Has the Emma Chamberlain & Ethan Dolan Lore Finally Dropped?!

Our 16-year-old selves are screaming!!!
Published January 8, 2025

(Image: YouTube/James Charles)

*ATTENTION* Our favourite relatable YouTuber-turned-fashion aficionado, Emma Chamberlain just dropped some serious tea on her podcast.

Emma’s love life has long been subject to fan speculation and one can of worms in particular—regarding fellow YouTuber and former “friend” of hers, Ethan Dolan—has well and truly been re-opened. 

She definitely didn’t sugarcoat the title of the latest episode of Anything Goes with Emma Chamberlain, naming it “How My First Boyfriend Broke Me Mentally and Emotionally.” 

In the ep, Emma walks us through her first romantic relationship—a nine-month emotional mind f*ck full of games and heartache. While she kept her ex’s identity hidden throughout the episode, fans are guessing based on the timeline (and just sheer hope, too) that the man she’s referring too could be Ethan.

Scroll on for all the goss!

What *Exactly* Did Emma say?

In her podcast episode, Emma shared that her first relationship started about six years ago when she was 17—a time when she felt self-conscious about her personality and her level of femininity compared to other girls her age.

Fighting feelings of insecurity about her body, her first relationship felt like a leap in the right direction. She explained her then-boyfriend acted as the perfect external confirmation that she was attractive, desirable and worthy of being loved by a man—a trap many of us have fallen for before, so this makes TOTAL sense.  

Unfortunately, after approximately nine months of dating, she and the unnamed ex broke broke up. “That relationship felt like a lifetime to me,” she explains in her podcast. “I thought they were my soulmate and I’d never feel that same way again.”

But the pain didn’t end there—because three months later, Emma felt overcome by her feelings and tried to rekindle things with her ex despite him alleging putting forward some firm new rules: hookups are fine, but commitment is a big no-no. He also allegedly confirmed exclusivity with her, only to ghost her the following day. Yikes.

After she swore off him and then grappled with whether or not to reply to a “hey” text he sent out of the blue, Emma says she hit a wall—no, seriously… she literally threw her phone at a wall and shattered it. 

“I’m so grateful I had that meltdown,” she admitted on the podcast. That was her moment of realisation that she had neglected to see the detrimental effects their toxic relationship was having on her mental health and finally ended their dynamic for good. Hallelujah!

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Did Emma Chamberlain & Ethan Dolan Date?

Ethan and Emma sparked dating rumours back in 2018 when they were both part of the YouTube group The Sister Squad, along with Ethan’s brother Grayson, and beauty YouTuber James Charles.

Fans took note of their close relationship and long speculated they were more than friends.

Ethan also defended Emma on X (formerly Twitter) when a hater commented on her having “crusty lips,” shooting back, “Her lips deffffinitely aren’t crusty.”

The sister squad disbanded in 2019, which some fans speculated was due to a split between Ethan and Emma.

However, neither party ever officially confirmed that they were an item and it is not explicitly clear whether or not Emma’s recent podcast episode is, in fact, about Ethan. 

the sister squad including emma chamberlain and ethan dolan, james charles and grayson dolan
The sister squad (Image: YouTube/Emma Chamberlain)

Where Is Ethan Dolan Now?

The Dolan Twins have been MIA from the YouTube scene for over four years now, and both Ethan and Grayson have stepped out of the spotlight into a more simple lifestyle right here in Sydney, Australia. We presume this move was made to escape the drama and speculation around their previously very public lives. 

Check back here for updates! 

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Bailey Finn
Bailey Finn is a Staff Writer at Cosmopolitan Australia. She has been passionate about the creative industries from an early age and her experience spans television, styling, writing, and costume design. When unplugged, she often finds herself surrounded by classic artwork, dabbling in modern photography, or with a route set to the nearest beach.
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