YouTube has been the premier platform for creative videos for more than a decade now. Content Creators can make their living off the website, but some explore other avenues of their imagination for one reason or another. Just as musicians post their music videos to the site, the creators on the site already have a headstart, with their fanbase established and an outlet to break out with.
The most successful example of this in recent memory is George Miller making his shift from Filthy Frank/Pink Guy to 88Rising’s Joji, releasing Ballads 1, which peaked at #3 on the Billboard Top 200. George’s fanbase was divided on his music success, which saw a vast departure from his unique brand of humor. Alternatively, making yourself known on YouTube can launch a band’s career. This was certainly the case for Ninja Sex Party, thanks to Leigh “Dan” Avidan joining the massively-popular Game Grumps in 2013. Through occasional promotion, the band now sells out humongous venues and sees chart success; a long way to come after only having a few thousand subscribers in 2012.
This is not to say that there aren’t some cringe-tier attempts at music from YouTubers. The less said about Jake Paul’s “It’s Everyday Bro” video, the better (but I do feel comfortable saying it’s the 5th most disliked video on the website). Regardless, it seems like a lot of YouTubers dipped their feet into music just once or twice without making a career of it. Some examples include JonTron covering Katy Perry’s “Firework”, Matt Watson of SuperMega rapping for “No Nut November”, and Sugar Pine 7’s “YouTubers shouldn’t make music”. While not the most conventional avenue, it is always compelling to see a content creator try something new in music, and it has paid off in spades for some.
