The Russian‑language social network VKontakte (VK) hosts a vibrant ecosystem of user‑generated content, where individual accounts can evolve into influential cultural nodes. This paper presents an in‑depth case study of the account , a semi‑anonymous persona that rose to prominence between 2021‑2024 through a blend of visual aesthetics, interactive storytelling, and community‑building practices. Using a mixed‑methods approach—(1) quantitative network analysis of the account’s follower graph, (2) qualitative content analysis of 1 200 posts and comments, and (3) semi‑structured interviews with 18 active community members—we map the emergence, diffusion, and impact of vk jaybbgirl within the broader VK environment. Findings reveal that the account’s success hinged on three interlocking mechanisms: (a) a distinctive “glitch‑art” visual style that generated high visual salience, (b) a participatory narrative loop that invited user‑generated extensions, and (c) strategic cross‑platform promotion on Telegram and TikTok. The study contributes to scholarship on digital identity formation, influencer economies in non‑Western platforms, and the role of aesthetic subcultures in shaping online social structures.

The vk jaybbgirl node exhibited eigenvector centrality of 0.97, indicating it is the primary hub linking disparate modules.

Visual aesthetics function as a primary driver of attention in image‑centric social media (Huang, 2019). “Glitch‑art,” a style that deliberately distorts digital artifacts, has been linked to a sense of digital nostalgia and post‑modern authenticity (Rogers, 2021). Scholars argue that such aesthetics can serve as “visual hashtags,” facilitating rapid diffusion across platform borders (Kumar & Lee, 2020).

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