Official YouTube Blog: August 2011

Music Tuesday: Fresh faces, Burning Man’s musical side and more

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Summer’s drawing to a close, but there’s still time to discover a new summer anthem. Perhaps it’s a tune from Cults, the indie-popsters Noisey profiled last week on youtube.com/music. Or perhaps you’ll find your summer song in one of this week’s featured playlists.

Fresh Faces: August
Every month, we feature a handful of newly-signed music partners on YouTube’s homepage. This month, the pickings were so rich we couldn’t narrow it down to just four, so we chose six artists to feature, and they’re an inspiring group that spans the gamut, from a sixteen-year-old emcee from New Jersey who’s sworn off cursing to J Dilla protege and former Slum Village member Elzhi. Add a few jazzy singer-songwriters into the mix and there’s something for everyone.

Burning Man Survival Kit
The annual art festival takes place in Nevada Black Rock Desert this week. And while the event’s official focus is art -- kinetic, sculptural and frequently fire-breathing -- it’s also a premier gathering spot for fans of electronic music. Soundsystems on the “playa” vie with each other, putting on all-night raves that host cutting-edge deejays as well as some of the business’ biggest names. We’ve assembled a playlist of some sounds you might hear if you were there.

James Blake and Bon Iver: Fall Creek Boys Choir
Dubstep’s errant child and indie’s golden son have teamed up for an EP that releases later this year. They’ve dropped the first song from it on YouTube, and it’s a mysterious and spacious experiment in sound...just as we expected.

Sarah Bardeen, Music Community Manager, recently watched “Pigeon John ‘The Bomb.’”

Reflections on September 11 - Share Your Story

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

The New York TimesYouTube channel

Your strongest memory of that day or that time period

How 9/11 changed you, and how you believe it changed America

What you lost — or gained -- because of 9/11

youtube.com/September11Olivia Ma, YouTube News & Politics Manager, recently watched “Portraits Redrawn: Alissa Torres”

JasonMundayMusic is August’s On The Rise Star

Monday, August 29, 2011

Congratulations to JasonMundayMusic, who won August’s On The Rise poll after receiving the most votes from the YouTube community. Thanks to your support, Jason Munday (and his friends) will be featured on the YouTube homepage all day today.

As the self-proclaimed “nerdiest YouTube musician,” Jason’s repertoire includes songwriting, singing, producing, and sound engineering. His long history of musical projects on YouTube include hit YouTube bands Ministry of Magic and The Oceanic Six, whose songs were inspired by pop culture. Jason credits Ministry of Magic (a collaborative project with YouTube stars Luke Conard and Ryan Seiler) with opening the trio up to the potential of a YouTube music career with hits such as “Don’t Leave,” “On The Other Side,” and “This Town.” The band members have since chosen to pursue individual careers and Jason’s current solo project, Skyway Flyer, artfully combines the big arena sounds of the 80s with modern dance rock. Check out the video below for an overview of Jason’s work, past and present.

Here’s a word from Jason about his YouTube history, channels, and collaborations:

"I've been a YouTuber for several years, a musician for over a decade, and a nerd for as long as I can remember. Being a YouTube musician is now my full time job, and I'm proud to say that I've got to be one of the nerdiest! I started writing nerdy music with Luke Conard and Ryan Seiler over 4 years ago, and as Ministry of Magic, we were extremely fortunate with our online following and support. Thanks to our fans, I've been able to quit my full time job, move to Los Angeles, and pursue my dream of music and video making. I've since been able to focus so much more time and energy toward many different music projects and being out in LA amongst a vast ocean of music & film industry people, not to mention the growing YouTuber population, I've been able to network and make friends that are always looking to collaborate and even just help each other out. I always try to excel at whatever it is I'm focusing my efforts towards, and I find it fascinating to be able to look back at where I started and the place I've reached and simply look forward to where to future will take me. I'm inexpressibly grateful for all the good fortune I've had and as long as there are people enjoying what I do, I will continue to create it!”

