Yes Mum, a YouTuber IS a Real Job

I decided to write this piece to accompany ‘Sometimes it’s ok to Binge’ because so many adults in my world had no idea what I was talking about whenever I brought up ‘YouTubers,’ ‘Tyler Oakley,’ or basically anything or anyone related to YouTube itself. I got the same blank stare, confused look, or worse, a scornful response. So, everyone, buckle down and listen up, because I’m about to teach you a thing or two about YouTube, and hopefully bridge the generation gap on this whole issue.

In 2005, YouTube was born, and since then a whole new kind of celebrity has come about: ‘YouTubers,’ or online personalities. YouTubers, then, are people who create videos and post them onto the internet. Believe it or not, the biggest YouTuber in the world, Felix Kjellberg (a.k.a. Pewdiepie) uploads videos of himself gaming, and then people like me watch those videos, endlessly, not because of the game itself, but because of the hilarious running commentary that accompanies his gaming. And he makes millions doing this (and gives a lot to charity). If you’re still not getting it, think of it like Gogglebox: people are watching people watching TV, but for us, we’re watching YouTubers playing games. But it’s not always games we’re watching, it could be makeup tutorials or videos of a person’s daily life (also known as vlogs), or it could even be something like ‘unboxing,’ which is the simple act of filming yourself opening a box and then vlogging about the product inside. And yes, for some people this is REALLY interesting (not for me though). The bottom line for me is, and I’m guessing other people like me, is that I’m looking for funny, interesting content on the internet, and I’m finding it with YouTubers.

It’s fair to say that becoming a YouTuber has a huge allure, because if a YouTuber’s cards are played right, they can rack up millions of subscribers and become known all over the world. This path to fame was once considered atypical and unlikely, but nowadays, thousands are creating content online, including half my class (!) who are having fun in their spare time creating content, however I’m sure some of them have aspirations to greater YouTubing careers. But when they say to their parents that they’d like to become a YouTuber as a full time career in the future, their parent’s response is typically something along the lines of “Don’t be silly, think about getting a REAL job.” What parents don’t seem to understand is that successful YouTubers are extremely creative people who work very hard to create new content on a daily basis, and this is no easy task.

 Mif’s tips for parents:

o   If you’ve read this far and are ready to learn more, go back and read my review on Tyler Oakley’s book, BINGE: Click Here

o   Work on your poker face, so when your child says they want to become a YouTuber, you can at least try to look encouraging.

o   Do your homework. Google Dan and Phil, Tyler Oakley and Pewdiepie.

o   Sit with your child and watch some YouTube with them. Hopefully after one or two videos you’ll ‘get it.’

o   And finally, if you’re still not getting it, go back and re-read this piece.

Sometimes it's ok to BINGE [Tyler Oakley - BINGE Review]

Hi, my name is Mif, I’m a YouTube-aholic, and it’s been about 4 seconds since I last watched a video on the internet. (Hi Mif). Being a hard-core addict, it’s been impossible to ignore YouTuber Tyler Oakley. [For those of you (mum, are you reading this?) who don’t know who Tyler Oakley is, or even what a YouTuber is, keep an eye out for my companion piece: Yes Mum, a YouTuber IS a Real Job, where I hope to explain some things.] Tyler’s all over the internet, social media and is the proud author of his book, Binge.  Needless to say, I got extremely curious about it and, given I can’t deny myself a new book, I recently picked up a copy as an early Christmas present for myself and was immediately taken with this wildly addictive book. I must confess that before Binge, I had never read any form of autobiography, but with its wickedly funny stories, jokes to keep me snickering the whole way through and hilarious photos of a young Tyler Oakley, Binge had me hooked.

The book starts off by saying ‘For my people,’ and that’s exactly who Tyler wrote this autobiography for. He opens up and tells his readers all of his darkest, most personal stories and secrets and all of the difficult times that he got through. The last thing that I expected from this cheery, smiling YouTuber were his stories of his depression, and nearly giving up. Though I guess that’s what makes this book so inspiring. It proves that no matter where you are in life, or how bad things are getting, you can always get better.

Tyler is only 26 years old, but in this time he has gathered his experiences and created a collection of essays about his life, which range from hilarious to heartbreaking. One moment you’re cracking up laughing with his stories of his literal rage black-out at the Cheesecake Factory, projectile vomiting whilst arguing with his grandma and crashing his car in front of his whole high-school, and the next, you’re holding back tears as Tyler tells the heart wrenching stories of his love life. The book consists of chapters like ‘Beyoncé for the Day’ and ‘What Michelle Obama Smells Like’ to ‘Disney Princes’ and ‘Thtory of My Life.’ (No, this is not a typo.) Tyler’s stories are written in the same way that he talks, and you can practically hear his voice telling the stories to you - unless you listen to the audiobook, in which case, you can literally hear his voice telling the stories to you.  

To set the ledger straight, I’m 14 years old. As a 14 year old, I’ve enjoyed this book A LOT, but for other 14s ready to BINGE, get ready for some (and I’m quoting the adults now) language, drug use and sexual references. BINGE is unlike any book I’ve ever read before, and whether you’re a YouTube-aholic like me or not, you should go out and pick up a copy, because sometimes it’s ok to BINGE.