Queensland’s new A-list: The rising stars and creatives you need to know

The next generation of socialites ranges from major personalities with huge followings to emerging creatives, entrepreneurs, media figures and tastemakers who are helping shape where people go, what they talk about and which events matter.

To work out who belongs on the list, we spoke with publicists, event organisers, industry insiders, venue owners and promoters, and were given a behind-the-scenes look at some of the state’s most sought-after guest lists.

These are the people not just attending Queensland’s social scene, but actively contributing to it.

Here is the full unranked list”

Nikki Westcott & Lucy Jackson

Nikki Westcott and Lucy Jackson have become two of the Gold Coast’s most recognisable young social names, building their profile across fashion, radio, podcasting and live events.

The best friends first met while studying marketing in North Queensland before launching fashion label JGR & STN and later their hugely successful Happy Hour podcast. Their appeal goes well beyond followers: they host sold-out shows, work across major brand partnerships and are genuinely part of the Coast’s night-life and fashion circuit. When Nikki and Lucy are on a guest list, they bring an audience, energy and serious social currency.

Lachlan & Austin Macfarlane

Lachlan and Austin Macfarlane are proof Queensland’s next social generation is being shaped by creatives as much as celebrities. The Brisbane filmmaking brothers have built more than one billion online views while working with global brands including Warner Bros, Universal, Google and Netflix. They have represented Australia at Cannes after winning the Cannes Young Lions Film category, earned AACTA recognition and developed Screen Australia-backed work. More importantly for this list, they remain firmly Brisbane-based and plugged into the state’s film, entertainment and event scene, bringing genuine industry credibility wherever they turn up.

Lulu Gardner

Lulu Gardner is one of the clearest examples of Brisbane’s next generation stepping out from a well-known family name and building her own place in the city’s fashion world. The daughter of Brisbane Fashion Festival Styling Director Kimberly Gardner, Lulu is now the Festival’s Styling Manager and works alongside her mother across major runway events and fashion presentations. That puts her at the centre of the city’s VIP fashion circuit, not simply watching from the sidelines. She represents the new Brisbane social set perfectly: connected, stylish, visible and increasingly influential in her own right.

Nicola Crisafulli

Nicola Crisafulli carries one of Queensland’s most recognisable surnames, but she is beginning to carve out a public identity beyond politics. The daughter of Premier David Crisafulli has pursued work across acting, modelling and digital content, with studies in communications, film and theatre supporting that path. Her inclusion is not simply about who her father is. As Nicola builds her own profile across fashion, entertainment and social media, she represents a younger generation of prominent Queensland families beginning to make their own mark on the state’s cultural and social scene.

Lachlan & Bailey Carter (A. K. A Those Carter Boys)

Lachlan and Bailey Carter, better known as Those Carter Boys, have turned an infectious love of sport, travel and all things Australian into a fast-growing entertainment brand. The Brisbane brothers shot to prominence around the Paris Olympics and have since travelled to major events across Australia and overseas, building a reputation for bringing big personalities and unmistakeable green-and-gold energy wherever they go. Their appeal is exactly why they belong here: they are not simply content creators watching events from afar, they are increasingly being invited into the action and becoming part of the spectacle themselves.

Nick Allen-Ducat

Nick Allen-Ducat has come full circle to become one of Brisbane radio’s newest prominent breakfast voices.

He first joined Nova 106.9 as a 17-year-old street team member before moving through producing, announcing and acting, including training at the New York Film Academy.

After several years broadcasting outside Queensland, he returned home to join Luttsy and Susie O’Neill on Nova Breakfast in 2026.

Allen-Ducat brings something valuable to this list: he is recognisably Brisbane, genuinely entertaining and now firmly embedded again in the city’s media, event and social circuit.

Lexie Brant

At 22, Lexie Brant has already taken Queensland to the world stage.

The Brisbane-raised model was crowned Miss Universe Australia 2025 before representing the country at the Miss Universe final in Thailand, all while completing a full-time occupational therapy degree. Now living on the Gold Coast and just weeks from graduating, Brant plans to move straight into a career in hand therapy.

After a year spanning international travel, modelling, ambassadorships and charity work, Brant has now passed the crown to her 2026 successor while remaining one of Queensland’s most polished young names to watch.