If you’ve enjoyed monthly On The Rise blog series and want to see more rising YouTube partners, check out our On The Rise channel or look for our playlists on the browse page. Keep an eye out for next month’s blog post, as your channel may be the next one On The Rise!

Devon Storbeck, Account Manager, recently watched “Ready For Anything" (Live!) - Skyway Flyer.”

Watch Anderson Cooper’s exclusive YouTube Q&A

Saturday, August 27, 2011

made a big splash on YouTubebehind-the-scenesviewer questionsModerator

see itSteve Grove, Head of News and Politics, YouTube, recently watched "Anderson in Times Square."

YouTube Creator Playbook tips: the first 15 seconds

Saturday, August 27, 2011

This is the first of a series of posts sharing tips from the YouTube Creator Playbook, a resource full of best practices and strategies that you can start using on your channel and videos right away. Make compelling content first...

Start off with something that will immediately grab attention, whether it’s what you say or a stunning visual

Make it clear what your video is about early on, so viewers aren’t confused about what they’re watching

Tease the rest of the video so the audience is intrigued to see where you take them.

...share your channel branding later.

A flashy intro may look cool, but it’s not the star of the video - let them see you, or your great content, first

Make your branding compelling by making it entertaining or unique to each video

CuteWinFailCollege Humor’s Jake and AmirFoodWishes’YouTube Creator PlaybookRyan Nugent, Audience Development Strategist, recently watched “James Blake - Limit to Your Love.”

This week's Trends: earthquakes, hurricanes, and portals

Friday, August 26, 2011

YouTube Trends

We highlighted lots of videos and reactions from the East Coast earthquake as well as some instances of the quake caught-on-camera.

We saw how people were documenting preparations for Hurricane Irene.

We catalogued 10 of the most-viewed Minecraft song parodies.

We spotted some wild human pyramids in India.

We tracked some rising searches this week, which included Aaliyah and some airshow tragedies.

We shared video from a flash mob arrest.

We received video from Libya as rebels arrived in Tripoli.

We studied how Ken Block's new hit video was taking off.

We discovered how some fans/filmakers brought the game Portal into real life.

And ImprovEverywhere created another hit by asking people to "Say Something Nice."

www.YouTube.com/TrendsKevin Allocca, YouTube Trends Manager, recently watched "El Delorean de Volver al Futuro en Cabildo y Juramento."

Today is a Fairytale: Taylor Swift takes your questions on YouTube

Thursday, August 25, 2011

From "Tim McGraw" to "Sparks Fly," Taylor Swift has won over fans worldwide with her vocal talent and songwriting skills. In addition to a tremendous fan following, Swift has racked up four Grammys, six CMT Music Awards, thirteen Teen Choice Awards and even the Academy of Country Music’s Entertainer of the Year award, joning the likes of Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton and The Dixie Chicks. And now she takes your questions on YouTube!

Ever wonder what it’s like to become a major pop star before you’re out of high school -- on the strength of your own songs? Whether you’re cheer captain or on the bleachers, Taylor wants to hear from you and she’s agreed to be fearless in answering!

Starting today, submit written or video queries on Taylor Swift’s channel, and she’ll answer the most popular ones as part of our YouTube Presents program. You have until noon on August 31 to submit your questions and vote on the ones you’d most like to see her answer.

YouTube Presents is an ongoing program dedicated to bringing you live performances and interviews with your favorite artists. Upcoming YouTube Presents events will include artist interviews (with questions provided by the YouTube community), intimate performances at the YouTube offices, and live streams of music festivals.

Stay tuned for more YouTube Presents sessions this fall -- and watch the homepage to see Taylor’s Q&A, which we’ll post as soon as it’s uploaded.

Anna Richardson, Communications Manager, recently watched "Our Song."

