Recently listed as a Next Generation Leader by Time magazine, 19-year-old YouTuber CarryMinati tells us why the only thing that matters is authenticity
CarryMinati
It was in January this year that YouTuber Ajey Nagar aka CarryMinati released his diss track against Swedish YouTuber Felix Kjellberg, known as PewDiePie. The track came when PewDiePie released a video that mocked how Indians spoke English, after he was allegedly dethroned by music company T-series as the world's largest YouTube channel. Nagar's track, which is in Hindi, talks about how India will someday rule the world. And, that's what got him noticed by Time magazine, which recently featured him in a list of "Next Generation Leaders".
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"I had to say something about PewDiePie, or my fans would have been upset with me. In song form, sometimes you can say things, you can't say otherwise. I hope what he said though was all in jest, and maybe wasn't intended in a racist way. Anyway, it deserved an answer," he says. Nager, to his credit, is humble and overwhelmed by the honour, even at 6,880,268 subscribers (The diss track, which he made with his brother, received 21,587,908 views). "I am from a middle-class family, so this kind of mention is unbelievable for me," says the 19-year-old, who hails from Faridabad. Son of an advocate father and doctor mother, Nager belongs to a generation that knows what it wants to do, especially in the digital space. "I started uploading videos at the age of 10, and in 2014, I knew I wanted to do this seriously. I had decided that if by the end of 2017, when I would finish Class XII, I didn't have 50K followers, I would quit. But I had 100K followers by then. So, there was this day, where I spent all day studying for my Economics exam, and came to my parents room in the night, and said, 'I can't do this'. They said they knew that, and the next day, they took me out of school. Since them, this is what I have been doing," laughs Nager.
His content ranges from roasts to skits to gameplay commentary, and now music as well. He remembers starting out by giving tutorials on jail breaking games, and Windows software, but says that didn't work out well for him. "I cringe seeing those." It was later, when he started taking out his frustration at the different kinds of gameplay with hilarious commentary, that the fans started coming in. "They found my irritation funny. I started uploading almost eight videos a month. I realised then how much one can gain by being themselves." Today, as the Time magazine piece says, he can't step out without being recognised and thronged by crowds. But Nager knows one important rule of being a star of the digital era — he is only as good as his next video. His last word is a tip to all aspiring YouTubers out there, and it's a good one: "There is a lot of struggle — first to find your niche — and then to keep at it. One needs to be highly consistent. But then, the rewards are many. I just want to keep doing what I am doing, but keep at it. In other words, keep doing you."
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