As YouTube becomes a dominant force in entertainment, it is taking a cue from some of its more traditional competitors, previewing a slate of exclusive shows spanning genres, from preschool fare and Christmas specials, to nature docuseries, stand-up comedy and late-night.
While the Google-owned video giant has holds its massive Brandcast event each May, that serves as more of a celebration of the creator economy. On Thursday, in the Metrograph on New York’s Lower East Side, it gathered an intimate crowd of Madison Ave. heavyweights and some of its top creators to “give you something that you’ve never seen before,” as Google president of Americas and Partners Sean Downey told the audience.
“The number one thing I hear from you as advertisers and partners is, how can I do more with creators, to get integrated, to be a part of this authentic storytelling, other than just running advertising like I always have, and this is our entry into that,” Downey says. “I want you to see what the content looks like, what it feels like, how it’s coming, and then you can start to brainstorm ideas to be a part of that incredible storytelling.”
What followed were sizzle reels, extended previews, and conversations with top YouTube talent, from Huge If True host Cleo Abram and Brave Wilderness host Mark Vins, to former Daily Show host turned podcaster and creator Trevor Noah.
Julian Shapiro-Barnum of Recess Therapy hosted the event and also debuted some news of his own: He is planning a true live late night show for the platform, Outside Tonight, which will run weekly and take place in New York City parks and on the streets.
“The internet has amazing things on it. It has talk shows, live music, stand up, comedy. But what was so special about classic late night is it brings all those things together under one roof,” Shapiro-Barnum told the crowd. “So what we’re doing with Outside Tonight is bringing the full breath of classic late night to the digital age for the first time. It’s going to be weekly live shows set all around New York City, featuring real New Yorkers, star studded interviews, live musical performance, games featuring the audience and music.”
Someone who knows a thing or two about late night was also in attendance: Trevor Noah, the former Daily Show host. Noah announced that he was going to debut a stand-up special that he shot in his native South Africa on the platform.
Noah sung the praises of the platform, touting its global reach as a big part of why he has become so successful as a touring comic.
“It was massive,” Noah told the audience. “Even when I joined The Daily Show, for instance, I put The Daily Show on YouTube, which a lot of people were confused by. They were like, ‘but you’re on a channel?’ And I was like, ‘yes, it’s not where all the eyeballs are, though.’
“It was to my detriment, because people were like, I love your show on YouTube and I was like, that doesn’t help the ratings,” he added. “But it helped the show, funny enough. And I think that’s something that I’ve always loved over time.”
Among the other previews the platform highlighted were new episodes of Brittany Broski’s Royal Court, a special from Vins called Ridge to Reef, new episodes of Deestroying’s 1v1, Dhar Mann’s 7 Days of Christmas, and a special from Ms. Rachel about friendship.
“There is an insatiable demand from both viewers and brands for the creator-led, discoverable programming that is shaping culture,” said Tara Walpert Levy, YouTube vp of Americas. “These next-generation studios, where creators drive every aspect of production – vision, execution, on-air performance, fan connection – are what is driving must-see entertainment today.”
It’s a future that Noah told the crowd he has wholeheartedly embraced since leaving traditional media (mostly) behind.
“I cannot see any other possibility than a creator-run economy and a creator-run world, where the audience, the brands and the creators themselves operate in beautiful verticals that aren’t like they once were,” he said. “It’s not a slam against anything else, it’s just that things evolve over time, you know.
“At some point we all used to listen to music that was just on the radio, and now you can stream your song, your album, your music, and I think music has been better for it in many ways. It means you get to enjoy what you enjoy, and then discover things in and around it. And so I am really excited for that.”
Or as he called out as an “advantage” YouTube has over traditional media.
“The person can meet the content when they need to meet the content, and the content can meet them when they need to,” he said. “Whereas sometimes, and we’ve seen this in legacy media, great TV shows have died just because they were put in the wrong time slot.”
Or as YouTube CEO Neal Mohan told The Hollywood Reporter in last month’s cover story: “As you’ve no doubt observed, many people who came from that linear background have found lots of success on YouTube and been able to control their destiny and their creative ambitions.”
YouTube’s message to Madison Ave. is that the future is now.