Music Tuesday: Catching our breath with Zee Avi, Tom Waits and The Decemberists

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Whew. Did you catch all that? We’re still trying to recover from five intense days of music mania. That’s right, we relaunched youtube.com/music last Thursday, and throughout the weekend you saw our logo redesigned and a bundle of playlists from folks you might have heard of: Lady Gaga. David Guetta. The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Eminem and Royce Da 5’9. And we had folks like SPIN Magazine, XLR8R and The Needle Drop clueing us in about what music we don’t know about, but should.

In the coming weeks, keep returning to youtube.com/music to discover more new videos, live performances and eye-opening playlists. Not only will our first batch of curators be returning with new features to share, we’ll be adding even more regular features from influential blogs, magazines, video bloggers and others. Keep coming back; we promise you’ll dig it.

Zee Avi curates the YouTube homepage
After featuring a bevy of celebrities over the past week, it’s fitting to come back to a celebrity YouTube helped foster. When Zee Avi posted her first video on YouTube, she had no idea it would make her a star; she just wanted to share a performance with a friend. One album and oodles of views later, she’s back with her second album, ghostbird. Today she shares an extremely lovely acoustic performance of several songs from the new album with us (we’re tripping over the first song, “Anchor,” which she filmed on a rooftop). She also shares some videos that put her in a state of self-described enchantment.

The Decemberists “Calamity Song”
The song is off their most recent album; the video was inspired by a scene in David Foster Wallace’s door-stop of a novel Infinite Jest. It feels to us like a metaphor for bad international decision-making, set on a tennis court with kids playing world leaders. What do you think?

Tom Waits “Bad As Me” Private Listening Party
How do you keep albums private in the digital age? How do you build excitement and mystery in an age devoted to breaking it down? Tom Waits, as always, shows us how.

Sarah Bardeen, Music Community Manager, recently watched “Beirut - O Leaozinho.”

This week's Trends: extreme sports, waterspouts, rare snow

Friday, August 19, 2011

YouTube Trends

We watched New Zealanders enjoyed their "once-in-a-lifetime" snow storm.

We dug into one of the more unique ways that people use YouTube to learn.

We posted the first in our series exploring different types of YouTube "one-man-bands."

We saw some on-the-beach footage from a waterspout in North Carolina.

We learned that we've been peeling bananas wrong all these years.

We enjoyed how one hostel employee's low-budget commercial went viral.

We viewed some very talented dogs.

And very popular driver Ken Block released an epic new stunt video with DC Shoes that quickly drew millions of views:

www.YouTube.com/TrendsKevin Allocca, YouTube Trends Manager, recently watched "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Blu-ray Rant."

Get your boat shoes, because America’s Cup is live streaming on YouTube

Thursday, August 18, 2011

America's Cuptaking better care of our oceansAmerica's Cup channelYouTube channelSeth Frank, YouTube Strategic Partner Development Manager, recently watched “Flying on the Water"

YouTube.com/music is your ever-changing guide to music

Thursday, August 18, 2011

YouTube MusicYouTube.com/music

recommended videos and artists based on the music videos you’re watching

local concert listings in your area paired with artist videos

the YouTube Top 100 - your invaluable source to the most popular music based on what the community is viewing

SPINViceXLR8RThe Needle DropRed Hot Chili Peppers’ Guide to RockDavid Guetta’s Guide to ElectronicaLady Gaga’s Guide to PopEminem & Royce Da 5’9”’s Guide to HiphopTim Partridge, Music Marketing Manager recently watched “Check out the new youtube.com/music.”

Creating new opportunities for publishers and songwriters

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Content IDElizabeth Moody, Head of Strategic Partner Development for music, recently watched "The Joy Formidable - Whirring live at Lollapalooza, August 7th, 2011."