Erianthe Akaata

Erianthe Akaata may be one of the youngest names on this list, but her résumé already looks international. The Queensland performer has worked across stage and screen in TINA: The Tina Turner Musical, Young Rock, Mortal Kombat II and Disney’s Nautilus, and in 2026 was announced among the young performers selected for the new Mickey Mouse Club pilot. Trained across acting, singing and dance, Akaata is emerging through a Disney talent pipeline famous for launching major stars. She brings something genuinely exciting to this list: a Queensland talent whose career is only just starting to take off.

Jiselle Manning

Brisbane-born journalist Jiselle Manning has become an increasingly familiar face both on screen and around Queensland’s major events. After joining Nine while studying journalism at the University of Queensland, Manning worked across producing and reporting before becoming a full-time reporter on the Gold Coast. Her work has taken her across breaking news, politics, sport and entertainment, while outside the newsroom she has developed a growing presence across fashion, launches and the state’s social circuit. It is that crossover between a serious media career and an emerging profile beyond television that earns Manning a place among Queensland’s next generation.

Lachlan Kennedy

Lachlan Kennedy is not on this list simply because he is fast. The 22-year-old Brisbane sprinter has become one of Australia’s breakout sporting names after smashing the national 100m record with a 9.85-second run in 2026 and winning Commonwealth Games silver. His rise has given Queensland a genuinely young star with national recognition, major-event appeal and plenty of runway ahead. Kennedy brings a different kind of social currency to the list: he is current, instantly newsworthy and representative of a generation whose sporting success increasingly crosses into fashion, sponsorships, red carpets and major public events.

Annie Halloran

The 28-year-old Queensland creator has built a growing profile around fashion, beauty, food and things to do, with her upbeat content increasingly crossing into brand launches and events.

Adam Danielli & La’Ace de Vries

Brisbane architect Adam Danielli and model La’Ace de Vries are familiar faces on the city’s event circuit, regularly stepping out together at premieres and major launches.

Jon Wyeth

The 25-year-old Brisbane travel and lifestyle creator has built his audience by exploring everything from local restaurants and hidden gems to some of Australia’s strangest attractions.

Rachel Johnston

The Brisbane designer behind EEYO is gaining national attention for her colourful “dopamine wear”, with viral designs and millions of views helping put the emerging Queensland label on the map.

Nathan Lust

The 25-year-old Gold Coast actor, director and creator has amassed millions of followers through comedy, dance and visual-effects content, while becoming a regular at Queensland premieres and entertainment events.

Katrina West

The Brisbane actor, creator and founder of Hot Gal Walk Book Club has built a profile spanning film, musical theatre, fashion and beauty while creating a growing social community for young women across the city.

The Hembrow Sisters

The Gold Coast’s Hembrow sisters have become one of Queensland’s most recognisable modern social families, building enormous audiences and businesses across fitness, fashion, beauty and lifestyle.

Tess Crosley

The 30-year-old Brisbane social-media personality became a national talking point after being drawn into the breakdown of Lachie and Jules Neale’s marriage, with Jules publicly alleging a months-long relationship between Crosley and the Lions star and Crosley since giving her own account of the scandal.

Melina Vidler

The Brisbane-born, Queensland-based actor won a Logie for her breakout role as Shay Turner in 800 Words and has continued building a career across Australian screen productions.

Giorgina Venzin

The Brisbane hospitality entrepreneur and Venzin Group figure has spent years creating restaurants, cafés and experiences that have helped shape where the city eats and socialises.

Ian Zaro

The Queensland actor and sketch comedian has built a huge digital audience alongside screen credits spanning comedy, film and television, while remaining a familiar face at local entertainment events.

Phoebe Ogilvie

The next generation of Brisbane’s Ogilvie fashion family is stepping further into the spotlight alongside mother Samantha, including appearing together in Brisbane Fashion Festival’s 2026 program on fashion legacy and family business.

Adam Sullivan

The Queensland fitness entrepreneur is behind Evidence Based Training, building a major online coaching business and substantial audience around personalised training and nutrition.

Nina Korbe

The award-winning First Nations soprano is one of Queensland’s standout young classical performers, with major work across Opera Queensland, Queensland Symphony Orchestra and national productions.

Jem Cassar-Daley

The Brisbane singer-songwriter cemented her place among Queensland’s leading young musicians in 2026, winning both Song of the Year and the Pop Award at the Queensland Music Awards for Kiss Me Like You’re Leaving.

Rachael Evren

The Brisbane digital creator has built a sizeable entertainment platform around movies and pop culture and was nominated for Entertainment Creator of the Year at the 2025 TikTok Awards.

