Mark of the (Mr)Beast

T was through my then eight-year-old nephew that I was introduced to the name MrBeast.

Like the countless kids of his generation, utterly infatuated with YouTube, MrBeast had achieved a level of popularity comparable to any Hollywood A-lister, with millions of eager eyes fixated on his every video.

I must admit, I had given up on YouTube due to the multitude of absurd and junk videos that countless creators had been uploading for the longest time. However, he was a true exception—a “beast” like no other. His videos were equally absurd as they were extravagant, and the moment I clicked on the subscribe button, I made sure to receive notifications for his latest uploads.

His Instagram posts were just as intriguing. One video showed him asking a waitress what was the biggest tip she received before giving her a car. In another, he challenged a couple to trade their dinner to solve a mystery in Paris, before sending them to Paris to attend a sponsored movie premiere. He also sent some random guy to Bermuda Triangle to dive for a treasure chest that contained thousands of dollars’ worth of jewelry. And in one of his most recent videos, he traded a brand-new Tesla at a stoplight.

Dubbed the “Willy Wonka of YouTube,” MrBeast has risen to the pinnacle of online stardom, boasting an astonishing 280 million subscribers and a staggering 45 billion combined views across his various channels. His fame has transcended the platform, captivating audiences on TikTok with 85 million followers and Instagram with an additional 39 million.

MrBeast’s influence extends beyond entertainment, having even outpaced Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to become the first person ever to amass 1 million followers on Threads.

Pioneering an entire genre of lavish stunt content, he has crafted a fast-growing empire that is rumored to be worth a jaw-dropping $1 billion. And at just 25 years old, you could say MrBeast has barely just begun.

THE RISE OF THE BEAST

MRBEAST was born James Stephen Donaldson, on May 7, 1998, in Wichita, Kansas. Contrary to rumors that he was a “trust fund baby,” he grew up in a middle-class household in Greenville, North Carolina and raised by a single mom who was in the military. He got the handle “MrBeast6000,” from his Xbox account and began his YouTube journey at the age of 13.

He started by making “let’s play” videos where he would play a video game, and comment on his own performance. His early content also included silly stunts and skits. But throughout his high school years, he immersed himself in popular YouTube videos, meticulously analyzing their titles and thumbnail images, hoping to unravel the secrets of YouTube success through reverse engineering. In one of his interviews, MrBeast said his plan was to earn enough money so he could avoid going to college.

His passion for creating videos became an obsession and he invested countless hours into his craft. Although he initially garnered only a modest subscriber base, it took four to five years before he truly soared to new heights. Every day, he woke up with a relentless drive, fixated on improving his content. Watching, tweaking, and obsessing over his own videos, he relentlessly sought to outdo himself, always striving to create the next remarkable hit.

One of his first successful videos was where he counted to 100,000—just him sitting in front of his computer, in his room, counting from 1 to 100,000 for 40 hours. People watched it. People loved it. It went viral.

He then followed it up by reading the script of 2007’s Bee Movie, reading the entire dictionary and other absurd challenges that no one thought of doing back then.

What MrBeast learned is that if you spend a lot of time and focus a lot of energy on doing a video that makes it very clear how much time you spent, how much effort you put into it, the physical pain and exhaustion you had to endure, that’s something that YouTube viewers connect with.

He finally got his first sponsorship offer for $5000 dollars which he immediately declined. Instead, he demanded double to make a viral video—which was just him donating $10,000 to a homeless man he met on the street. It went viral and what followed next was a history filled with suitcases of cash and more extravagant giveaways.

MrBeast has mastered a unique style of video called “junklord videos,” characterized by extravagant and wasteful stunts that generate heaps of junk. The more ridiculous, silly, and extravagant the stunt, the more viewers are drawn in.

Most Expensive Giveaways

ASK any creator and they’ll tell you that giveaways are a surefire way to get tons of interactions and views. But I don’t think anyone could match the millions of dollars MrBeast has given away randomly or as prizes for his lucky subscribers.

