Stranger from heartwarming viral TikTok encouraging woman to be confident identified

‘This story is everything,’ one viewer wrote

(TikTok / @val_torrico)

People are praising a woman who encouraged another woman to confidently embrace their insecurities while taking photos in New York City.

On Monday, Val Torrico, who goes by the username @val_torrico on TikTok, uploaded a video to the app in which she recalled her encounter with the stranger.

In the video, Torrico explained how she had been posing for photos in a dress and a jacket, despite it being a very hot day, because she is “very insecure about [her] upper arms” and doesn’t like them because they are “big,” when the woman came up to her and encouraged her to take off her jacket.

“I was taking photos and this beautiful goddess of a woman comes up to me and she’s like: ‘Take off your jacket,’” Torrico recalled, adding that, at the time, she told the woman that she didn’t want to remove her jacket. “And she goes: ‘I know you’re not letting an insecurity take away an amazing photo opportunity that you could have.’”

Torrico then shared the results of her photo shoot, as well as the moment when the woman could be seen encouraging her to be confident, which she also caught on camera.

“She changed my life, this woman, whoever you are, I love you,” Torrico said, before showing photos from the outing, which also see the stranger helping her come up with poses. “Look at my face. I was like: ‘Is this happening right now? Do I have my jacket off, am I confident?’”

While comparing the before photos and the ones taken after the confidence boost, Torrico added: “Look at the before photos, I mean it’s still good, but like, the after!”

“Oh my god. Whoever you are, I love you,” she concluded.

The TikTok, which has been viewed more than 947,000 times, was met with an outpouring of support, with many praising Torrico’s confidence and the results of the photo shoot, while others shared their desire to identify and thank the stranger.

“A queen supporting a queen,” one person commented, while another said: “Yes queen! You did that! Shout out to the queen who helped hype you up.”

The video then circulated on Twitter, where it eventually led to the identification of the stranger, a woman named Kay.

In response to a tweet sharing the video and asking for help identifying her, Kay wrote: “Oh hey, that’s me. Wow, wasn’t expecting this to happen, lol…But thank you to each and everyone of you that left sweet words on my socials. We all need a boost of confidence every now and then. [Shout out] to Val tho, she killed it!”

After the internet helped identify Kay, a cannabis chef, Torrico again expressed her gratitude, writing in the comments under her viral TikTok: “Thank you TikTok for finding the queen! @mskayhud thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping me embrace myself! You are such an inspiration.”