Sailing ships with the Sydney Opera House

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

YouTube and the Sydney Opera House developed a relationship during the YouTube Symphony Orchestra from our shared love of music, and we continue to look at ways to bring new music experiences to you. Victoria Doidge, Director of Marketing and Communications at the Sydney Opera House, is our guest blogger today to discuss their recent project.
YouTube Symphony Orchestra 2011The Ship SongAngus and Julia StoneMartha WainwrightVictoria Doidge, Director of Marketing and Communications at the Sydney Opera House, recently watched “The Ship Song Project - Making Of.”

Music Tuesday: Jeff Bridges and other actors-turned-musicians

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

We’ve been a little obsessed with the intersection between film and music on youtube.com/music this week -- we kicked off Monday with a playlist of music videos by the acclaimed director Spike Jonze, who just directed Kanye West and Jay-Z’s easy, playful video for “Otis” and is also known for his work on the big screen, most recently for Where The Wild Things Are. And then there’s Jeff Bridges...

The Big Lebowski...Sings
Actors can convince us of a lot of things, but historically speaking, it’s pretty hard to make us believe they’re actually musicians. (Remember William Shatner’s “music” career?) But after his portrayal of a washed-up country singer in Crazy Heart, Jeff Bridges got inspired to go back to a recording studio -- which he built on his own land -- and start writing songs again. With the expert support of producer T Bone Burnett, Bridges is proving himself to be more than an actor playing a part. His first single from his new album is catchy, smart and -- best of all -- convincing. Today we feature the man better known as “the dude” sharing a little bit about the music that has influenced and inspired him.

Actors: Wannabe Musicians?
In the spirit of Jeff Bridges getting his songwriting on, we thought we’d look at the track record of other actors who tried their hand at the music biz. You might be surprised by how many there are: from Keanu Reeves and Ryan Gosling to Minnie Driver and Zooey Deschanel, a lot of thespians have tried to cross the divide -- with mixed results. Wondering who soars and who falls flat? Only one way to find out: watch!

Fool’s Gold: Wild Window
Back in 2009, the L.A. band Fool’s Gold convinced reluctant indie rockers that they actually could enjoy music that wasn’t in English -- in part because the unholy mongrelism of the band's debut album was just too compelling to ignore. (Perhaps that was due to the incongruousness of a singer crooning in Hebrew over guitar licks that came straight of the Sahara.) The focus has changed on their follow-up Leave No Trace -- vocalist Luke Top sings primarily in English and the once-sprawling collective has become a tight five-piece. But if this charming video is any indication, change is a good thing.

Sarah Bardeen, Music Community Manager, recently watched “Feist - How Come You Never Go There.”

YouTube Town Hall by the numbers: It’s the economy, stupid

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Over the last two months, we’ve been taking a snapshot of U.S. political opinions via the YouTube Town Hall. YouTube users have asked questions of members of Congress and then voted on their answers while focusing on the value of the idea rather than the party of the speaker (Town Hall doesn’t reveal party identification until after a vote is submitted). We received 50 videos from representatives across the U.S., and the videos have been viewed a cumulative 1.3 million times.
The numbers are in so you can see how the parties, and ideas, fared. Check out the infographic below for the full story, but the top level highlights are:

Republicans received the most views, with over a million views total
The five topics Americans wanted to hear most about were the economy, energy, Afghanistan, education, and the budget
Democrat’s videos received the most votes from Town Hall visitors
The most viewed video overall is Senator Jerry Moran’s answer to a question on which sectors are most important for American economic growth.

As you can see in the graphic above, we also analyzed transcripts of the YouTube Town Hall videos to identify which words are used most by each party. On the topic of Afghanistan, Republicans talked about progress, withdrawal, and success, whereas their Democratic counterparts talked about war, mission, and security. On education, Democrats mentioned technology and students, while Republicans talked about performance and college.

This month, members of Congress are again stepping up to the plate to answer the top-voted user questions:

BUDGET: If 5-10% of spending was cut from the anticipated 2012 federal budget and matched with an equivalent amount in tax increases we’d cut the federal deficit in half. Why not do it?

