The Hustler's Digest StaffMrBeast, a successful Youtuber and philanthropist, is the world’s most subscribed Youtuber. Read this article to know all you need to know about MrBeast.
Jimmy Donaldson, often known as MrBeast, is an American Youtuber and philanthropist, born on May 7, 1998. He is recognized for creating a subgenre of pricey stunt-focused Youtube videos. In January 2023, his Youtube channel had 130 million members, making it the fourth-most popular on the site.
Under the username MrBeast6000, Donaldson started uploading videos to Youtube at 13 in early 2012. His early work included “Let’s Plays” and “films evaluating the wealth of other YouTubers.” He first gained notoriety in 2017 when his “counting to 100,000” video received tens of thousands of views in a matter of days. Since then, he has grown in popularity, with most of his films receiving tens of millions of views.
His content style evolved to incorporate challenging tasks or survival challenges, contribution and challenge videos with cash prizes, and unique vlogs. When his channel became successful, Donaldson enlisted the aid of several of his childhood pals to manage the expanding business. The MrBeast team currently consists of 30, including Donaldson, as of 2022. In addition to MrBeast, Donaldson also operates the MrBeast Gaming Beast Reacts, MrBeast 2 (formerly known as MrBeast Shorts), and Beast Philanthropy Youtube accounts. MyBeast 3 (formerly MrBeast 2), which is no longer functioning, was previously run by him. Additionally, he was among the top 10 paid YouTubers in 2020.
Donaldson founded MrBeast burger and feast tables. He is also credited with helping to launch Team Tress and Team Seas, two successful fundraising campaigns for the Ocean Conservancy and The Ocean Cleanup. Donaldson earned the Creator of the year title three times at the Streamy Awards in 2020, 2021, and 2022. He also got the Favorite Male Creator award at the 2022 Kids’ Choice Awards.
Early life and family
On May 7, 1998, Jimmy Donaldson was born in Wichita, Kansas. He spent most of his childhood in Greenville, North Carolina, alongside his older brother Charles “C.J.” Donaldson. He completed his secondary education at the nearby private school Greenville Christian Academy in 2016. Donaldson has made public reference to receiving a Crohn’s disease diagnosis in his senior year of high school. Before quitting, he briefly attended East Carolina University. As of November 2022, Donaldson’s brother CjTheseDays, a Youtuber who goes by that name, had more than 4.29 million subscribers.
Personal life
Jimmy suffers from Crohn’s disease, an inflammatory intestinal condition. He was diagnosed with the condition in ninth grade. He has referenced his protracted fight with the incapacitating disease over the years. Moreover, he was ill almost every day before his condition was found, and he once lost 30 pounds over the summer due to his excruciating suffering. MrBeast now takes medicine and adheres to a relatively rigid diet.
Youtube career
Early viral attempts (2012-2017)
At 13, Donaldson posted his first Youtube video under the username “MrBeast6000 “in February 2012. His early videos included Let’s Plays (primarily centred on Minecraft and Call of Duty: Black Ops II), videos estimating the wealth of other Youtubers, videos offering advice to aspiring Youtube creators, and commentary on drama on the platform. Donaldson only occasionally made an appearance in these videos. Around 240 people were subscribers to his “That-dude” channel in July 2013.
Donaldson’s “Worst intros on Youtube” series, which makes fun of Youtube video openings, gained popularity in 2015 and 2016. Donaldson had about 30,000 subscribers by the middle of 2016. To focus on building a full-time career as a Youtuber, Donaldson left East Carolina University in the fall of 2016. This did not go over well with his mother, who ordered him to leave the house.
As his channel gained popularity, Donaldson enlisted the help of four boyhood friends: Chris Tyson, Chandler Hollow, Garrett Ronald, and Jake Franklin. They then connected with many YouTubers to get data on their popular videos and forecast the platform’s recommendation algorithm. Franklin left the crew in 2020, and Karl Jacobs—who had previously worked as a cameraman—was then promoted to fill his position.
Rise to fame (2017-2020)
Mr. Donaldson gained widespread recognition from January 2017 onwards when he captivated audiences with a one-day-long video, showcasing his determination to count to an impressive 100,000. Over 40 grueling hours, with some segments accelerated to maintain brevity, he endured the challenge, etching his name into the annals of internet history. Not content with mere counting feats, Donaldson’s repertoire expanded to include daring pranks, such as an ambitious yet futile attempt to spin a fidget spinner for a full day. His ventures extended to underwater endurance trials, observing paint dry for an hour, and even shattering glass with the power of a hundred megaphones. This audacious spirit earned him the moniker “YouTube’s foremost philanthropist” in 2018, following a remarkable $1 million donation.
