Ahead of the UK tour to promote his new book “In Real Life”, TenEighty UK caught up with Joey Graceffa to talk all things YouTube…
TenEighty UK: What is the first YouTube video you ever watched?
Joey Graceffa: There was a girl called Brookers, she was big on YouTube and my friend Brittany showed me the videos. I thought she was the funniest girl ever and she actually lived in my state. I couldn’t believe there was someone from my state making these funny videos, I wanted to copy her and basically do the same thing. She was probably my inspiration and the first YouTuber I ever saw.
T: What is your most embarrassing video?
J: There are a LOT of them. Definitely lots from back in the day. My most embarrassing video is probably privated… in fact, it’s probably not. I think Fake Friends is what it’s called. I don’t know if it’s still up or not – but it was really embarrassing. I hated it.
T: What is the first thing you’d do as YouTube CEO?
J: I think I would invest more in the creators who are putting out amazing content. It’d be good to give them health benefits and stuff like that – it has become our job but it’s not like a typical career and I don’t even really have a contact at YouTube. It’d be nice to have those aspects so YouTubers could reach out if something goes wrong or get money for bigger projects that they want to do.
T: What would you be doing if you weren’t making YouTube videos?
J: I’d probably either be pursuing acting or doing something in production. It’d still be totally related to what I’m doing now – because I love what I do.
T: What advice can you give aspiring content creators?
J: I guess my advice for other people would be that YouTube success isn’t typically something that happens overnight. I’ve been doing YouTube for seven years and I’ve just been trying different things and seeing what fits with me. Now I’ve finally found something that works and it’s been great.
T: Can you recommend a YouTuber that we should be watching?
J: I absolutely love Natalie Tran, she does Community Channel. She’s my favourite and I get so excited whenever I see a video of hers in my subscription box. She has great content and she’s pretty old-school.
For more from Joey Graceffa, read about his UK book tour or relive his trip to the UK for DigiFest.
Read more from your favourite YouTubers:
- TenEighty Meets: Oli White
- TenEighty Meets: Louis Cole
- Carrie Hope Fletcher: All She Knows Now
- Louise Pentland: Behind The Glitter
- Meet The Team: Summer In The City
Who should TenEighty meet next? Tweet @TenEightyUK with your suggestions or drop TenEighty UK a message on Facebook.
