Brilyn Hollyhand, a 19-year-old conservative activist often described as Charlie Kirk’s protégé, said he intends to become “louder” and “bolder” in carrying on the mission of his late mentor despite a surge in death threats following Kirk’s assassination earlier this month.
Here I am Lord, send me! 🙏
Thank y’all for the prayers! pic.twitter.com/QHRt98XGOi
— Brilyn Hollyhand (@BrilynHollyhand) September 22, 2025
Hollyhand, who gained early recognition in conservative circles after interviewing Kirk as a fourth grader in 2018, has since built an audience of nearly half a million followers across social media platforms.
Wow. I’m speechless.
President Trump just told my story of how Charlie took a chance on me and appeared on my podcast when I was in 4th grade.
When I asked Charlie for advice, he told me: “The Left might have more money, but they’ll never be able to outwork me.”
RIP, Charlie. pic.twitter.com/3hpDur1Ji5
— Brilyn Hollyhand (@BrilynHollyhand) September 21, 2025
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The Alabama native, now a freshman at Auburn University, also founded The Truth Gazette, a conservative political website, and has been named co-chair of the Republican National Committee’s Youth Advisory Council.
Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, was assassinated on September 10 during the opening event of the group’s “American Comeback Tour” at Utah Valley University.
Hollyhand said he had been in contact with Kirk only hours before the attack.
“We were speaking that morning because he had just seen me on Fox and he texted to turn around and be like, ‘Hey, man, you did such a great job this morning, so proud of you,’” Hollyhand recalled.
“He was excited for the first stop of the now-fatal campus tour.”
You can kill a man but you can’t kill a movement.
Tonight, I stood before hundreds of students who are proof of Charlie’s legacy.
It’s tempting to give up and walk away to safety. That’s not happening.
To my friend Charlie: we’ll take it from here, one conversation at a time. pic.twitter.com/T1l80lTA81
— Brilyn Hollyhand (@BrilynHollyhand) September 13, 2025
Hollyhand said Kirk’s influence on him was both personal and professional.
“He didn’t need to go on the Brilyn Hollyhand show with a fourth grader, but he did and he gave me that opportunity,” Hollyhand said.
“There are so many people that you interview that you never talk to again, but he genuinely stayed a mentor and a friend through the past eight years of my political career.”
Reflecting on his role in the conservative movement, Hollyhand said, “Charlie has very huge shoes to fill. Not just because he was a man with a large shoe size but because, like, legitimately, nobody can replace him. My goal is not to be Charlie, it’s to be Brilyn and to do what the Lord has given me the opportunity to do. If I can do half of the work that Charlie Kirk did in his time on this earth, then I’ll count that as a success.”
As he looks to the future, Hollyhand is preparing for his own 10-stop speaking tour of college campuses.
The tour, titled “One Conversation at a Time,” is being sponsored by Turning Point USA in the wake of Kirk’s death and is set to begin Thursday at the University of Arkansas.
Fox News just covered @TPUSA partnering with me to launch the “One Conversation At A Time” speaking tour at 10 colleges.
There is no replacement for Charlie Kirk.
It’s up to Gen-Z to stand up and continue his legacy forward.
You can kill a man, but not a movement. pic.twitter.com/J7giVsQT7y
— Brilyn Hollyhand (@BrilynHollyhand) September 19, 2025
But Hollyhand acknowledged that his increased public role has brought heightened risks.
“I feel like I’m living a completely different life than I woke up in, you know, a few Wednesdays ago before he passed,” he said.
“My threat level has tripled. I’ve got a security team now.”
He added that campus security at Auburn University currently escorts him to classes.
Despite concerns from friends and family urging him not to continue with the tour, Hollyhand said he feels compelled to press forward.
“That’s what they want. The coward who assassinated my friend wanted to shut my generation up and instead he woke us up,” he said.
“I feel like this is a time where we have to get louder, we have to get bolder, we have to get more courageous, because that’s the life that Charlie loves. And so we can’t cower, we can’t be silent, we have to go to these campuses now, more than ever before. He lived and died for that and that’s why I kind of feel this calling to keep doing that.”
Hollyhand said Kirk’s words have guided him since their first meeting and remain relevant as he begins his own efforts to mobilize young conservatives.
“When I asked him for inspiration, of you know, ‘what should I do… just to keep fighting this movement at such a young age?’ He looked at me, and I’ll never forget it. He said, ‘Brilyn, the left will always out-fundraise us, but they’re never going to outwork us.’ They never outworked Charlie. He always took the time to continue fighting for this country. They could not outwork him, so they had to kill him.”
I’ll be honest…
Yes, this is a scary time.
Yes, I’m aware of the hundreds of death threats I’ve gotten recently.
This WON’T stop me from touring college campuses with TPUSA in honor of Charlie Kirk.
We can’t cower, be silenced, & afraid.
We must stand strong for Charlie.❤️ pic.twitter.com/kFpnCcvw1n
— Brilyn Hollyhand (@BrilynHollyhand) September 23, 2025