Grace Wriggles

The Queensland-based actor and filmmaker is a 2026 AACTA Best Short Film nominee for Red River Cowboy, which she wrote, directed, produced and starred in after being named the Gold Coast Film Festival’s Emerging Filmmaker in 2025.

Ebony Heinemann

The Brisbane creator behind Wandering Elsewhere has built her digital profile around food, travel and experiences across Queensland and beyond.

Tom “Donny” Watkin

The Star 106.3 breakfast host is one of Townsville’s most recognisable young radio personalities, known for community events, charity stunts and plenty of on-air mischief with co-host Adam Davison.

Chloe Fisher

The Gold Coast-based businesswoman, author and podcaster co-hosts Darling, Shine! with Ellidy Pullin and has built ventures including Hard Fizz while also advocating around fertility and pregnancy loss.

Jaz Hand

The Gold Coast entrepreneur founded jewellery label Jaz Hand Made in 2020 after first building a following through makeup, beauty and fashion content.

Jacqui Toumbas

The Brisbane-born nutritionist, former café owner and creator now hosts international retreats and sold-out Dinner with Strangers events built around food, culture and connection.

Bec Hardgrave

The Brisbane food-and-fitness creator has Cert III and IV personal training qualifications and has built a sizeable audience around approachable recipes, training and her 80/20 approach to nutrition.

Cedric Dubler

The 31-year-old Brisbane-born decathlete is a two-time Olympian and dual Commonwealth Games bronze medallist, forever remembered for the Tokyo moment that inspired the phrase “Doing a Dubler”.

Bella Keegan

A young Brisbane social-scene regular known for bringing plenty of style and personality to events, with her warm presence making her a familiar and much-liked face on the city’s guest-list circuit.

Eva Ilov

The 21-year-old Brisbane singer-songwriter, guitarist and emerging DJ studied music at QUT and has been building her live profile across the city after appearing on Australian Idol.

Sarah Ellis

The 21-year-old Brisbane founder of WE MET AT A BAR is building a Gen Z social brand designed to get young people off dating apps and connecting face-to-face.

Riley Hemson

The Gold Coast-based model, creator and entrepreneur is the founder of fashion label REMMIE, turning her large digital audience into a growing fashion business.

Joash Teo

The Singapore-born, Brisbane-based designer behind JOTÉO began tailoring professionally as a teenager and has built a couture career spanning fashion, red carpets and performance design.

Taylor Brunton

The Townsville fitness and wellness coach, who is engaged to Cowboys player Coen Hess, runs dress-hire business Book Her Look and is developing Forma Fitness in Idalia.

Alexandra Murray — Theatrically Alex

The Queensland theatre creator behind Theatrically Alex has turned her passion for opening nights into a growing arts platform and recently joined Wynnum Fringe to drive its social-media presence.

Jaz Stewart

The Gold Coast law graduate turned fashion entrepreneur is the founder of TENN Designer Hire, growing the luxury-rental business around a more accessible and sustainable approach to event dressing.

D’Arcy Gannon & Josh Clutterbuck — Bloody Brilliant Beers

The Brisbane mates have spent more than six years building Bloody Brilliant Beers from a Facebook group into a cult podcast recorded at the Caxton Hotel, building a loyal community around beer, pubs and plenty of banter.

Finn Little

The 19-year-old Brisbane actor, who still calls the city home, went from Storm Boy and working opposite Angelina Jolie to playing Carter in Yellowstone, a role he now reprises in the 2026 spin-off Dutton Ranch.

Shayna Jack

The 27-year-old Brisbane Olympic champion officially retired from competitive swimming after the 2026 Commonwealth Games and has already stepped into fashion through her Kidman collaboration and Brisbane Fashion Festival runway appearance.

Gout Gout

The 18-year-old Queensland sprint sensation became Australia’s fastest-ever 200m runner in 2026, clocking a remarkable 19.67 seconds at the national championships.

Charli Burrowes

The Brisbane artist, writer and filmmaker has spent more than a decade creating across film, photography, live performance and advertising, working with international brands including Prada, Hermès and Universal Music.

Molly Donahoe

The Sunshine Coast-based digital creative is Digital Content Lead at the Brisbane Lions and has helped drive major growth across the club’s video and social platforms.

Tim Bates

The Brisbane café owner and former Million Dollar Island contestant has been reported as one of the grooms filming the upcoming 2027 season of Married At First Sight.

Meg Hansen

The Queensland creator hosts weekly podcast Meg It Make Sense, mixing dating, friendships, internet culture and chaotic twenty-something life with humour and plenty of oversharing.