Bretman Rock Sacayanan Laforga, born July 31, 1998, is a Filipino-American beauty influencer, YouTuber, and reality television personality.
He rose to global fame through viral makeup tutorials and comedic social media content, and later became the first openly gay man to appear on the cover of Playboy.
Rock is based in Honolulu, Hawaii, and continues to expand his career into television, publishing, and entrepreneurship.
Who is Bretman Rock?
Bretman Rock is a Filipino-American YouTuber, makeup artist, and social media personality known for his sharp comedic timing and genderless approach to beauty.
He first built an audience on Vine and Twitter before a contouring video went viral on YouTube in 2015, launching his career as a beauty influencer.
Since then, he has starred in his own MTV reality series, appeared in music videos, and published a bestselling memoir.
In October 2021, he became the first openly gay man to appear on the cover of Playboy, a milestone widely covered by entertainment press.
Rock is also known for his advocacy around LGBTQ+ visibility and Filipino representation in mainstream media.
Early Life of Bretman Rock
Bretman Rock was born in Sanchez-Mira, Cagayan, in the Philippines, into an Ilocano family. His father, Edmund Laforga, was reportedly a wrestling fan who named him after wrestlers Bret Hart and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
When Bretman was around seven or eight years old, his family relocated to Honolulu, Hawaii, in search of better opportunities.
That move blended his Filipino upbringing with island culture and shaped much of the personality he later brought to his content. He attended James Campbell High School in Hawaii.
Bretman has spoken about facing bullying in his youth over his flamboyant personality and early interest in makeup and fashion.
He found confidence instead through creating short comedic videos, first on Vine and Twitter starting around 2011, then later on YouTube.
His mother, Mercedita, and his older sister, Princess Mae, who is also a YouTuber, remain close collaborators in his content to this day.
Bretman Rock Age
Bretman Rock is 27 years old as of 2026, born on July 31, 1998. His zodiac sign is Leo. He has built one of the most recognized personal brands among Filipino-American entertainers over the past decade, a run of visibility that began when he was still a teenager on Vine.
Bretman Rock Ethnicity and Nationality
Bretman Rock is Filipino-American. He was born in the Philippines to an Ilocano family and has spoken openly about his Filipino heritage shaping both his humor and his values.
He has also described his upbringing as blending Filipino traditions with the culture of Hawaii, where he has lived since childhood.
Bretman Rock Height and Weight
Bretman Rock stands at approximately 5 feet 8 inches, or about 173 centimeters. His exact current weight is not publicly confirmed.
He has a lean, athletic build and often incorporates fitness and workout content into his social media presence alongside his beauty videos.
Bretman Rock Education
Bretman Rock completed his schooling at James Campbell High School in Hawaii. He has not publicly confirmed enrollment in any college or university, having instead moved directly into building his online career during and after his teenage years.
His focus during high school leaned toward creative and social pursuits rather than traditional academics, according to his own accounts in interviews and his memoir.
Bretman Rock Career
Early Career
Bretman Rock joined Twitter in 2011 and began posting comedic videos and one-liners as a teenager. He launched his YouTube channel in September 2012, though he did not begin regularly posting content until several years later.
During this period, he also built a following on Vine, the short-form video app, with clips that showcased his sharp, sarcastic humor.
His breakout moment arrived in 2015, when a contouring tutorial he posted on YouTube went viral. The video showcased both his makeup skill and his comedic narration, and it introduced him to a much wider audience beyond his existing fans.
Following that video, Rock steadily built a beauty-focused channel that combined tutorials with humor, a format that set him apart from more conventional beauty vloggers of the era.
Breakthrough and Mainstream Recognition
As his following grew across Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter, Bretman Rock crossed into mainstream entertainment.
He appeared in MTV’s Escape the Night in 2016 and was featured in an Ellen Digital Network series beginning in 2020. In 2021, he received the Breakthrough Social Star award at the MTV Movie and TV Awards, along with a People’s Choice Award for Beauty Influencer.
