Diposting oleh
Greatest on Minggu, 30 Desember 2007
Some of you told us you were looking for our roundup of the most buzzed about videos of ’07. Based on view counts, most shared, most discussed, top rated and general popularity, here is the list:
There's no telling exactly how YouTube's creators will try to trump these videos in 2008, but we have a feeling that you'll find a way.
Diposting oleh
Greatest on Sabtu, 29 Desember 2007
Our staff continues to reminisce on the moments and videos that stood out for them this year.
Chocolate What?
Any YouTube music '07 roundup has to start with the captivating baritone of Tay Zonday, whose Chocolate Rain sparked a flurry of video responses by everyone from McGruff the Crime Dog to Tre Cool from Green Day. (With all that attention, is it surprising that even Dr. Pepper picked up the trend?) Tay was in good company in a wider sense, too, as the site surged with top-notch unsigned talent. A few of these musicians participated in YouTube launch events around the world, including German user Tuaana, who performed a new song at the gathering in Berlin, and French Canadian Dee Montreal, who not only raised the roof in Toronto to celebrate YouTube Canada with his band but also brought his DJ skills to wrap up the YouTube Russia bash. It was the year you got unique access to bands like The Smashing Pumpkins and The New Pornographers, both of whom jumped wholeheartedly into this thing called the YouTube community. I'll leave you with one of my personal favorites, a faux-vintage clip from mighty soul songstress Sharon Jones, which we premiered on YouTube a few months ago.
If there is one thing that 2007 has taught us, it's that "viral video" is about as unpredictable as Beyoncé and a flight of stairs. And in an equally unexpected turn, many of the Most Viewed Entertainment videos this year were uploaded as part of an original series or web show. Creators like pinktheseries, epic-fu, GOODmagazine, and wwwBLACK20com share their videos week after week hoping to catch the eyes of millions. Here are a few of the most buzzed about Entertainment videos of 2007 – they're the ones I certainly can't get out of my head.
Skateboarding Twins, Frying Pan Flexure, 15 Laterals and More…
When I joined YouTube last June, the NBA Playoffs were in full swing and, being the committed (some would say "insane") basketball fan that I am, I was naturally drawn to hoops highlights, such as Baron Davis' in-de-face! dunk over Andrei "AK-47" Kirilenko. Along those lines, I was thrilled to find that some of the biggest stories in pro sports lived on our site, like David Beckham's first goal for the L.A. Galaxy and Appalachian State's David-vs-Goliath upset of mighty Michigan.
But over the past half year I've also come to love our cadre of wildly creative sports vloggers like Paul "Fitzy" Fitzgerald, Kige Ramsey aka SlyFox4569, Braves Girl 5 and, of course, the Bleacher Bloggers. For any big event in sports - amazing play, major trade, controversy, whatever - I'm as interested in their collective reaction as in seeing the event itself. Like a lot of people, I also became fascinated with young talent, including Aussie soccer prodigy Rhain Davis and the incredible Skateboarding Twins, Nic and Tristan Peuhse. And in the the slightly-weird-but-somehow-compelling category, the images of body builder Aneta Florczyk bending a frying pan are permanently burned into my retina, as is skateboarder davetheknave riding in a giant bowl of blue balloons.
If there's one video from the past year that I can't get enough of, though, it's Trinity University's desperate, ridiculous, absurd, amazing 15 lateral passes on the final play of the game to beat Millsaps College. Ladies and gentlemen, this play is proof that miracles can and do happen.
With the presidential election only a year away, 2007 also saw the viral success of the political parody: from Obama Girl to Giuliani Girl to Hott4Hill, almost every front runner was in on the action. The celebrity ode also rose to prominence, with Paris in Jail receiving 12 million views and counting, and Chris Crocker practically taking over the world with Leave Britney Alone.
Diposting oleh
Greatest on Kamis, 27 Desember 2007
With 2008 around the corner, we pause to reflect on the year that was. There's a lot to say, so this is just part one of our year-end musings...Comment below and tell us what your highlights were, and/or make a video -- you can even pin it to this map. (We'll be looking to feature a few of these around the new year.)
A Vibrant Community
Through YouTube events like 7.7.7., the debates, and programs like the Community Council, I've had the opportunity to meet many wonderful 'Tubers in the flesh. Observing how you guys love, loathe, and live through YouTube has been phenomenal and inspiring. The stories I've heard of how this site has brought people together would make you cry (in a good way).
As diverse as the YT community is, you all have one thing in common: dedication. It's quite astounding when you stop and really think about how much time goes into creating, editing, watching and sharing videos, building and maintaining relationships, and having a real life all the while.
Although you don't see me, I'm constantly sifting through your feedback to find out what features you guys would like to see, where you think we can make improvements, and making sure your voice is heard.
And for the record, I watched this video obsessively in 2007.
With dorm-room presidential interviews, citizen-created campaign commercials, question-and-answer sessions, two presidential primary debates, and much more, you've made 2007 a big year for YouTube politics. Just a year ago, YouTube had gained a reputation as a place where voters held candidates accountable for their mishaps. Your use of YouTube has been making the political process more transparent, and the pressure you've applied brought candidates to the platform to join the discourse as well. Now we have a big, video-powered Town Hall where everyone is at the table -- you might say it's the largest and most diverse political discussion in our nation's history. Looking forward to continuing the dialog in '08...
2007 was a groundbreaking year for film on YouTube: M dot Strange made it into the 2007 Sundance Film Festival with his YouTube-grown film, WE ARE THE STRANGE; Four Eyed Monsters released their critically-acclaimed feature length film on the site; Project Direct, the first ever short film competition on YouTube, and also the first international contest, received stellar submissions, and the winner, celioclarice, came from Brazil; renowned film schools, including, USC School of Cinematic Arts Vancouver Film School and New York Film Academy joined or grew on the site; prolific content creators and aggregators like, Future Shorts, Aniboom, Future Thought and Mondo Media became partners; and incredibly talented filmmakers and animators like SCADshorts, Walter Robot, Andrewhu, Bridle Films, Agent XPQ and so many more shared their work with us. 2007 showed how much room there is for artistic creativity online, and there is no doubt that in 2008 the film community on YouTube will innovate even more and continue to reshape the way film content is created, shared and consumed.
Diposting oleh
Greatest on Sabtu, 22 Desember 2007
There's just a few days left to complete your shopping or make a gift; now it's time to think about the actual feast and festivities. So put aside silly notions of calories (that's for later) and dig into these recipes for Christmas pudding, hot winter soup, "cookie bark" (huh?), and a whole lot more:
Once the pots have been washed and it's time to kick back and finally relax, don't settle for the same ol' holiday tunes. Embrace the DIY spirit and play your own. These videos will teach you how to do just that on instruments like the guitar, harmonica, and piano: