Skip to Main Content

Culture and Trends

Surprise, baby: It's YouTube Rewind 2018!

By Kevin Allocca

Global Director of Culture & Trends, YouTube

In 2018, you danced your heart out to Drake, yodeled in Walmart, and played a lot of Fortnite. As we prepare to head into 2019, it's time for our annual look back at the year that was in video and the trends that you made possible.

This year was marked by surprising celebrity moments. In February, Kylie Jenner surprised the world with "To Our Daughter," an 11-minute film detailing her pregnancy and the birth of baby Stormi, which was watched over 53 million times on its way to becoming YouTube's global #1 Top Trending Video of 2018. Will Smith vlogged all over the world. Oh, and he also jumped out of a helicopter over the Grand Canyon on a dare. Rihanna started her own "Tutorial Tuesdays" makeup series. And, of course, Beyoncé's livestream from Coachella took #Beychella worldwide.

Emerging and well-known YouTube stars also showed up in a big way in the year's "Top Trending Videos" list. Liza and David shared the news of their breakup through tears and laughter, the guys from Dude Perfect somehow perfectly tossed bread into a toaster, and AsapSCIENCE once again solved the Internet’s latest mystery. (Seriously, is it "Yanny" or "Laurel"?) India comedy sensation Amit Bhadana amassed an astounding 11 million subscribers in just one year and Lâm Chấn Khang's two-hour musical comedy set in the criminal underworld amassed more than 60 million views.

With more than 673 million collective views, these were the moments that had you watching, commenting and sharing in 2018:

Top Trending Videos



  1. To Our Daughter 
  2. Real Life Trick Shots 2 | Dude Perfect
  3. we broke up
  4. Walmart yodeling kid
  5. Do You Hear "Yanny" or "Laurel"? (SOLVED with SCIENCE)
  6. Portugal v Spain - 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ - MATCH 3
  7. Build Swimming Pool Around Underground House
  8. Cobra Kai Ep 1 - “Ace Degenerate” - The Karate Kid Saga Continues
  9. Behan Bhai Ki School Life - Amit Bhadana
  10. NGƯỜI TRONG GIANG HỒ PHẦN 6 | L M CHẤN KHANG | FULL 4K | TRUYỀN NH N QUAN NHỊ CA | PHIM CA NHẠC 2018


Following the success of last year’s monster hit "Despacito," Latin Music has continued to explode on YouTube. in 2018. In fact, eight of the ten most-watched music videos over the past year were by Latin artists.


  1. Te Bote Remix - Casper, Nio García, Darell, Nicky Jam, Bad Bunny, Ozuna | Video Oficial
  2. Nicky Jam x J. Balvin - X (EQUIS) | Video Oficial | Prod. Afro Bros & Jeon
  3. Maroon 5 - Girls Like You ft. Cardi B
  4. Daddy Yankee | Dura (Video Oficial)
  5. Ozuna x Romeo Santos - El Farsante (Remix) (Video Oficial)
  6. Becky G, Natti Natasha - Sin Pijama (Video Oficial)
  7. El Chombo - Dame Tu Cosita feat. Cutty Ranks (Official Video) [Ultra Music]
  8. Drake - God's Plan
  9. Reik - Me Niego ft. Ozuna, Wisin (Video Oficial)
  10. Vaina Loca - Ozuna x Manuel Turizo (Video Oficial)


It's also time for our annual Rewind mashup video. But rather than trying to sum up 2018's biggest memes, personalities, and hit videos ourselves, we tried something different this time around. We asked some of YouTube's biggest names to tell us what they wanted to see if they controlled Rewind.

Check out the full video below and head over to our Rewind site to get to know the creators and artists who shaped popular culture in 2018.

Subscribe