South Africa’s Top 10 YouTube Sensations

Vlogging, which is short for ‘video blogging’ has grown in leaps and bounds over the last few years, with thousands of people around the world either creating their own clips, or tuning into YouTube each week to watch their favourite ‘vlogger’ share their life. The idea of uploading a video of yourself for thousands to see, and speaking about…well…anything really, is a daunting idea… but South Africa has a few of our very own ‘vloggers’ who have grabbed the attention of thousands (even millions) of fans. The following is  a list of 10 of our very own funny, quirky, crazy and interesting vloggers and the videos that made them famous or their most viewed clips; in no particular order.

1. Vicus: The Hunky Guitarist

The young singer shot to fame after a video clip of him singing and playing a guitar was posted on YouTube and record labels thought he was worth a recording deal.

Joburg drummer Cadwell Caster, who posted Vicus’ video on YouTube, said the young boy was found in Heidedal near Bloemfontein, Free State. There was later a huge press conference in Bloemfontein where Vicus was shown off. All the giant recording labels and talent scouts apparently flew down to meet him. Caster received Vicus video clip from a relative and thought his talent needed some exposure. He uploaded the A.52 minutes clip on YouTube and the response was overwhelming.

Local and international recording stables were soon contacting Caster looking for Vicus. One of those who was blown away was local Idols judge and 5FM breakfast show host Gareth Cliff. His manager Rina Bromberg said Gareth thought that because “Vicus was too young to enter Idols maybe he needed radio”. The song that made Vicus famous was “The Arms” by All 4 One which he passionately sang on the clip that made him an instant YouTube sensation.

In an angelic voice, he belts out the song in a clear and heartfelt manner. Passion, and enthusiasm are etched all over his cheerful face.

2. Filipa: The Song Bird

In recent news a young local beauty was hand-picked to participate in a competition run by Ryan Seacrest where fans had to choose the best YouTube cover of One Direction’s hit single, ‘story of my life’. The young star was among 26 candidates, all hailing from different parts of the world and each with their own amazing voices added to the line-up.

It’s clear after listening to this songbird’s rendition of the song, why she won. Filipa’s sultry voice practically falls like silk onto your eardrums as she sings effortlessly to the slow melody of the song and by the end of the three minute video you’ll find yourself unable to not fall in love with her and her old-school style.I find it greatly inspiring to watch as local artists make themselves internationally known and prove to the world ‘out there’ that our African soil have more than wildlife to offer as enjoyable past times.

3. Gareth and Nic: Cheer-up Chaps

YouTube celebs, Gareth Allison and Nic Small of Derick Watts & The Sunday Blues fame, are game for pretty much anything. The comedic pair, best known for parodying the look of local artists, masterfully photo shopping themselves to look like famous South Africans, shot to cyber fame in 2011 with the release of their music video titled, ‘Braaiday’, which had thousands of internet-users in stitches, followed by other YouTube hits such as The Car Guard Song and most recently, Payday, which features ex Miss SA, Cindy Nell and Jeannie D. Their channel has already notched up over 11 million views in all and continues to grow in popularity among local and international audiences.

4. Casper Lee: The South African Teenager That Sometimes Talks To The Camera

Caspar Lee calls himself “that South African teenager who sometimes talks to a camera”, but that’s a huge understatement- Not only do videos on his YouTube channel attract anything between 250 000 and 750 000 views, but his Twitter following is at a staggering 134 000 in a week. A few of his clips simply have him answering questions that girls asked him via Twitter, (On very important matters like…. ‘What animal would you want to be? Or What position do you sleep in?), but some of his most viewed videos include: “Speaking South African”, “Pick up lines”, and “What is One Direction?”

