The Old Gays Discuss Social Media Fame and Winning the Hearts of Millions

The Golden Girls will forever be legends, but we now have four new elders to fall in love with.

Known by their social media handle, “The Old Gays,” Robert Reeves (79), Bill Lyons (78), and Michael “Mick” Peterson (67) share a house in Cathedral City, California, while Jessay Martin (69) resides across the street. The four have created a chosen family for themselves in this sunny oasis near Palm Springs where they fully support one another and share their lives with millions of followers on TikTok. 

“We aren’t an act,” Peterson says. “We’re just best friends who spend a lot of time together and enjoy making videos.”

Reeves first met Lyons in the 1980s when they were both living in San Francisco. They independently moved to the desert and connected again in 2005. Peterson came into the picture in 2013 after answering a Craigslist ad saying Reeves had a room available to rent in his house, and Martin moved to the neighborhood shortly after. 

The four have been fast friends ever since.

It wasn’t until 2018 when the world began to know who they were. The group connected with a younger neighbor named Ryan Yezak, who now serves as their producer and manager. He began creating videos of the guys for Grindr’s YouTube channel, often in the form of hilarious roundtables where they dissected younger queer terms like “thirsty” and RuPaul’s Drag Race viewing. 

After becoming an immediate hit, Yezak helped set them up on other social media platforms, and the Old Gays were born.

“I didn’t really ask them to go on social media,” he explains. “It just happened because they were so curious about it. I started recording them and throwing up footage, like a behind-the-scenes look at their lives, and they went viral.”

The Old Gays currently have over 9 million followers on TikTok, their account full of viral dances, skits, costume changes, and lip syncs. However, they also reflect and share stories about coming out, their lives as younger men, dating at an older age, and frank discussions about growing older.

Of course, internet fame was not a milestone any of the guys anticipated for their careers.

“I think we are all still amazed and baffled, but at the same time, we like it,” Reeves says. “We’re excited about it, and we appreciate being in a position of offering our sage advice and variances to others. 

“I’m still overwhelmed by the whole thing, but the fact that we’re making so many people happy is just a very rewarding feeling,” Lyons adds. 

Whether they’re dancing to Lizzo’s “About Damn Time” or collaborating with high-profile celebrities like Paula Abdul, Lance Bass, or Drew Barrymore, the Old Gays are showing their fans what it means to age gracefully in their own way. As influencers, one of the most frequent comments they receive is, ‘I didn’t think old gays existed.’

“I hope audiences take away from our content that there is life after 60,” Reeves says. “Even though we all have health issues, we still find lots of humor in life, and we enjoy ourselves. I think it’s important to show that to younger people. Be like, hey, there’s not a door that’s going to shut.”

They also acknowledge that ageism is still very much prevalent today, and they believe their videos are helping to bridge the disconnect between older and younger generations. 

“I think that’s one of the biggest things that’s come out of this,” Lyons says. “Especially when we found out that our main demographic is women between the ages of 20 to 30, that was absolutely amazing to me. A lot of the comments we receive say they aspire to be like us when they get to our age.”

Martin adds, “It’s interesting how many people think we’re dead. We’re definitely not dead.”

“I think a big part of that has to do with the AIDS epidemic that wiped out so many of our generation,” Reeves concludes. “There’s so few of us carrying on.”

When it comes to making videos, the four agree that it can be difficult keeping up with the latest trends, but they are always up for a challenge. 

“Ryan pretty much helps us stay on top of trends,” Reeves says.

“No, Ryan keeps us, not helps us,” Martin jokes. 

While dances require a lot of time and rehearsals, the interviews with Yezak are done in one take.

“I would say that we don’t do any fortuitous trending,” Peterson laughs. “I mean, when it comes to taking our clothes off and showing our tits, no problem. There are some trends that I wouldn’t want to be a part of, but the ones we are inspired by, we like to put our own spin on them.”

Their most popular and most viewed videos have to do with their pasts about when they were young.

“I think some people don’t realize that we were once young,” Martin explains. “When I was young, I thought my parents were always old, so now they’re getting to see us. I’ve also been learning about myself going back through history. Getting from Tennessee to where I am now, that story has been wonderful. I learned for the first time this year to love my father. He’s been dead since 1971, but I was angry with him. We did this Father’s Day thing, and it opened me up. Like, why am I still this angry? He’s dead, so I’m wasting that energy.”

Reeves, Lyons, and Peterson have also had similar experiences and agree that achieving viral fame has also been therapeutic in ways.

“Part of this journey has been about trying to reveal layers and layers about themselves in incremental ways,” Yezak says. “For the audiences to get to know the guys through TikTok trends, photographs, and pieces of information. They recently received a comment that said, ‘Wow, living life without worrying about who doesn’t like it.’ I love that sort of fearless feedback because I think that really encompasses who they are and that strikes something with their following. They’re inspiring others to be as fearless as they are. We are still exploring and constantly figuring out what we want to share next and how we want to share it based on whatever trends are happening or creative ideas.”

The Old Gays also have some solid advice to offer that should be followed by everyone. As they say, it’s always best to listen to your elders. 

“It’s going to get better, and it’s going to get worse, but most importantly, live in the present. Learn to live for now because you’re not even promised tomorrow.

“Accept self-criticism graciously because when people are being critical of you in some respect, it may not be to tear you down, but rather to help make you better. Therefore, listen to what others say.

“Give criticism in a gentle way. Talk to, not talk at. 

“Whatever you do, make sure you have a passion for it. If you have a passion for something, you’re going to be successful.”

Additionally, the group has also been highlighting major issues that LGBTQ elders are facing today, one of them being a lack of LGBTQ-owned or LGBTQ-catered nursing home facilities.

Peterson can speak from experience about that. 

“I spent 100 days in 2019 in a nursing home recovering from a very serious fall,” he says. “It was pretty scary. It’s a warehouse kind of thing, and it’s also attrition. You were being basically warehoused until you died, and that’s a sad thing. I never gave up hope in there. I trusted in fate that I would get out of there, but from what I’ve seen, it’s not a place where I really want to go back to.”

In terms of the future, there is talk of a potential docuseries about the Old Gays, but overall, Reeves, Lyons, Peterson, and Martin hope to continue having fun while also being positive role models and educating others. 

“We’ve all led some very interesting lives,” Reeves says. “Through our lives, we’ve learned a lot of good and bad, and there’s a lot we can pass on in a 15-to-30 second TikTok video. We want to get to a point where we can dig deeper, and I think that is our primary goal moving forward.” 

“We hope to continue to peel back the layers of these guys because there’s so much more about their lives we want to dive into, and we want to do it in the most compelling way,” Yezak adds.

Stay up-to-date and connect with the foursome by following them on Instagram @theoldgays and TikTok @oldgays.