But her love of all things Korean eventually led her into the world of ulzzang (“best face” in Korean) make-up and, of course, all things K-pop.

“Even though I grew up in Australia, I was really into K-pop and Asian make-up culture. Back then, there wasn’t a lot of content on that,” she tells the Post, looking back on the times when she would film ulzzang beauty tutorials and make her own K-pop music videos using nothing but a green screen.

But what started as a fun side project turned into a serious passion for music. “It’s all coming full circle now,” she says with a laugh.

Growing up, the aspiring singer recalls spending her childhood dancing to Spice Girls songs and singing in the shower.

“I’ve always loved performing,” she says. “There’s just something about being on stage that is truly magical. It got to a point in my YouTube career where I thought, ‘I’ve achieved a lot and it’s time for me to get out there.’”

Opportunity knocked when she was offered a record deal by Chinese music label Big Box Music – and she never looked back.

“It was such a big project. I knew nothing about music and people didn’t know who I was, so this was a safe space for me to test the waters in a market where YouTube doesn’t exist.”

Under Big Box, Wengie made her foray into the Chinese music scene with her first release Baby Believe Me, which peaked at No 6 on the Chinese charts. She then went on to release a string of earworms on her own YouTube channels such Oh I Do and Cake, but she has recently been aiming higher with the help of a few special guests.

Currently represented globally by management firm Rare Global, creative house Asian Agent and talent agency UTA, Wengie has been working with a roster of renowned Asian artists as part of a large-scale collaboration project.

After launching the project last year, her first collaboration was Mr. Nice Guy with Filipino singer-songwriter Inigo Pascual, which hit No 1 in the Philippines.

Her biggest collaboration yet came in October when she teamed up with Minnie from K-pop girl group (G)I-dle on the Korean-language single Empire, which hit No 22 on the Billboard world digital song sales chart.

“It was a dream come true. I wanted to be involved in the K-pop scene, but I never knew it would happen this way,” she says.

She confesses that she had been a fan of (G)I-dle since they made their debut.

“(G)I-dle are a breath of fresh air in the industry. I love that their sound is so different and they try to incorporate other cultures in their tracks.

“I’m happy to see K-pop being recognised in the US with acts like BTS and Blackpink leading the charge. Every little step is progress and I personally just want to add to the conversation.”

When it comes to music, Wengie has never been afraid to fly her Asian flag loud and proud – hence her collaborations with artists from around the region.

“For me, every project needs to have a purpose,” she says. “My goal is to share Asian music globally, and music is a great way to communicate culture in a truly authentic way.”

Her latest collaboration sees her joining forces with Chinese personalities Xiao Pan Pan and Xiao Feng Feng for a remixed version of Learn To Meow, a viral hit on Douyin (the Chinese version of TikTok).

Wengie’s remix – released on May 1 – adds an EDM twist to the cutesy original to give it broader appeal.

“It’s such a catchy song that I feel like it will transcend language. Hopefully the world will like it, and if they don’t, I’m going to convince them.”

Millions of Douyin users have already taken part in the “Learn to Meow” challenge – where people upload videos of themselves making cat faces to the song – and Wengie is continuing the challenge for people on TikTok, on which she has more than 5 million followers.

She encourages fans to come up with their own spin on the challenge.

“Creativity is key,” she says. “What I like about TikTok is its culture of humour. It’s about not taking yourself seriously and I think that’s how you make good content on TikTok.”

Wengie realises the importance of the Gen Z-dominated video app in the current entertainment landscape.

“TikTok has become such an integral part of music culture, and I feel that overall it’s a great platform for artists.”

Wengie’s history with TikTok dates back to the era of Musical.ly. She was one of the first Chinese content creators on the now-defunct lip-synching platform which was eventually merged into TikTok.

“The first year of my music career was more a journey of self-discovery,” she says. “But now it’s about the freedom of being in the moment and exploring where this goes. I’m learning how to progress as an artist and convey my creativity. And it’s getting better every year.”