Actor, comedian, writer, and producer Billy Eichner is a four-time Emmy nominated, multifaceted force to be reckoned with.

In a cover story about Billy in Variety in 2022, Conan O’Brien says, “Billy forged his career completely himself. It’s not like someone saw him and said ‘You, kid, you’re coming with me. We’re going to fix your teeth and make you a star.’ He is completely self-directed, and he relied on gobs of talent and tremendous drive.” And Seth Meyers adds, “Billy always felt one step ahead of the zeitgeist, never behind it. His comedy is not reactive; it’s proactive.”

Of course, one has to have “tremendous drive” when one is a unique, outside-the-box talent like Billy, who managed to make it in a cutthroat industry in spite of being an outsider who’s never fit the mold. Billy is the opposite of the so-called “nepo babies” of Hollywood, and his success story is one defined by perseverance, resilience, originality, and fighting relentlessly for your unique creative vision and the dream for what you want your life to become, even when common sense says the odds are against you.

For his leadership and his work promoting diversity and inclusion, particularly for the LGBTQ+ community, Eichner has received many accolades including the GLAAD Award, the Human Rights Campaign Visibility Award, the Leadership Award from the National LGBTQ+ Task Force, Variety’s Power of Pride Award, and the Creative Coalition’s LGBTQ Humanitarian Award, among others. Beyond the LGBTQ+ space, he also sits on the Creative Council of Everytown for Gun Safety, has worked as a senior advisor for Swing Left and, with his friends at Funny or Die, began the non-partisan “Glam Up the Midterms” initiative in 2018 to help register young voters and turn out the youth vote in midterm elections. This voter registration campaign found Billy making appearances on CNN, MSNBC, Real Time with Bill Maher, The Today Show, Pod Save America, and The View, among others.