Welcome to Creators on the Rise, the place—in partnership with world creator firm Jellysmack—we discover and profile breakout creators who’re within the midst of extraordinary development.
Imagine you meet somebody on a relationship app. Imagine your first hangout goes nice! Dinner’s good, drinks are good. They’re humorous and attentive. But simply when the 2 of you might be about to half amicably for the night time, a twist: They’re the notorious Brooklyn Butcher, and also you’re their subsequent sufferer.
Except…that’s not the temper killer (pun absolutely supposed) it may very well be! Because because it seems, you’re the Sunset Park Slasher, you’re a enormous fan of their work, and prospects for date #2 simply acquired a lot extra attention-grabbing.
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This situation is one among lots of from the thoughts of (*100*) Potenza, a self-described “sketch comic from hell” whose YouTube channel has gained greater than half 1,000,000 subscribers and 150+ million views up to now two months.
Like a number of different Creators on the Rise featurees, Potenza acquired into making content material through the pandemic. They’re an actor by commerce, and first acquired onstage 20 years in the past due to their mother, who’s additionally an actress and introduced them alongside backstage when babysitters fell via.
In late 2019, Potenza had simply wrapped an intensive performing course in New York City, and had plans to maneuver again to their house state of Massachusetts and put their newly sharpened abilities to work. Then the pandemic hit, venues shuttered, roles dried up, and Potenza was caught at house.
That was once they got on TikTok. To them, YouTube was the “last boss” of content material creation, the platform of platforms the place the battle to ascertain your self as a creator is received or misplaced. But TikTookay appeared like a superb testing floor–a spot the place they might mix their abilities as an actor, comic, and author, and, as they put it, “see what occurs.”
What occurred took them unexpectedly.
Within a number of months, their dryly and infrequently darkly humorous sketches about every little thing from a Civil War lesbian love affair to the each day trials and tribulations of God and Satan’s private assistants generated sufficient curiosity that TikTookay turned rather more than a method for Potenza to remain busy through the pandemic. It had change into their new full-time job.
Potenza’s hellish humor boosted their channel from a number of thousand views a month to greater than 100 million in January 2022. Monthly view and subscriber information from Gospel Stats.
As their TikTookay following grew from lots of of hundreds to hundreds of thousands of individuals, Potenza started leveling up their enhancing abilities and investing in additional manufacturing assets. But their good friend and fellow creator Hassan Khadair urged them to additionally make one other important transfer: increase their content material off TikTookay and onto YouTube Shorts.
Potenza nonetheless considers YouTube the ultimate boss, however they took Khadair’s recommendation and began crossposting their TikTookay movies in February 2021. At first, their movies didn’t do as properly on YouTube as that they had on TikTookay. Potenza’s channel netted a number of thousand views per 30 days, and by December 2021, they’d introduced in round 5,000 subscribers.
December is when every little thing modified. Potenza says it was a increase second–swiftly, 4 or 5 movies took off, netting hundreds of thousands of views every. It hasn’t slowed since. That serial killer meet-cute we talked about above? Potenza posted it lower than two weeks in the past, and it’s already the third hottest video on their channel, with nearly 4 million views. Their different top-viewed vids embody one where a 911 operator roasts a subpar criminal (5.7 million views) and one known as Heartwarming! This murderer is appalled by your relationship (5.3 million).
Over the previous two months, Potenza’s channel went from 5,000 subscribers to greater than 500,000. In January, their content material netted greater than 100 million views. In the final two days alone, it’s introduced in additional than 5 million views.
Check out our chat with them under.
Tubefilter: First, inform us somewhat about you! Where did you develop up? What’s one bizarre reality about you?
(*100*) Potenza: I grew up in Massachusetts. I moved round a bit, however landed in a city south of Boston known as Braintree.
I might say one bizarre reality about me is that I’ve been barely obsessive about sharks since I used to be a child, and Shark Week really featured me on their web page as soon as as a “Shark Week tremendous fan.” It was an thrilling second for me.
Tubefilter: What kindled your curiosity in performing and comedy? Did you might have a lightbulb second as a child and realized that was what you wished to do, or…?
SP: When I used to be round 5, my dad and mom cut up up. When our babysitter fell via, my mother, who had determined to get again into theatre, introduced me and two of my sisters to the theatre the place she was performing, and we sat within the inexperienced room and watched all the actors entering into costume. It turned a second house to me, and finally we began performing too. It lit a fireplace within me and I knew I wished to dedicate my life to the humanities. Twenty years later, I’m glad to say I make a residing off it.
Tubefilter: You joined TikTookay in 2019, and began a YouTube channel final 12 months. What made you wish to get on TikTookay? Why did you increase over to YouTube?
SP: I had simply come off of a six-week performing intensive at William Esperanto Studios in New York and had deliberate to maneuver again, however as you already know, the pandemic hit and, like most individuals, I used to be caught inside my home for months. TikTookay appeared intimidating, however I made a decision to take what I knew–performing, comedy, and writing–and take an opportunity with TikTookay and see what occurs.
Over 2 million followers later, I met a fellow content material creator on-line named Hassan Khadair, who was pushing me and another creators to start out posting on YouTube. YouTube is like the ultimate boss of content material creation platforms, so I used to be very intimidated at first, however I saved posting like he was telling us to do and swiftly I had a platform with half 1,000,000 followers. It actually blew my thoughts, and I made a decision to alter gears and put much more consideration on YouTube content material.