In a bid to preserve the reign of the YouTube titan PewDiePie, Donaldson embarked on a crusade in 2018, leveraging billboards, television spots, and radio ads to tip the scales against T-Series in the subscriber race. His fervor reached its zenith during Super Bowl LIII, where he and his team proudly sported “Sub 2 PewDiePie” shirts from their acquired seats.
March 2019 witnessed a groundbreaking collaboration as Donaldson joined forces with Apex Legends to orchestrate a real-life battle royale extravaganza in Los Angeles. Sponsored by Electronic Arts, this spectacle boasted a staggering $200,000 prize pool, captivating audiences with its intensity and innovation.
However, controversy loomed in November 2019 when Donaldson faced allegations of employing counterfeit currency in his video “I Opened A FREE BANK.” Swiftly addressing concerns, he clarified that the faux money was utilized solely to ensure participant safety, assuring viewers that genuine compensation was promptly provided.
April 2020 marked a pinnacle moment as Donaldson orchestrated YouTube’s most-watched live event with a riveting rock, paper, scissors showdown, attracting a staggering 662,000 concurrent viewers. Nadeshot emerged victorious amidst the fray, claiming the coveted $250,000 grand prize. Later that year, in October, a second influencer competition ensued, culminating in the controversial triumph of the D’Amelio family amidst cheating allegations, stirring fervent discourse within the online community.
Profitability (2021-present)
On January 1, 2021, Donaldson published the video “YouTube Rewind 2020, Thank God It’s Over,” where he shared his initiative to involve hundreds of YouTubers in the Rewind, inspired by PewDiePie. This move aimed to give creators more influence in shaping the annual YouTube recap. Following this, Donaldson partnered with Jellysmack in February 2021 to expand content distribution on platforms like Facebook and Snapchat.
In November 2021, Donaldson released a reimagined version of the popular streaming series “Squid Game,” sans its violent elements, featuring 456 participants competing for a $456,000 cash prize. The video garnered over 325 million views by December 24, 2022, establishing itself as one of the most-watched YouTube videos of the year and Donaldson’s highest-performing content. Despite a Vice analysis criticizing the adaptation’s handling of the original’s anti-capitalist theme, it resonated strongly with audiences.
December 2021 saw Donaldson organizing his third influencer competition, boasting a staggering $1,000,000 grand prize and attracting 15 participants. Forbes recognized MrBeast’s immense success, estimating his earnings at $54 million for 2021, positioning him as YouTube’s top-earning creative by January 2022. Had his earnings matched those of Vin Diesel and Lewis Hamilton in 2020, Forbes projected him to rank 40th in their Celebrity 100 list for 2021.
Donaldson’s ascent continued in 2022, as he achieved the milestone of 100 million subscribers on his primary YouTube channel on July 28th, making him only the second YouTuber and the fifth channel ever to reach this feat. His channel, “MrBeast,” further solidified its dominance, clinching the Guinness World Record for “Most Subscribers for an Individual Male on YouTube” on November 17, 2022, with over 112,193,139 followers.
Furthermore, Fortnite Battle Royale featured two updates introducing MrBeast-themed clothing and cosmetics in December 2022. Epic Games also collaborated with Donaldson on “Mr Bean’s Extreme Survival Challenge” within Fortnite, offering a lucrative $1 million cash prize, further cementing his influence beyond YouTube.
Business model
Donaldson’s videos are well-recognized for including specific components to gain popularity. By doing this, he increased the number of people who see his movies through social media’s recommendation systems, generating “tens of millions of dollars” in advertising revenues.
Accordingly, his moves incorporate components of internet challenges, guest appearances, and reaction videos, three popular online video genres, according to The Detroit News. His youtube videos feature click-grabbing headlines like “I Adopted Every Dog in a Dog Shelter,” explaining the difficulties in under a minute, and are between ten and twenty minutes long.
Donaldson believes significant cash awards are another crucial aspect of audience involvement. As a result, he frequently donates substantial sums of money to people in his films. Many of these videos are sponsored by different businesses through extensive brand arrangements displayed as adverts. Additionally, he occasionally organises competitions in video games, such as Minecraft, where big prizes are given away, like a house in one of his gaming videos.
MrBeast is recognized for introducing a brand-new genre of expensive stunt videos on Youtube, where producers carry out complex challenges and significant sponsored gifts. Donaldson asserted that he lost money on his main channel in January 2021.
According to psychologist Tim Kasser, airing a MrBeast video ad for a product would be approximately half as expensive as running a television advertisement and would receive better interaction and reception.
