Lynja facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lynja
Lynja's YouTube icon
Personal information
Born	Lynn T. Yamada (1956-07-31)July 31, 1956 New York City, U.S.
Died	January 1, 2024(2024-01-01) (aged 67) Red Bank, New Jersey, U.S.
Other names	Lynn Yamada Davis
Occupations	Cook, engineer
Children	4, including Sean
YouTube information
Channel	Cooking With Lynja
Genres	Comedy entertainment vlogs reaction
Subscribers	10.1 million
Total views	4.04 billion
Associated acts	Nick DiGiovanni
Creator Awards
Last updated: January 15, 2024

Lynn Yamada Davis (July 31, 1956 – January 1, 2024), known online as Lynja, was a popular American chef. She became famous for her fun cooking videos on TikTok and YouTube Shorts. Her channel, "Cooking with Lynja," was loved for its fast-paced editing and funny references to internet memes. By early 2024, she had over 10 million subscribers on YouTube and 20 million followers on TikTok!

Lynja earned degrees from the MIT and Columbia Business School. She worked as an engineer for 29 years. Her interest in making videos grew in 2020, when she was 63 years old. After her videos became very popular, she won three Streamy Awards.

Early Life and Career

Lynn T. Yamada was born in New York City on July 31, 1956. Her parents were Mabel Fujisake and Tadao Yamada. She was a third-generation Japanese-American and grew up in Fort Lee, New Jersey.

She went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1977, she earned a degree in civil engineering. While at MIT, she was in charge of The Tech student newspaper. After graduating, she worked for the government. Her job was to make sure federal buildings were easy for everyone to access. She later earned more degrees in public health and business from Columbia Business School.

Davis worked at AT&T Labs for 29 years. She was a project manager and systems engineer there.

TikTok and YouTube Videos

Lynja started making videos for TikTok in 2020, when she was 63. The idea came from her youngest son, Tim Davis. He was practicing his video editing skills during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in March 2020. Tim helped film and edit all of her "Cooking with Lynja" videos since 2020.

The videos were praised for their simple recipes and clever editing. They also included references to popular internet memes, like the Grimace Shake trend. In 2021, "Cooking with Lynja" won "Best Editing" at the 11th Streamy Awards. The next year, in 2022, it won "Best Food" and "Best Editing" at the 12th Streamy Awards. In 2022, Lynja also signed with WME. She was featured on Forbes magazine's list of Top 50 creators.

She often worked with fellow chef Nick DiGiovanni. In November 2021, they broke a Guinness World Record. They made the largest cake pop ever, which weighed about 97 pounds. She broke several other records with DiGiovanni. These included the world's largest chicken nugget, weighing over 20 kilograms. They also made the world's largest sushi roll, which was 2.15 meters wide. In 2023, Forbes named her to their "50 Over 50" list. Her fans are playfully called "Lynja-turtles," a fun twist on Ninja Turtles.

Illness and Passing

In 2019, Lynja was diagnosed with throat cancer. This caused her voice to change. She joked that her new voice sounded like Marge Simpson's. In 2021, she shared that she was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. After finishing her cancer treatment, she made a video called "Cookies for Cancer." In it, she baked cookies to celebrate.

The cancer returned in 2023. Lynja passed away from complications of the disease on January 1, 2024, at age 67. She died at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, New Jersey. A private funeral was held on January 9 for her close friends and family. Her son announced her passing on social media a few days later, sharing photos and memories. Nick DiGiovanni also made a farewell video, remembering his favorite moments with Lynja. Other cooking YouTubers also shared tributes to her.

Personal Life

Davis lived in Holmdel Township, New Jersey. She was married to Hank Steinberg and they had two daughters. After their divorce, she married Keith Davis. With Keith, she had two sons. One son is professional soccer player Sean Davis. Her other son, Tim Davis, was the editor for "Cooking with Lynja."

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Lynja para niños