Youtube stars Damon and Jo came to campus to encourage Vols to “shut up and go.”
On Monday evening, popular travel vloggers and YouTubers Damon Dominique and Joanna Franco of DamonAndJo gave a talk in the Alumni Memorial Building at 7 p.m.
The pair, known as Damon and Jo, have a combined community of nearly two million fans on social media platforms and travel across the globe to inform their viewers about different cultures, the importance of foreign language, and how to travel on a budget.
Their movement, “Shut up and Go”, seeks to inform younger generations about living international lifestyles and the overall importance of traveling and how to do so on a college student budget.
Students like Caroline Tippitt, freshman in journalism, who are fans of the famous duo, attended the talk.
“I have been a fan of [Damon and Jo] since first seeing a video of theirs in 2015, and I am really excited about getting to learn more about their traveling background as well as how I, as a college student, can afford to study abroad,” Tippitt said.
Dominique and Franco talked about their first personal experiences with traveling abroad. The two began traveling during their time attending college in New York and are now considered to be top travel influencers by Forbes magazine.
“We have come a long way to get here, and the point of that is it wasn’t always so pretty. Things were not always easy, and it was only after a lot of struggle that we have been able to do so many amazing things,” Franco said while showing pictures of the duo’s college years.
Dominique shared one of his first study abroad experiences in Paris, France, recalling initial difficulties.
“I lived in a very cheap apartment one block from the Eiffel Tower, all my classes were in French and my year abroad was even cheaper than studying in New York,” Dominique said. “But, despite all of that, I wanted to go home because I was home-sick.”
Despite his troubles, Dominique remained in Paris with Franco, who faced her own struggles before joining him in France the following semester.
“I am the daughter of an immigrant and have always worked really hard, and living in Paris (and) roller skating every day was not what I thought would happen for myself,” Franco said.
Collectively, the two detailed their struggles and how they overcame them together to show that anyone, even students at UT, can just “shut up and go” and make traveling abroad a realistic option.
“The overall highlight of the presentation for me was learning about resources to make traveling more affordable, such as staying in hostels or finding cheap airfare,” Tippitt said.
The pair informed attendees on how to find cheaper housing accommodations abroad, airfare and other forms of travel and activities to do abroad.
The two also addressed other dilemmas that students often face when presented with the option to go abroad, such as loneliness and culture shock. The duo agreed that issues like these are not only normal occurrences but are also vital to experience in life.
“Being alone in particular tends to have this odd stigma behind it, and that needs to change, because going abroad and going solo is one of the best things you could ever do,” Dominique said.
Franco added that with culture shock comes getting out of your comfort zone.
“Traveling really allows you to question not only your culture but other cultures and really ask what is truly ‘normal,’” Franco said. “(Traveling) also will force you out of your comfort zone and allow you to grow because no one grows in comfort; growth comes from discomfort.”
To conclude, Dominique and Franco talked about the importance of traveling abroad to experience other cultures and how to learn languages by showing the audience how to look for cheap accommodations and flights from local airports through a website called Skyscanner.
“I was already looking forward and hoping to study abroad, but after hearing about all the information they provided about how to really make it happen as well as hearing their own personal accounts of traveling abroad, I am even more excited to try and go abroad,” Tippitt said.
The Campus Events Board (CEB) event also provided resources for anyone who wanted more information about traveling and living abroad, including the duo’s website and YouTube channel.
Damien and Jo speak about their part of the Shut up and Go foundation at their lecture on Nov. 12, 2018.
