It all started ten years ago: three employees of the online payment system Paypal created a website on which everybody could upload random videos. Like all promising internet startups, the founders were working on their concept in some garage in Silicon Valley, without knowing how brilliant their idea actually was. Soon after co-founder Jawed Karim uploaded the first video ever on YouTube, on 23 April 2005, things went fast. Google bought the site for 1.65 billion dollar in 2006 and at the moment over three hundred videos a minute are uploaded. Besides the many famous videos of dancing cats, laughing babies and amateurish pranks, it became a true medium for unknown musicians. Whether you’re talented or not, you have the possibility to broadcast yourself worldwide. Now that the website is celebrating its anniversary, we’re having a look at ten artists that became famous because of YouTube.

 

1. The rise and fall of Esmee Denters
Let’s start in The Netherlands: Esmee Denters might be the best example of how this video website can get you in the picture with the right people. The girl from Arnhem created a YouTube channel in 2006, where she posted videos of herself singing into a webcam. The one and only Justin Timberlake picked it up and took her to the United States in order to record some songs. Suddenly she was a star, appearing in the Oprah Winfrey show and doing the preshow in sold-out stadiums. In 2007 Esmee Denters surprised all her YouTube fans with the video displayed below. She’s singing ‘What Goes Around’ from Justin Timberlake and at the end of the clip the world famous pop star suddenly appears in the video himself. Unfortunately, the hype didn’t last too long. Maybe that’s the downside of YouTube, it can make you a star in no time, but not necessarily one to stay. Her three singles and album weren’t a big success and she was dropped from the label in 2012. Recently she joined the UK version of The Voice, where she made it to the second round.

 

2. Rock ‘n Roll Kindergarten with Avery Molek

This little dude probably isn’t the youngest YouTube star in the world, bearing in mind the thousands of babies who became famous just because of their cute smile. Avery Molek is the youngest kid who’s gone viral because of an actual skill though. His parents uploaded the video shown below in 2012. At that time Avery was only six years old and as you can see he’s perfectly drumming ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ by Guns N’ Roses. Just as in the example given above, this kid immediately drew the attention of some world-famous musicians, including that of KISS drummer Eric Singer. Apparently Avery has been rocking since the age of two, right after Santa gave him his first guitar and drum set. Right now he is eight old and has played many shows, even on live television. His parents try to make sure he still has a normal childhood though. However, they acknowledge the fact that he prefers being on stage with the grown-ups, instead of drumming at home.

 

3. Karmin – A couple doing covers
Amy Renee Heidemann and Nick Noonan are better known as Karmin, ever since they uploaded their first video. The couple performed covers of mainly hip-hop artists in a classical YouTube way: in their own house, neither fancy nor professional. Only difference between them and other YouTube users, is that they are incredibly good. Within no time they became a sensation online and made it to a commercial breakthrough, which included getting a record deal and a performance on Saturday Night Live. Right know they’re already working on their second album with their own songs, which are amazing as well. Interesting fact is that they actually started their YouTube channel with their own songs too, but nobody was really searching for it. A friend of them, who’s their manager at the moment, suggested doing some covers. Well, that definitely worked out as you can see in the video below. Check out this awesome cover of ‘Look at me Now’, originally by Chris Brown ft. Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes.

 

4. Funny Asian People Going Viral
The next video shows that you don’t necessarily have to be a good musician anymore in order to become famous with your performance. YouTube is the perfect medium for people who want to broadcast a funny act they’ve mastered, because before you know it it’s a worldwide hit. It’s already nine years ago that this five-minute clip got uploaded under the name of Funny Asian People. It’s shows two guys who are miming a song called ‘Bu De Bu Ai’, originally from an American/Taiwanese musician. As many other famous YouTube videos, it isn’t professional at all. The two guys just recorded it in a room that looks like school library or something. However, they must have had a lot of practice because they are surprisingly good at miming the lyrics. And most importantly, it is hilarious! Without YouTube it would probably only be seen by a handful of people. Fortunately everybody has the possibility to watch it at this day and age and that’s exactly what we recommend. Enjoy!

