L Is for Let's Play: #10YearsofYouTube

10 years ago, if you said “let’s play,” you were probably talking to three friends, at most.

But in 2015, when someone like PewDiePie says “let’s play,” he’s inviting over 36 million people to hang out and play video games. That’s like the entire population of Canada getting together to watch you play Flappy Bird.

Videos in which a person plays a game while adding commentary, often called “Let’s Play” videos, have become a global, cultural phenomenon. But the keyword here isn’t “play,” it’s “let’s.” That’s because even before you start the video, you’re being invited into a group to join in the fun. Every day, every hour, all the time, millions of people accept that invitation, driving billions of hours of let’s play videos watched across YouTube.

But what’s perhaps even more impressive: this trend has allowed some talented creators to become celebrities just by being themselves -- and playing video games. You might have already heard of PewDiePie - a Swedish gamer who receives 76 million views to his channel a week and is gaining subscribers at a rate of approximately 3.6 new subs a minute.

But let’s consider another let’s play pioneer: Markiplier, a creator known for his love for playing survival horror games. You probably haven’t seen him on the newsstands or the latest red carpet. But with 7 million subscribers and growing, he’s one of YouTube’s most popular creators, and over the past year, his name has been searched for by YouTube users 10 times more often than Jay-Z.

There’s also Vanoss, a gamer known for his ingenuity when playing popular games like Garry’s Mod, who has over 12 million YouTube subscribers. That’s 5 million more than even the most popular talk shows featuring major “A-list” celebrities. (Maybe they should try booking Vanoss?)

Let’s Play videos provide casual forums for just hanging out and sharing a passion for gameplay. That’s why being a fan of a gamer on YouTube is, for many, more satisfying than following a traditional TV or movie star. You’re not just watching a video--you’re getting to know someone while they engage with something you both genuinely love.

K Is for Kidding Around: #10YearsofYouTube

Eight years ago this month, Charlie bit his brother Harry’s finger... again. Little did their parents know what would happen when they showed the world their son’s voracious appetite for his brother’s digit. Not only did the clip of Charlie’s chomping go viral, it’s now been watched nearly 820 million times. That’s roughly equivalent to every person in Brazil watching it four times a piece. It’s also a total view count that makes it the 11th most viewed video in YouTube’s history, and the most-viewed non-music video of all time.

And so began the viral sensation that is kidding around on YouTube.

Whether it’s David wondering “Is this real life?” after his dental visit in 2009 or twin babies conversing in their own secret language in 2011, viewers around the world can’t get enough of the cuteness, even several years later. (Together, these videos received nearly 2 million views just last month.)

And while most of these silly, smile-inducing clips come courtesy of random, candid moments at home, some creators are taking kidding around to the next level. A couple years ago, Soul Pancake introduced the world to the pint-sized, infectiously optimistic Kid President, who told us, “I think we all need a pep talk.” That three-and-a-half minute inspirational video has now been viewed more than 35 million times and led to an invitation for the Kid Prez (aka Robby Novak) to meet another president -- Barack Obama. To date, Soul Pancake’s Kid President videos have amassed more than 100 million views.

Needless to say, be it Apparently Kid somehow managing to take over a local newscast or a dad turning his kid into his own superhero, the spirit of kidding around is alive and well on YouTube and keeps us all feeling young at heart.

-- Marc Hertz

J Is for Jimmys: #10YearsofYouTube

Late night talk shows have been a TV staple for decades. But in the past 10 years the format has exploded with new hosts, more laugh-out-loud moments, and better accessibility to these shows than ever before. And between timely monologues, celebrity cameos, once-in-a-lifetime live performances and inventive sketch comedy, it turns out late night and YouTube are a match made in heaven.

In fact, late night shows are among the most subscribed to channels on YouTube and show no sign of slowing down. Take Jimmy Fallon’s 7.1 million subscribers, Jimmy Kimmel’s 5.8 million, or new kid on the block James Corden—who’s proven an instant sensation with over 200k subs and 58 million channel views just since February.

