“Age is just a number – love really is love”

YouTube stars Julia and Eileen open up about their 37-year age gap

BY ANEZKA TUREK. IMAGE YOUTUBE.

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a high-profile age gap relationship in the lez/bi community.

The queen herself, Ellen DeGeneres, shares a 15-year age gap with her wife Portia De Rossi and equally loved Sarah Paulson and partner Holland Taylor have a difference of 32. 

Now, 24-year-old Julia Zelg, originally from Brazil, started filming for her YouTube channel around four years ago.

Known on the platform for her bright pink hair, musical talent and collaboration of videos with wife-to-be Eileen De Freest, aged 61, the fast growing channel currently stands at nearly at nearly 200,000 subscribers – and the couple’s age gap of 37 years has attracted a lot of attention.

The videos Moving In With My Girlfriend Vlog, Our Morning Routine – Lesbian Couple and Meet My Girlfriend gained more than five million views, combined.

It’s clear that this charming duo are enticing viewers with their realistic portrayal of an age gap relationship. 

But what is it like being YouTube stars, wives-to-be and age gap icons?

DIVA: What inspired you start your YouTube channel, Julia?

JULIA: I was first inspired to start posting because I was interested in exploring alternative fashion. From there it’s grown in a myriad of ways.

I like to cover lots of different categories of content but I’m especially interested now in posting videos of a more personal nature, as well as my music. 

Your videos have combined views of more than 20 million! Why do you think that so many of your most popular videos are the ones featuring Eileen?

Our videos together are popular because people love to see and experience our undeniably real and relatable love. Most people have it as a goal to be in a relationship that is so demonstrably strong, fun, and passionate.

The fact that our age difference is so big does attract attention, but it’s really the least notable thing about us. The more remarkable thing is the power and depth of our connection and chemistry – and the gleeful enjoyment we each take in other. 

What are some of the best things about being an “age gap couple”?

Well, the great things about being a couple supersede those about being an age-gap couple. The benefit to having a huge age gap is probably that one of us has been on the planet longer than the other and knows things about life that the other hasn’t yet learned or experienced yet.

Obviously, the comments section is a big part of YouTube as a platform. What has the general response been about your age gap from viewers?

It’s been almost uniformly and enthusiastically supportive. One of the biggest surprises to us has been how incredibly welcoming, warm, and loyal our subscribers are. They delight in us and we, in turn, adore them.

Have you ever faced any discrimination or negative responses because of your age gap?

Online is the only place where we’ve received any negativity, and that’s only been from hard-core trolls. Offline, some people may not comprehend that we’re a couple, but we’ve not experienced anything untoward.

If you had to say one thing to those judging your relationship, what would you say?

Age is just a number – love really is love.

Lastly, Sarah Paulson recently said: “If someone wants to spend their time thinking I’m strange for loving the most spectacular person on the planet, then that’s their problem, I’m doing just fine.”

What do you think about this statement? 

It’s beautifully spot-on. We love Sarah and Holland, and we’re glad to know that other gay, female age-gap couples exist!

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