JasonMundayMusic is August’s On The Rise Star

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.”

inspiration found at the aquarium

Watch Anderson Cooper’s exclusive YouTube Q&A

Earlier this week, we welcomed Anderson Cooper to our New York office for a lively question-and-answer session. As he prepares to launch his new daytime talk show on September 12, Anderson has made a big splash on YouTube, posting behind-the-scenes videos from his show, and answering viewer questions directly using our Moderator platform. In the one-hour session, the “Silver Fox” (as he’s affectionately known online) answered some of your top-voted questions submitted online.

He also talked about his “YouTube moment” last week on the Ridiculist (you have to see it to believe it), and told us what it’s like to be a (shy) celebrity in New York City. You can watch the full interview here:



Anderson’s visit was part of our @YouTube Talks series, which brings authors, musicians, innovators, and other thought leaders to YouTube for talks centered on their recent work. The goal is to capture the cultural zeitgeist of the day through interviews, presentations, and intimate studio sessions --- and give you access to these minds by opening up the sessions for viewer questions.

Stay tuned for more @YouTube Talks!

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

YouTube Creator Playbook tips: the first 15 seconds

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.

Ever notice how many of your favorite shows start with a great two-minute scene followed by the opening credits, instead of the other way around? How often has a great movie trailer caught your attention and made you want to go see the movie right away on opening night? With so many entertainment choices, all types of creators know how important it is to capture the attention of audiences early on. This same idea applies to videos on YouTube, and here’s how you can use this creative technique to attract and keep your viewers watching.

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

The general concept of capturing the audience’s attention upfront applies to all types of content in different ways. Find what’s right for your channel. Check out these great examples:

Toby, on CuteWinFail, addresses the audience, makes a joke, and sets up the show all on the first 15 sec.



Want to keep your branding upfront but still use this strategy? The voiceover for College Humor’s Jake and Amir packaging changes with every episode.

Need more ideas? For how-to content, such as cooking or fashion tutorials, the first few seconds of a video is a great place to present a “sneak peek” of what the finished product of the tutorial will be. This lets the viewer know what amazing thing they’ll be capable of making if they watch your video.

FoodWishes’ cooking channel does a great job of this:



You can learn more about how to structure the first 15 seconds of your videos, and lots of other tips and strategies in the YouTube Creator Playbook. These suggestions were pulled together from YouTubers like you, and we’re eager to see how you’ll apply these tips in your own creative ways.

Ryan Nugent, Audience Development Strategist, recently watched “James Blake - Limit to Your Love.”

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

Each weekday, we at YouTube Trends take a look at the most interesting videos and cultural phenomena on YouTube as they develop. We want take a moment to highlight some of what we've come across this week:

• 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."

Check back every day for the latest about what's trending on YouTube at: www.YouTube.com/Trends

Kevin 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

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."

chasing sunsets