Late night comedians are also a consistent source of trending videos that, when combined, are watched for more than 810,000 hours each day. Jimmy Kimmel’s “Mean Tweets” and Jimmy Fallon’s “Saved By The Bell Reunion” are just two examples of wildly popular sketches that drive millions of views and that have gone viral on YouTube and beyond. Jimmy Kimmel’s Mean Tweets series claims more than 400 million views across its 15 clips, while Fallon’s one-off reunion parody has earned more than 30 million views - 17 million of which it received within the first 48 hours of its posting.

So here’s to YouTube’s partners in comedy, the Jimmys (and the Ellens, and the Jons, and the next generation of game-changing talk show queens and kings) - thanks for keeping us all laughing well past midnight and all throughout the day.

I Is for It Gets Better: #10YearsofYouTube

So far during this birthday celebration we’ve danced, sang, and laughed our way through trickshots, dance covers, and mischievous animal videos.

And now, it’s through the inspiring, impassioned, incredible letter “I” that we pay special homage to all those who’ve shown us that the game of life can and does change. From moms to presidents, to all those that have shared their personal stories so bravely and so proudly, this post is dedicated to the millions of you who helped spread the word that “It Gets Better.”

Over the last five years, the “It Gets Better” campaign - started by Dan Savage and his husband, Terry Miller in 2010 - has rallied individuals and organizations to take a stand in support of LGBT awareness and against LGBT bullying, and that has brought international attention to the cause - resulting in thousands of personal videos, including one from President Obama.

It also provided a foundation for the emergence and growth of another trend on YouTube: the coming out video. In the past decade, tens of thousands of "coming out" videos have been uploaded to our platform and watched by millions. This January, twin brothers Austin and Aaron Rhodes’ coming out to their father led to over 18 million views and an invitation from Ellen DeGeneres to appear on her show.

Coming out videos have also been uploaded by many of YouTube’s most prolific creators and famous faces - from Tyler Oakley to Troye Sivan to GigiGorgeous to Olympic athlete Tom Daley. Some, such as Hannah Hart and Ashley Mardell, have even created entire web series around their coming out process and the topic of gender identity.

As a genre, coming out videos have not only provided support to the LGBT community, but educated viewers around the world as well.

These brave voices have, for many, provided a personal reason to care about the issues of bullying, sexism, and the LGBT community and put a face (or thousands) to these critical concerns. So today, we say “thank you” to all the gamechangers who helped us see that it really can, and does, get better - and how much better it can still get:

H Is for How-To: #10YearsofYouTube

Mankind has searched for answers to life’s great questions for thousands of years -- perhaps since the times of the Babylonian philosopher Ptahhotep in 2880 BCE -- and we’ve passed down our learnings through dialogues, epic poems, essays and other texts. (Shout out to Confucius, Aristotle and Montaigne!)

And in the 10 years since YouTube’s launch, practical knowledge has been made more accessible than ever before -- for everyone from Tokyo to Tuscaloosa -- thanks to the humble how-to video.

There are more than 135 million how-to’s on YouTube, addressing every need, whim and question that can be typed (or voice-commanded!) into a search bar. A review of the top how-to YouTube searches reveals that, in large part, we all have similar sartorial concerns and scientific inquiries. We also turn to YouTube for style tips (how to make loom bands or curl your hair with a straightener), hygiene help (how to get rid of acne) and culinary curiosities (how to slice a mango).

Top 10 ‘How To Educational’ Searches 2012-2015 1. how to kiss 2. how to tie a tie 3. how to draw 4. how to get a six pack in 3 minutes 5. how to make a starburst bracelet rainbow loom 6. how to make a cake 7. how to curl your hair with a straightener 8. how to make a bow 9. how to make a paper airplane 10. how to dance

Some of us go through periods of ambition (how to become famous - or get a six pack in 3 minutes), others rebellion (how to make a paper airplane). In the end though, most of us are just trying to find someone to connect with. And while Plato might have told us “Love is the joy of the good, the wonder of the wise, the amazement of the gods,” you can’t learn the finer points without YouTube.

Watch our playlist below for some more classic How-Tos:

G Is for Gangnam Style: #10YearsofYouTube

In the world of YouTube, there are hit videos and then there is Gangnam Style. Standing at a jaw-dropping 2.3 billion views, to refer to the perennial favorite as “viral” would be a gross understatement -- this video was a global pandemic unlike anything the world had seen before.

Just how big is Gangnam Style? With 11,000+ years of watchtime, the total amount of Gangnam Style served up by YouTube thus far would be enough to fill nearly 50 million standard VHS tapes (remember those?).

At its peak, the track was searched for more than 5 million times in a single day and raked in as many as 14.9 million daily views. And that’s not counting the hundreds of thousands of covers, parodies, flash mobs, dance routines and tributes to the now ubiquitous clip. From Ellen to President Obama to the Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-Moon and beyond, nobody has been immune to the reach of Psy and his mesmerizing dance moves. The list of achievements goes on and on and on.

But the influence of Gangnam Style cannot just be measured in the video’s total views, watch time and sheer numbers of fans. Perhaps even more remarkably, the K-pop crossover hit helped introduce a whole new infectious sound to the rest of the world. Prior to Gangnam Style, a typical K-pop track would receive the lion’s share of its views from Asia. Take Big Bang’s early 2012 clip for “Fantastic Baby,” which received more than 50% of its first month’s views from Asia, with 15% coming from South Korea directly. Just a year after Gangnam, however, global views of K-pop videos jumped to ~30 million views a day, with more than 95% of their views coming from outside their country of origin. The effect helped formerly regional South Korean favorites like 2NE1 and the aforementioned Big Bang crossover into YouTube’s mainstream, earning a combined 1.5B views and 7,600+ years of watch time since Gangnam Style was first unleashed on the world.

While Psy still currently resides in a class of his own, all signs point to the 1+ Billion Views Club not being so lonely for Psy in the months and years to come. Already joined by Justin Bieber -- “Baby” crossed the historic threshold two months after Psy -- tracks from the likes of Katy Perry, Shakira, Taylor Swift, Meghan Trainor and Miley Cyrus have the big 1,000,000,000 mark well within their reach. Not to be outdone, Psy himself is looking to again join in on the fun, with his 2013 chart-topper just 175 million shy of the billion-view milestone. Your move, Biebs.

Curious who else ranks up there with Psy? Here are the top 10 most-viewed music videos on YouTube.

-- Kevin Meenan

F Is for Fails: #10YearsofYouTube

It’s comforting to remember that everyone fails from time to time. And if you ever forget, just go on YouTube.

That said, it wasn’t long ago that if you fell on your face doing something, the people present for your tumble were the only ones who got to see it. (Can you imagine?) Thankfully, in 2015 we share mishaps and faceplants at a global level in minutes. And make no mistake, fails are now an international phenomenon.

In 2008, the top three countries whose citizens were most likely to search YouTube for the word ‘fail’ were the United States, Australia, and Canada. In 2015, the top three are now Lithuania, Norway, and Latvia -- countries whose official languages don’t even include the word. In fact, Lithuania has topped the list of countries whose citizens are most likely to search YouTube for fails each year since 2011.

There are fail-loving standouts in the US, too. According to YouTube search data, Utah has the highest density of YouTube searches for the word ‘fail’ out of any state. Alaska ranks second, followed by Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, North Dakota, and Iowa. The state least interested in searching for fails? Virginia. Turns out a Virginian is about half as likely to search for fails on YouTube as a Utahn. So Virginia is for lovers, just not lovers of fail videos.

Videos of people failing have been a part of YouTube's DNA from the very beginning -- the second video ever uploaded to YouTube was someone falling off his snowboard. Here’s to 10 more years of failing (safely!) and never forgetting that everyone’s human (or, in some cases, animal).