TRANSPARENCY: Can basic information on legislators' productivity be measured and reported in an accessible, comparable format? Categories for working hours could include: Dialogue with constituents, dialogue with peers, campaigning, legislating.

AFGHANISTAN: Why are we spending billions in Iraq and Afghanistan to build up their infrastructure when we could be using that money to convert our own infrastructure?

Check back next month at the YouTube Town Hall Leaderboard to see how people voted, and ask your questions of Congress here!

Will Houghteling, YouTube News and Politics, recently watched “High Tide or Low Tide”

August’s On The Rise nominees

Monday, August 15, 2011

On The RisehomepagevideosTheGeekGroupJasonMundayMusicRobynStampsMilTownKidDestinWS2CuteGirlsHairstylesThePianoGuysfeaturedin the newsperformed at VidConOn The Rise channelBrowseDevon Storbeck, Partner Support, recently watched “Mud is Interesting - Smarter Every Day 18.”

This week's Trends: riots, runners, and tiny houses

Friday, August 12, 2011

YouTube Trends

We looked back at the most popular Spike Jonze music videos.

We explained what that 'QWOP' thing is all about.

We saw how Disney's theme park marketing has taken advantage of popular YouTube fads.

We examined our recent fascination with tiny-home ownership.

We enjoyed a collection of human feats, as collected by What's Trending.

We saw some unfortunate drivers from around the world.

And we tracked the riots in London as they began and spread, and later found that "riot" searches hit an all-time high this summer. A number of specific videos, like this one of a man confronting looters, drew significant interest in the UK and abroad:

www.YouTube.com/TrendsKevin Allocca, YouTube Trends Manager, recently watched "Jay-Z & Kanye West - Otis."

Aid for Africa: YouTube partners rally to provide relief for famine

Thursday, August 11, 2011

a devastating famineNews of the famineAFPWorld Food ProgramHow you can helpUNICEFDoctors Without Borders“I’m Gonna Be Your Friend”hereCitizenTube channelRamya Raghavan, News and Politics Manager, recently watched “Dadaab: Get There or Die Trying.”

Making the planet a little less lonely

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

danced around the worldtravelled to great heightsdeepest regions of the worldLonely Planetyoutube.com/lonelyplanetthese criteriaLee Hadlow, International Program Manager, recently watched, “Cooking in a hotel room with Natalie Tran - community channel.”

Music Tuesday: Lollapalooza, old-school hip-hop and supporting East Africa

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Lollapaloozayoutube.com/musicLollapalooza 2011

Old-School Hip-HopKurtis Blow’s

High Tide or Low TideTim Partridge, Music Marketing Manager, recently watched "LisaNova Does Royce da 5'9 Tinie Tempah Foster the People, Ellie Goulding & Mayer Hawthorne."

YouTubers on America’s Got Talent revealed tonight

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

own the spotlightdiscover new talentAmerica’s Got Talentopen YouTube auditionsvotingAmerica’s Got TalentLiuba Petkova, Marketing Programs Manager, recently watched “America’s Got Talent - Season 6 - Zuma Zuma - Top 48.”

The King of Late Night officially launches on YouTube

Monday, August 8, 2011

“Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson”Jimmy KimmelConan O’BrienFrank SinatraBetty WhiteJim CarreyMadonnaEllen DeGeneresYouTube channelvia Google ModeratorElizabeth Ferdon, YouTube Content Partnership recently watched "Ronald Reagan Talks About Balancing the Budget on "The Tonight Show" — 1975."

Update on YouTube’s Promoted Videos

Monday, August 8, 2011

Update: As of December 1st, 2011, you will start to see Promoted Videos referred to as TrueView in-search and TrueView in-display.

In November of 2008, we began to dabble with a feature that you and advertisers could use to make videos easier to find, since at the time you were uploading 13 hours of video every minute. The feature was Sponsored Videos, and we soon changed the name to what you know today as Promoted Videos. Flash forward to 2011—we're talking about 48 hours of video uploaded every minute, and Promoted Videos have now reached one billion views globally.

Whatever your search, companies and creators across all genres are using Promoted Videos to bring content to your attention. Maybe you’re a little self-conscious about your breath and Orabrush can help you out using Promoted Videos to demonstrate their tongue cleaners. Perhaps you’re a skater and Original Skateboards are bringing you the latest in longboarding technology. Or maybe you’re seeking the infinite grilling wisdom of the BBQGuys, and their Promoted Videos around the Superbowl can bring you the perfect smoked brisket recipes.

If you're interested in learning more about Promoted Videos, we recently announced some updates so hop on over to the Inside AdWords blog for the full details.

Jonathan Goldman, YouTube Software Engineer, recently watched “The Grand Rapids Lip Dub (New World Record).”

This week's Trends: singers, whales, and animations

Friday, August 5, 2011

YouTube Trends

We studied the success of the Old Spice Guy vs. Fabio standoff.

We watched an unexpected singing talent sprout up in the Philippines.

We saw dramatic footage from an outbreak of violence in Syria.

We tracked the popularity of Rebecca Black's "Friday" follow-up.

We enjoyed some cool people-powered animations.

We looked at intense video from a tornado in Russia.

We found a big ad in Brazil and an unsettling cloud in Canada.

We laughed as a beluga mariachi fan added itself to the list of recently popular aquatic mammals.

And the world was introduced to the 2nd Avenue Sinatra:

www.YouTube.com/TrendsKevin Allocca, YouTube Trends Manager, recently watched "Saved By the Bell Interactive Game."

YouTube brings you Lollapalooza live all weekend

Friday, August 5, 2011

CoachellaJane’s AddictionLollapaloozaThe VaccinesBright EyesColdplayMy Morning JacketPortugal. The ManDamian “Jr Gong” Marley & NasShayCarlNicePeterLisaNovaCTFxCLollapalooza channelyoutubeTim Partridge, YouTube Music Marketing Manager, recently watched “Foo Fighters Garage Tour Full Length.”

Music Tuesday: Lollapalooza Week on YouTube, and more

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Lollapaloozayoutube.com/lollapaloozahereyoutube.com/musicMy Morning Jacket curation

Global Ghetto Music

Toro y Moi “How I Know” video premiereYo Gabba GabbaSarah Bardeen, Music Community Manager, recently watched “Toro y Moi - How I Know.”

Official Blog

Music Tuesday: Fresh faces, Burning Man’s musical side and more

Reflections on September 11 - Share Your Story

JasonMundayMusic is August’s On The Rise Star

Watch Anderson Cooper’s exclusive YouTube Q&A

YouTube Creator Playbook tips: the first 15 seconds

This week's Trends: earthquakes, hurricanes, and portals

Today is a Fairytale: Taylor Swift takes your questions on YouTube

Music Tuesday: Catching our breath with Zee Avi, Tom Waits and The Decemberists

This week's Trends: extreme sports, waterspouts, rare snow

Get your boat shoes, because America’s Cup is live streaming on YouTube

YouTube.com/music is your ever-changing guide to music

Creating new opportunities for publishers and songwriters

Sailing ships with the Sydney Opera House

Music Tuesday: Jeff Bridges and other actors-turned-musicians

YouTube Town Hall by the numbers: It’s the economy, stupid

August’s On The Rise nominees

This week's Trends: riots, runners, and tiny houses

Aid for Africa: YouTube partners rally to provide relief for famine

Making the planet a little less lonely

Music Tuesday: Lollapalooza, old-school hip-hop and supporting East Africa

YouTubers on America’s Got Talent revealed tonight

The King of Late Night officially launches on YouTube

Update on YouTube’s Promoted Videos

This week's Trends: singers, whales, and animations

YouTube brings you Lollapalooza live all weekend

Music Tuesday: Lollapalooza Week on YouTube, and more

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