 

5. Valentina Ken Lee Without You
As unfortunately illustrated by the next ‘star’, it is quite easy to become famous because of a bad performance as well. In 2008 Valentina Hasan joined the Bulgarian version of Idols, where she decided to sing ‘Without You’ by Mariah Carey. The only problem however, was that her English pronunciation wasn’t too well. In the video below she explains to have some difficulties speaking English and that’s exactly why this is such a memorable clip. Apparently Valentina tried to figure out the lyrics with a tape recorder and it’s fair to say that this didn’t work out very well. Famous lines in her audition are ken lee (can’t live) and tulibu dibu douchoo (if living is without you). This painful moment didn’t stop her though. The Idols candidate studied the English language after her performance and managed to do a better version. Valentina has a good sense of humor as well, because she intentionally used some of her famous lines again the second time. Enjoy both videos below.

 

 

6. The Lonely Island proves comedy and music match
Talking about a sense of humor, American comedy group The Lonely Island is just fantastic! Akiva Schaffer, Andy Samberg, and Jorma Taccone started their project back in 2000. They mainly make musical parodies and unlike the examples given above, The Lonely Island does have a huge budget and works accordingly. Their songs became instant hits on YouTube and it didn’t last long before television show Saturday Night Live spotted the talent of the three friends. Some of their clips got broadcasted on the show and they even received multiple Grammy Award nominations. In most of their work they manage to cooperate with big names like Pharrell, Rihanna, or as in the video below with T-Pain. It’s an awesome song and clip in which two of the three friends have the privilege to go on a free boat trip. Enjoy!

 

7. Susan Boyle: never judge a book by its cover
There’s no doubt you heard about Susan Boyle before. At the age of 47, the Scottish woman surprised the entire UK with her performance on Britain’s Got Talent in 2009. It was such a genius and unexpected audition that it became enormous on YouTube, right after being broadcasted on television. At the moment Ms Boyle entered the stage, the jury didn’t expect too much. She was a bit old and didn’t have the appearance of a pop star at all. But then she grabbed the microphone and it all changed. She sang ‘I Dreamed a Dream’ from the musical Les Misérables and it was just fantastic! Within a very short amount of time Susan Boyle became world-famous. Currently she has already released six studio albums and she’s been on tour in the UK and the United States. Check out the video below to see the beautiful moment where it all started.

 

8. The Evolution of Dance in six minutes
In the spring of 2006, American comedian Judson Laipply uploaded a video of one of his performances on YouTube. Eight months later this particular clip was the number one top rated video on the website. In the clip he plays fragments of over forty different songs. Starting with Elvis Presley’s  ‘Hound Dog’, from 1956, he chronologically works towards the ending song ‘Bye Bye Bye’, made by ‘N Sync in the year 2000. Laipply dances differently on every single song, with a certain style that is characteristic for the particular time of the song. This makes his performance the perfect visual example of how life changes. His success on YouTube made him a famous man, appearing in TV shows, radio shows and a lot of print media. Check out the video below and have a historic overview of forty years of dancing in just six minutes of time. Besides that, it is freakin’ hilarious!

 

9. Bieber fever among teenage girls
Whether you love him or hate him, Justin Bieber is a big star. It wasn’t even that long ago when he uploaded his first video. In this particular video, displayed below, you’ll see a kid at the age of twelve performing an Alicia Keys song. Right now this kid just turned 21, has numerous hits, has been in jail and is incredibly rich. The teen idol became huge on YouTube, even though he just posted the videos for his friends and family that couldn’t make it to the shows on his high school. An employee of Island Records saw the videos as well and invited him to the label. After that, things went fast. His first album (2009) for example, was certified platinum in the United States. Examples of other milestones are the awards of Artist of the Year at the American Music Awards, which he won in both 2010 and 2012. Justin Bieber’s career shows again how YouTube can help talented people become true stars. In his case a star with ‘beliebers’ all over the world.

 

10. Gangnam Style breaks YouTube counter
The song that cannot be excluded from this list in any way is of course ‘Gangnam Style’. From the moment the South Korean pop star Psy released his single on July 15, 2012, things went absolutely crazy. All around the globe people just loved the catchy song and the funny dance moves. It even became so popular online that the video clip managed to break the counter on YouTube. In his song Psy makes fun of the lifestyle of the rich South Koreans living in the fancy Gangnam District of the capital Seoul, which can be seen in all the posh locations he’s dancing on. At the end of 2012, Psy had topped the music charts of over thirthy different countries. Besides that, the signature dance moves were attempted by multiple political leaders, including David Cameron and Barack Obama. Yes, with the help of YouTube Gangnam Style became a world-famous phenomenon. Check out the video below and the song will repeat through your mind for the next couple of days.