Today I wanted to write a little bit about a recent obsession (for want of a better word). I might be a little late to the party, but I finally get it. I finally understand, and I fully empathize with people’s fixation to YouTube.
I did mention last week that I was on a bit of a YouTube binge and although I did exaggerate slightly about the hours I put in, but I do feel that this week I have probably surpassed that particular time of 303,375 hours. A lot of the stuff I have watched has been total crap.
There was crap that you couldn’t help but watch, e.g. food challenges – Have you ever watched someone eat 15 Happy Meals in under 5 minutes? What about a video of someone trying to eat 20,000 KCAL a day… For the hell of it. Ever see three middle aged men trying to eat 300 chicken nuggets? I have. I’ve seen it.
There’s crap that made me really angry – FreeLee the Banana girl and her boyfriend, they’re pretty much orthorexic and both force Vegan views down the throat of all viewers, insisting fat people are lazy and should be shamed into changing their lifestyle. I found the amount of followers she has to be pretty disturbing given the message she’s promoting. I’m all for health and fitness, but her personality reeks of a deceiving, negative manner.
There was also truly great crap, like the Japanese channel called “Cooking With Dog” – BUT WAIT! No dogs have been harmed, cooked, or eaten! Basically, it’s an adorable dog called Francis, sitting beside its owner who is simply labelled as ‘Chef’. Despite not actually doing anything, Francis the Dog and his channel has 996,080 subscribers and an astonishing 119,995,509 views. The food is Japanese, but simple, easy and looks insanely tasty. There’s something so strangely calming about the way the narrator says “Welcome toooo cooooking with doug” in an happy Asian accent.
In the past, I always used YouTube for tutorials, I do have some favourites, but I want to acknowledge ‘Yoga with Adrian’. She’s a girl from Texas, whom I think is pretty inspiring. I’ve done the intense workouts as per instructed by several fitness nuts, but I hate these, despite feeling pretty good afterwards. Adrian encourages viewers to fully enjoy the practice, no matter what your current fitness level. Her mantra is ‘find what feels good’, there is never any pressure to keep up with her, or make your workout super intense. The great news is, however, about an hour after finishing a routine with her, you feel like you just ran a couple of miles. I followed her “30 Days of Yoga” challenge, which was a mixture of what I would call hard days and easy days. You don’t feel coerced into working out every day, because she welcomes you back so politely. I never felt ashamed for having two bottles of wine at the weekend and skipping the tutorial for a few days. She has a beautiful voice and persona, a naturally engaging human being; I sincerely look forward to discovering her videos.
The next little YouTube niche I wanted to mention gets a bit complicated, feel free to skip reading. You will probably understand best if you do watch these videos, but I will attempt to explain to those of you who aren’t familiar with what I would call professional YouTubers.
I’m going to keep this as brief as possible. I’ll start with, probably the most familiar to the general public; Pixiwoo – Two sisters, both make-up artists, have made thousands of pounds with their tutorials, which lead to thousands more when they launched their own make-up product range (which I use and are amazing). They are close friends with (I’m personally, not a big fan of) Tanya Burr – Also a make-up artists who has her own videos, but also happens to be engaged to Pixiwoos’ brother, Sam Chapman.
Sam and Tanya are friends with a number of other YouTubers, one of my favourites being Zoella, or Zoe Sugg. She does a bit of everything, blogging, vlogging, clothing and make-up hauls etc. I love pretty much all of her content. Through the popularity of her videos, she has one published bestselling book and has a second on the way which I am sure will do equally well. Last year she was a contestant on Comic Relief ‘s The Great British Bake Off on BBC One alongside Jonathan Ross, Alexa Chung, David Mitchell and Abbey Clancy to name a few. I think this emphasises her current celebrity status and the power of the internet.
Similarly, with two books off the back of his own YouTube channel, is her boyfriend Alfie Deyes, aka Pointless Blog. He recently did a tour of America, and is pretty much the Harry Styles of blogging. I do see why people like him, but he does rant a bit, and I find myself just following him because there’s potential to see more of what Zoe is up to… They are a great couple, and just to put into perspective how famous they are becoming – they are both currently being made into wax figures in Madame Tussaud’s.
Still with me? Good. So Zoella’s brother, Joe, is also a YouTuber with his own massive following. His videos are hilarious, and he has a similar branch of complicated YouTube friendships which (you’ll be glad to read) I don’t want to get into because I’m not that familiar with. I’ve seen some featured in videos but have yet to check out their personal content. These include – Tyler Oakley (slowly finding out he is bigger than I thought), Caspar Lee (who lives with Joe), Oli White, Louise aka sprinkleofglitter (also happens to be Zoe’s best friend) and American, Miranda Sings aka Colleen Ballinger aka PsychoSoprano who is hilarious.
The YouTube celebrity phenomenon is worldwide, and I have a few to mention from across the pond. Bunny aka, grav3yardgirl, is probably my most surprising favourite. She’s the kind of person in school who is nothing but a total weirdo -the one in school with Christmas decorations in her hair even though it’s August. Despite this, out of all the channels I’ve subscribed to, I feel like she is my friend. No, we have never spoken or communicated in any way, but she has a endearing quality that is so unique I can’t help but adore her. I’ll put it out there, shes really damn ugly in all of her photos, but as you get to know her, you stop seeing this and get to appreciate how little looks matter. She admits she has “pony face” and doesn’t give much care to physical appearance, but she is enthusiastic and positive about everything, and I love her. She also has a range of “Swamp Family” merch which I am sure she has made a tidy profit on.
I also want to mention Jenna Marbles. Her videos are hilarious, but her content is exclusively aimed at girls her age. She has been around a long time, her videos are consistent, relatable and always entertaining. She does swear an awful lot. Not that I’m offended by it, but it stands out starkly, especially after watching tons of Zoella’s content.
Basically, they all know each other and form this enormous ball of talent and humour. I’m ashamed to say there was a period where I was intensely jealous of these people, to the point of being sad. They have made collective millions just by electronically documenting their lives and opinions. I could do that. I should do that. Why aren’t I doing that? However, the more I thought about it and the more I watched, I came to realise the immense effort that goes into these videos, not to mention the confidence you have to have. Being a professional YouTuber and doing it well is a full time job. I also was extremely relieved when I realized 10-20 minutes of someone’s day in a video DOES NOT capture their lives. The same way Instagram, Facebook and ALL other social media outlets only shows what a person has chosen to provide. Highlights. Although, what would be the point in blogging about going to Tesco and having an argument beside the pasta with your boyfriend about what’s for dinner.
YouTube highlights how false people are. There are videos on how to take and edit a selfie. How to wash your face. Do your hair. What to eat, and countless weight-loss and dieting content. I try to stay away from this but every so often I find myself clicking something like ‘How I Lost 10 lbs in 3 Days’ or one of FreeLee’s unethical videos on the vegan lifestyle. ‘Thinspiration’ was extremely detrimental to my teenage mental health, and it breaks my heart to realise that someone like my sisters might be influenced by it.
If you do stay away from this content, you are in for hours of viewing. I advise you don’t get too caught up in the supposed reality of it all, there’s pretty motivational videos from people like Kandee Johnson, who emphasizes the importance positive thinking with regards to what you have achieved in life. Not all of it will be deemed fun; there will be times when you’re half way through a video and you say “…This is real crap” but believe me, there are plenty more to choose from on the right hand side.
mollysbook 