Although I’m proud of my different platforms, I really feel much more valued as a creator on YouTube. Holding my first Play Button plaque was a surreal expertise.
Tubefilter: Did you might have a plan if you began TikTookay, or had been you simply seeing what would occur for those who made some movies? How have your movies modified from 2019 to now?
SP: When I began TikTookay, I simply began posting to see what would land. Eventually I created my first ongoing collection known as Civil War Love Saga, about two queer girls making an attempt to navigate their romantic life within the 1800s. After that got here Heaven and Hell, which is now my hottest collection, which consists of Satan and his assistant Joanne navigating the issues that come up within the underworld.
As my platform grew, I began to spend money on higher lighting, recording gear, and costumes. The enhancing in my newer movies is so a lot better than it was at first. I needed to train myself tips on how to be a greater editor, producer, lighting designer, costume designer, director, author, and actor, however any funding into my profession is an efficient funding. I’m actually proud with how far I’ve come.
Tubefilter: Your YouTube channel has lately seen an enormous increase in variety of views and subscribers. Do you already know if there was one particular video that took off, or did numbers go up throughout a bunch of movies concurrently?
SP: With YouTube, I used to be posting about six movies a day mainly as a result of I used to be making an attempt to see development and get a video within the algorithm. I used to be at it for months, however knew if I stayed constant it will occur. Then someday, increase. I had like three or 4 movies take off. One month in the past, I posted a video that acquired 5.7 million views, and I’m positive that video had rather a lot to do with it. Since then, my channel has been rising constantly, and I’ve an exquisite and supportive neighborhood.
Tubefilter: Do you assume you’ll’ve began a YouTube channel if YouTube hadn’t launched Shorts? What function has Shorts performed within the development of your channel?
SP: It’s exhausting to say if I might’ve made the leap to YouTube if Shorts weren’t out there. I’ve at all times questioned about YouTube and what varieties of long-form movies I’d publish, however having the choice to publish Shorts helped me construct a neighborhood with movies I already had helpful and with a format I used to be already acquainted with.
Now that I do have a decent-sized platform, I do wish to give my subscribers longer movies to take pleasure in, in order that they have a novel expertise that they don’t get on different platforms.
Tubefilter: Are YouTube and TikTookay a full-time job for you? What else do you stand up to? Walk us via the typical day!
SP: I’m glad to say I’m a full-time content material creator! I was much less organized with my schedule, however now I’ve one to 2 filming days per week the place I movie between 4 and ten movies I’ve written scripts for, after which I edit these movies all through the week. I spend a whole lot of time scriptwriting and jotting down potential sketch concepts. Aside from that, I’m often in conferences with my agent or merch crew, and likewise recording episodes for my podcast.
Tubefilter: How lengthy does a video typically take you to make, from conception to add?
SP: Depending on the sketch, it may possibly take wherever between a number of hours to every week. Sometimes I can bang out a script fairly rapidly, and different instances I have to take a while to flesh it out and rethink traces or conditions. Sometimes I really write sketches that I don’t assume will do properly after which I’ll report and add them if I really feel like I don’t have sufficient scripts for that week, and people movies will find yourself being tremendous profitable. Sometimes your “flops” are your biggest works.
Tubefilter: Has your current engagement spike modified something for you? Do you might have any new plans or objectives in your channel?
SP: Honestly, having a platform on YouTube has modified every little thing. I’ve so many concepts for YouTube-specific long-form movies, and I’m actually trying ahead to giving my subscribers one thing that’s only for them.
Tubefilter: What’s your favourite factor about being on TikTookay and YouTube?
SP: It is a really validating expertise to go in your platform and publish your work and have folks inform you how a lot they adore it. Knowing that I’m making somebody’s day higher by posting a foolish video is definitely very significant to me. It’s additionally given me a strategy to mix all the issues I like into one. I get to write down, direct, and act in my very own 60-second sketches and share that with the world. I can’t think about something higher.
Tubefilter: What do you hope folks take away out of your content material?
SP: I would like folks to see my content material and really feel prefer it’s okay to be unapologetically your self. Sometimes folks touch upon my movies and say, “I want I might say this,” or, “This is what I want I may very well be.” Be that individual! Live your life for your self. I wouldn’t be the place I’m now if I used to be serious about what everybody else considered me.
Tubefilter: What’s subsequent within the instant future for you? Where do you see your self in 5 years?
SP: Well, I’m at the moment planning on transferring to New York City! I’m very excited to enter the subsequent chapter of my story. I’m additionally launching a podcast known as What Fresh Hell Is This?, the place folks can take pleasure in much more foolish content material.
I’ve a whole lot of thrilling issues taking place, and ideally I hope that I can increase my attain past the web and change into extra concerned with movie and tv, which is what I used to be planning on doing earlier than the pandemic hit. I’m very a lot trying ahead to every little thing.
Jellysmack is the worldwide creator firm that detects and develops the world’s most proficient video creators. The firm’s proprietary video optimization expertise and information drive social viewers development, unlocking new income streams and amplifying monetization.
Currently house to over 150 influential Creators together with PewDiePie, MrBeast, Brad Mondo, and Bailey Sarian, Jellysmack optimizes, operates, and distributes creator-made video content material to Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTookay, Twitter, and YouTube. Jellysmack-managed content material boasts 10 billion world month-to-month video views and a cross-platform attain of 125 million distinctive U.S. customers, making it the biggest U.S. digital-first firm in month-to-month social media viewers.
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https://www.tubefilter.com/2022/02/02/creators-on-the-rise-stanzi-potenza/