Other ventures
Finger on the app
“Finger on the App,” a single-use multiplayer smartphone game by Donaldson and Brooklyn-based art collective MSCHF, was released in June 2020. The participant with their finger still on the phone screen at the end of the game wins $25,000. In the end, four people who had their fingers on the app for more than 70 hours each won $20,000.
According to reports, the game was so popular that a “Finger on the App 2” sequel was initially scheduled to debut in December 2020. Due to a torrent of downloads that caused the game to collapse and necessitate the game’s developers to rebuild their servers, the game was delayed first to February and then to March 2021. This time, the game offered a $100,000 grand prize. The winner maintained their finger on the phone screen for approximately 52 hours; an award of $20,000 went to the runner-up.
MrBeast burger
Donaldson would open a virtual eatery named MrBeast Burger in December 2020, according to a statement made by MrBeast channel producer Will Hyde in an article published in The Wake Weekly in November 2020. Hyde claimed that his team collaborated with viral dining concepts during the restaurant concept development.
According to him, MrBeast Burger will sell establishments all over the U.S. the franchise rights to serve its burgers, and customers will be able to purchase them online for delivery. Then, in August 2022, Donaldson declared that his first American restaurant would be located at the American Dream Mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey, close to New York City. On September 4, 2022, the restaurant opened.
Feastables
Donaldson announced the birth of Feastables, a brand-new food firm, in January 2022. Feastables introduced its line of chocolate bars under the name “MrBeast Bars.” Three flavours of bars were available at first: original, almond, and quinoa crunch. Over $1 million in prizes were given away in sweepstakes timed with the lunch, including ten grand prize winners who would have the opportunity to participate in a chocolate factory in a future film. Gordon Ramsay served as a cake judge in the video, which debuted in June 2022 and offered a $500,000 cash prize. The video featured several elimination contests, with the chocolate factory going to the victor.
Matt Stonie and Joey Chestnut, two competitive eaters, made cameo appearances in the video. To provide prizes for the contest, Feastables established collaborations with Roccat and Turtle Beach Corporation on February 2, 2022. According to reports, the first few months of operation for Feastables brought in $10 million.
Investments and partnerships
Donaldson is an investor in the tech business Backbone, which creates the Backbone One controller that makes cell phones seem more like Nintendo Switch controllers, and the Backbone app, an application for its users that allows them to create content and access social media.
MrBeast and Creative Juice’s finance network joined in March 2021 to launch Juice Funds, a $2 million investment fund for content creators. Donaldson joined Current Financial Technology as a long-term investor and partner in April 2021. In the same month, Donaldson faced criticism after many of his supporters lost a lot of money in a cryptocurrency scheme he had backed and promoted.
Clothing line
The second-largest source of income for MrBeast after Youtube is his product line. He sells a variety of t-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, water bottles, mouse pads, backpacks, and other items on shopmrbeast.com. Roughly 40% of MrBeast’s yearly revenue is thought to come from apparel sales.
Charity
MrBeast has raised or donated tens of millions of dollars to numerous charities. His stunt videos have donated money to homeless shelters, Saint Jude Children’s Research Hospital, veterans’ programs, and animal shelters in Los Angeles. For instance, a video from December 2018 donated $100,000 worth of groceries and clothing to homeless shelters.
Jimmy and YouTuber Mark Rober, a NASA engineer, created the #TeamTrees charity in October 2019. Over three months, 20 million would be donated to the Arbor Day Foundation. The charity would plant a tree for each dollar raised. To push the cause, many YouTubers came together. #TeamTrees raised $4 million in just 24 hours after its launch. By December, they had raised more than $20 million. They had already raised more than $22 million as of this statement.
What is MrBeast net worth?
MrBeast is a well-known American businessman, philanthropist, and Youtuber who earns $3 to $5 million monthly. His net worth is $100 million. A report from November 2022 claimed that MrBeast was looking for investors to fund the $1 billion valuation of his business. The number of investors he attracted or the ultimate valuation has yet to be disclosed.
The empire is conservatively valued in our net worth calculation, as MrBeast has acknowledged he does not make money from his videos. Instead, he invests all of the funds in new development.
Conclusion
MrBeast, famously known as Jimmy Donaldson, captivates audiences with his YouTube extravaganzas, where he generously donates substantial sums to friends and charitable causes. Recently, MrBeast made headlines by sponsoring surgeries for 1000 visually impaired individuals, solidifying his reputation as a philanthropic powerhouse. He pioneered the concept of blending charity with entertainment, crafting the first-ever charitable YouTube stunt films. Thanks to his groundbreaking approach, he has ascended to the ranks of the world’s highest-paid YouTubers, cementing his influence and impact in the digital realm.