That same year, MTV premiered Following: Bretman Rock, a reality series that followed his life in Hawaii alongside his sister Princess Mae and cousin Keiffer.
The show ran for multiple seasons and gave fans an unscripted look at his family relationships and personal growth.
In October 2021, Rock became the first openly gay man to appear on the cover of Playboy magazine, a moment that drew coverage from major entertainment outlets and cemented his place in LGBTQ+ media history.
Recent Work
In February 2023, Bretman Rock published his memoir, titled You’re That Bitch & Other Cute Lessons About Being Unapologetically Yourself, through HarperCollins.
The book combines personal essays about his childhood in the Philippines, his family, and his immigrant experience with candid reflections on identity and self-acceptance. It became a bestseller and drew strong reader reviews.
Rock has continued expanding his content beyond beauty in recent years, including hosting a podcast, Da Baddest Radio, and building a following around lifestyle content filmed on his property in Hawaii, including videos featuring his chickens and dogs. In 2025, he won the TikTok Video of the Year award for a farmland video.
In July 2026, TIME included Bretman Rock on its TIME100 Creators list, recognizing his continued influence as a content creator known for blending beauty, humor, and everyday life on his Hawaii homestead.
Bretman Rock Awards and Recognition
Bretman Rock has received several honors tied to his social media and entertainment career. His Breakthrough Social Star win at the 2021 MTV Movie and TV Awards and his People’s Choice Award for Beauty Influencer remain among his most cited achievements.
He also won the 2025 TikTok Video of the Year award, and was named to TIME’s TIME100 Creators list in 2026.
Bretman Rock Relationship
Bretman Rock dated Justice Fester for roughly a year before the couple announced their breakup in August 2025.
Rock shared the news on Instagram Stories, describing the split as mutual and amicable. The pair had first met in 2018 and reconnected years later before publicly debuting their relationship.
In a January 2026 interview with People, Rock confirmed he had begun dating again about four months after the breakup, though he described the new stage of his romantic life as casual rather than committed.
He has not confirmed a current partner publicly. Rock has generally kept his post-breakup dating life private, sharing only limited updates with fans.
Bretman Rock Family
Bretman Rock’s mother, Mercedita, and his older sister, Princess Mae, are both prominent figures in his content and have appeared across his YouTube and Instagram platforms for years.
Princess Mae is a YouTuber and influencer in her own right. Bretman also has a niece, Cleo, who frequently appears in his family-oriented posts, and a cousin, Keiffer, who appeared alongside him in his MTV reality series.
Bretman Rock Net Worth
Bretman Rock’s estimated net worth is $7 million as of 2026. His income comes from YouTube ad revenue, Instagram and TikTok brand partnerships, merchandise sales, his memoir royalties, and appearances tied to his MTV reality series.
Bretman Rock Social Media
Bretman Rock is active across several major platforms. His Instagram account, @bretmanrock, has around 19 million followers and features a mix of beauty content, travel photos, and glimpses of his life in Hawaii.
His YouTube channel, Bretman Rock, has close to 9 million subscribers and hundreds of millions of total views.
He also maintains an active presence on TikTok, where his farm and family content has found a large audience in addition to his beauty videos. Fans can find links to his book, merchandise, and other platforms through his official Linktree page.
The Bottom Line
Bretman Rock’s biggest career milestone remains becoming the first openly gay man to appear on the cover of Playboy in October 2021, a moment that followed his Breakthrough Social Star win at that year’s MTV Movie and TV Awards.
His reality series, Following: Bretman Rock, gave fans an unscripted look at his family life in Hawaii.
Rock’s Filipino-American background and his blend of sharp comedy with genderless beauty content have defined his online persona since his 2015 breakout.
His 2023 memoir, You’re That Bitch, extended that voice into a bestselling book about his immigrant upbringing and self-acceptance.
In 2026, Rock earned a spot on TIME’s TIME100 Creators list, reflecting his continued relevance a decade into his career. He remains based in Hawaii, where his newer content blends beauty tutorials with everyday life on his property.
We hope you enjoyed reading about Bretman Rock. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!