Nanoparticles that possess unique structures and properties are highly desired in the production of multifunctional materials because of their combinational performance. In this study, a facile and effective fabricating strategy is developed to controllably prepare fluorescent hollow mesoporous silica nanorods via the cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and tetraphenylethene (TPE) luminogen-functionalized gemini surfactant (C-TPE-C-6-C-TPE) guided dual-templating approach. Because of its unique chemical structure, water solubility, surface activity, and fluorescent properties, the designed C-TPE-C-6-C-TPE will not only provide an anchored fluorophore for silica nanoparticles but also serve as an intimate partner of CTAB to regulate their construction in the structure-directing process. By properly tuning the molar ratio of CTAB/C-TPE-C-6-C-TPE, the shape controlled aggregation-induced emission hollow mesoporous silica nanoparticles (AIE-MSNs) can be prepared directly, producing two kinds of silica nanorods (AIE-MSNs-15 and A.T.E-MSNs-7). In particular, the incorporated bulky TPE luminogens will not only endow AIE-MSNs-7 with enhanced fluorescence intensity (2.3-fold) after the removal of CTAB but also bring about high accessible surface area (606.6 m(2)/g) and larger pore size (3.2 nm) and pore volume (0.634 cm(3)/g) for effective loading and sustained release of the hydrophobic anticancer drug camptothecin. C-TPE-C-6-C-TPE enriches the family of gemini surfactants and provides important insights into the convenient fabrication of advanced fluorescent mesoporous materials.