Among the most expensive giveaways hosted by MrBeast so far include hosting a real Squid Game type competition. Following the popularity and success of the Korean Netflix show, MrBeast decided to recreate the entire set even consulting the creators to make it as accurate as possible. MrBeast rounded up 456 people willing to take part in this contest. Whoever managed to survive all the rounds and challenges was lucky enough to take home $456,000. It’s also said that MrBeast spent almost half a billion dollars to stage the contest.

His other contests include spending 100 days in a circle to win $500,000. In this giveaway, one lucky subscriber had the chance to win $500,000; all he had to do was stay in the circle for 100 days. The only catch is that he needs to endure all the shenanigans MrBeast and his team got up to over the span of more than three months.

Other memorable challenges include one minute to spend $1,000,000; keep your hand on the prize and $1,000,000 is yours; the hide and seek mall challenge for $1,000,000; giving away $1,300,000 worth of his Feastables chocolates for 10 minutes, and many others. MrBeast even gave away an ISLAND. Yes a real island to his 100,000,000th subscriber. Each video garnered millions of repeated views.

Beast Of Burden

WHILE all these lavish, extravagant videos of him giving away money are filmed to generate views and revenue, what makes MrBeast unique from other content creators is his philanthropy work. Using his influence on his subscribers, MrBeast uses the revenue he makes from his channels to fund his numerous advocacies.

In collaboration, with fellow YouTuber Mark Rober, MrBeast launched the #TeamTrees campaign in 2019, pledging to plant 20 million trees by the end of that year. The campaign received overwhelming support from fellow YouTubers, celebrities, and the global community. It successfully reached its goal, with over 20 million trees planted worldwide.

MrBeast has a reputation for handing out large sums of money to strangers, sometimes in truly heartwarming and unexpected ways. From surprising food delivery drivers with extravagant tips to distributing cash to individuals in need on the streets, his random acts of kindness have touched countless lives.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, MrBeast took it upon himself to help struggling local businesses by ordering large quantities of food and tipping generously to support the workers and keep the businesses afloat. In one of his videos, he bought out an entire store and donated everything to help the community. He’s also launched several food banks across America in the hopes of actually going international in the future.

In 2020, he created the Beast Philantrophy channel where he uploads videos of his charitable efforts. According to the channel description, 100 percent of its advertising revenue, brand deals, and merchandise sales are donated to charity and uses the revenue to enable him to have an even greater impact on various causes.

In addition to helping individuals in need, MrBeast has been known to cover medical bills for those facing financial hardships. His generosity has alleviated the burdens of medical expenses for numerous families, providing them with much-needed relief.

In January 2023, MrBeast paid for cataract surgery for a thousand people who had severely limited vision and had been unable to afford the procedure. He then followed it up by helping a thousand deaf people across the US, Mexico, Guatemala, Brazil, South Africa, Malwai and Indonesia. All documented in his videos.

Even Filipinos have benefited from MrBeast’s philanthropic efforts. In one of his most recent videos, he sent his teammates Darren and Dan to Davao City to visit the Cure Hospital and provide life-changing surgery for children who had a condition called Clubfoot. The two met doctors and children, who spoke about the condition.

The initial idea was to fund 100 surgeries at the hospital, but when they saw the number of children who needed it, Beast Philanthropy offered to pay for all surgeries that would take place over a month. In the end, over 160 children got the chance to go through this life-changing surgery.

In an interview, MrBeast was asked why he just keeps on giving away money and stuff to which he answered, “Helping people’s fun. On my philanthropy channel I literally just want to help people…I like helping people because it just makes me happy and it makes me feel good. I like seeing their faces light up. I like seeing how excited they get.”

“A lot of people like, I don’t know, watching movies, or these other things, other forms of entertainment,” he said. “But for me, nothing is more entertaining than just seeing someone just go from like having a rough day to just going like, what? It just makes me feel good.”

MrBeast has demonstrated the power of social media for good, inspiring others to make a difference in their own communities. His actions exemplify the notion that with creativity, passion, and a generous heart, anyone can positively influence the lives of others and contribute to a better world. ■

A SCREENCAP of MrBeast’s recent Youtube video titled “We Paid for a Free Children’s Hospital,” which was uploaded on his @BeastPhilanthropy channel. The video follows how the generous Internet personality facilitated life-changing surgery for Filipino children suffering from Clubfoot.