5. Danny and Philippou: Harry Potter vs Star Wars

These Adelaide twins are causing a major buzz around the world, thanks to the force of a clever concept and home-made video wizardry.Danny and Michael Philippou, 21, had no idea their three-minute Harry Potter vs Star Wars clip would attract so much attention — but it has now been watched more than seven million times on YouTube in a week.The short film has also been featured on TV shows and major websites around the world — as well as attracting the attention of Star Trek actor George Takei, who has around eight million followers on social media and described it as “one of the best things I have ever seen on the internet”.Now the brothers are taking calls from advertisers who want to partner with their online channel.“We thought it was pretty decent because of the massive audiences already behind Harry Potter and Star Wars, but we didn’t imagine this,” Danny says.

6. Troye Sivan: Spud In Real Life

Troye is a Joburg born, Australian actor and singer, who most of you will recognise as the main actor from the ‘Spud’ movies (based on John van de Ruit’s books). This 18 year old (who also starred in Xmen as the young James Howlett), has over 1.7 million subscribers on YouTube, and over 1 million fans on Twitter. About 6 months ago he came out of the closet publicly… and the video of him doing so, got almost 3 million hits! This particular video begins with him saying “This is most nervous I’ve ever been in my entire life…It feels kind of weird to have to announce it like this on the Internet, but…this is not something that I’m ashamed of, and it’s not something anybody should have to be ashamed of, so why not share it with all of you guys?”Apart from that, his videos include (a lot) of singing, and a lot of goofing around, he is incredibly silly but totally comfortable in his own skin. This skinny young hipster (with giant blue eyes and a lovely Colgate smile) also collaborates with well-known YouTubers like Tyler Oakley, Zoella, and none other than Caspar Lee.

7. Theodora Lee: Confessions Of A Teenage Drama Queen  

Mr Caspar Lee’s sister, Theodora Lee! Theodora, who almost always starts her videos by saying “Hello Lovelies!”,vlogs about anything and everything from cyber bullying and bad skin, to boy crushes, dating tips, and of course, her famous brother, Caspar. With over 70 thousand subscribers on YouTube and over 30 thousand fans on Twitter, Theodora isn’t afraid to throw her name away. With a background in Drama and English, you can immediately tell she enjoys being in front of the camera, she is often spotted clowning around or dressing up, and flaunts a mischievous smile, which obviously runs in the family. A few people argue that she only has fans because of her brother, and the videos where he is included clearly have more hits… but either way, she has a steady following, (her very own online novel) and her fans describe her as ‘funny’, ‘cute’ and ‘inspirational’. Some of her most viewed videos include “I slept with a boy”, “Ask Theo ft Caspar”, and “First Date”.

8. Anton and Dean: Jozi Shore

In case you’ve been living under a rock for the last year, Jozi Shore (inspired by the American TV show ‘Jersey Shore’) pretty much rips off typical Joburg ‘boets’…you know…the kind who take excessive steroids, wear terrible fake tans and muscle hugging tank tops? Originally from Joburg but living in Cape Town, Anton Taylor initially just posted one video of himself and his ‘Jozi Shore’ crew, visiting his ultra-hipster cousin in Cape Town. The first video got over 200 thousand views, which inspired him to make a few more; “The Nutrition Store”, “Dates and Weights”, and “50 Shades of Ghey”, to name a few.

9. Anne Hirsh Show: Quirky Converser

The Anne Hirsch Show, where Anne interviews SA celebs every week. She is super quirky, and always seems to have a lot of fun on her shows. Here are clips of her interviewing; Caspar Lee, Gareth Cliff, Helen Zille, and Marc Lottering.

10. NerdzSquared: Vivacious Accent Masters

NerdzSquared describe themselves as “2 South African YouTubers winning your hearts and smiles with our vivacious accents”. With over 10 thousand subscribers, some of their most viewed videos are; “You know you’re South African when”, “Long Distance Love”, and “South African Slang”.

So while SA’s most popular YouTubers all have very unique histories and talk about completely different matters, it’s safe to say that regular posts and frequent updates drive the massive audience numbers… that and…they all just seem to have a lot of fun. Everyone loves a good laugh, so of you have some meaningful (or meaningless) fluff you want to get off your chest, and you have the wit and charm to go along with it, maybe you have a shot at being South Africa’s next top vlogger!