and my legs, then I started to paint my drawings on my face.  I guess drawing convinced me that I could do makeup. Also, people think a lot of my videos are just fake emotions and I don’t really put out the way that I feel on social media when my videos aren’t actually acting. The way that I post is based on how I feel. Sometimes videos are sad or really happy or I’m mad.

INTERVIEW: What’s your idea of the perfect date?

REEVES: Honestly, just chilling at the house, watching a movie, and ordering a pizza. That’s basically it and just vibe.

GREGG: I would say a picnic—a cute little picnic, but I don’t know where. I don’t want people filming us on a picnic cause that just makes it awkward. I would have sandwiches and sushi and chocolate-covered strawberries, all of our favorites.

INTERVIEW: What is the key to a healthy relationship with social media?

REEVES: You have to have your work time and you have to have your relationship time. You have to set off time, like eight hours a day, to do your work, and then you can have the rest of the time to hang out with your girlfriend or your friends or your boyfriend or whatever.

GREGG: It took a very long time to find the right balance with my social media. I feel like I’m still learning and working on it just because, I mean, comments and videos and stuff have just gotten worse on social media lately. I’ve gotten to the point where it’s just like, I post what I want to post. That’s why I have a platform and I just don’t read the comments anymore.

INTERVIEW: What is the best gift Avani has ever given you?

REEVES: Just her time. I’m just so lonely sometimes and just her coming over is enough

INTERVIEW: What is the best gift Anthony has ever given you?

GREGG: This heart necklace that he got me when he first asked me out, because we were talking for about five to six months beforehand. I always bugged him about it, so it just meant a lot that he remembered that. I have not taken it off since today. He’s that sweet.

INTERVIEW: What makes a good TikTok?

REEVES: It’s the lighting and the energy. You got to have hella good vibes. It’s mainly by chance, I’m going to be honest because everybody has a chance to blow up.

GREGG: Back when my first TikTok went viral, it was something different than other people had not seen before. I feel like when you do something very cool, that only you can do, and then you post it. People go crazy, and people start to follow you and want to see more. But right now, I feel like it’s mostly comedy.

INTERVIEW: How was Tik Tok changed you?

REEVES:  It’s given me so much more freedom because back home, I used to have to dress a certain way—I’m from the South and all that stupid stuff.”

INTERVIEW: What was the best and worst trend on Tik Tok in 2020?

REEVES: Worse, probably the mugshot one and stuff. Those were just, I don’t know, not the best meaning. And then the best, probably the blow-up videos from throughout the years, because those videos are funny.

GREGG: The best trend I think was, there was a transition to one of Miley Cyrus’s songs. You transitioned from your normal self to a rock star. I feel like that was a big trend. The worst one, there were a few dancing ones that were just weird songs that I just didn’t really like or the dance didn’t match to it, but it became a trend and I was just like, “Oh.”

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Hair: PHOEBE SELIGMAN using ORIBE at ATELIER MANAGEMENT.

Makeup: ELAYNA BACHMAN using TOM FORD BEAUTY at ART DEPARTMENT.