Will the MrBeast Brand Survive?

CREATOR NEWSLETTER


Presented by:

Since MrBeast, aka Jimmy Donaldson, skyrocketed to fame at 19 years old, he has survived numerous controversies. In fact, sparking viral internet discourse has become somewhat integral to the now-26-year-old’s brand — with his clickbaity thumbnails and titles for extravagant “charity” videos frequently teetering the line between altruistic and exploitative.

There’s no question MrBeast knows how to strike up a conversation online. See: suing his business partner, fanboying over Elon Musk, asking fans to clean up his chocolate bar displays, or buying a dystopian neighborhood compound for his employees to live in.

But, at least for me, it’s been a bit surprising to see Donaldson’s family-friendly, wide-grinning persona emerge from all these controversies with his reputation seemingly unscathed.

Back in 2021, 11 of MrBeast’s former employees spoke to the New York Times about what it was like to work for the millionaire. In short, many alleged a difficult workplace “rife with favoritism and bullying.” The YouTuber was also criticized years prior for his use of slurs and offensive jokes at the beginning of his career. But that did little to stop Donaldson’s upward mobility. Just a few short years later, he became the most-subscribed YouTube channel of all time.

All of this begs the question, can the MrBeast brand survive anything? Well, with a couple of high-profile, disconcerting controversies in the past week — related to workplace injuries and inappropriate comments from MrBeast and his collaborators — it seems that the internet’s perception of the Beast might finally be taking a turn for the worse. 


PERSONALITIES

Can MrBeast Be Canceled?

MrBeast, Jimmy Donaldson

Ready to expand your reach—and earnings? Turn your knowledge into an online course today.

Teachable creators average six figures in lifetime earnings, thanks to the platform’s easy, customizable digital products. From courses and coaching to memberships and community, start generating income you can count on today.


IN THE BIZ


LABOR

SAG-AFTRA Launches Strike Against Video Game Companies

‘Enough is enough.’ 

By Charlotte Colombo, Passionfruit Contributor


CULTURE

Paris 2024: The Influencer Olympics

This Olympics is going vertical

By Charlotte Colombo, Passionfruit Contributor


JOB BOARD


YOUTUBE MADE ME DO IT

This week on the Reactorverse podcast, we welcome YaBoyRoshi! Roshi breaks down his journey into content creation by learning from others along the way.

Be sure to subscribe to the Passionfruit YouTube channel so you don’t miss an episode! If you’d prefer to listen in audio form, we also have a podcast feed. And if you want to catch the episodes early, join us on Patreon!

Content for Creators.

News, tips, and tricks delivered to your inbox twice a week.

Newsletter Signup

Latest Newsletters

  • 👪 The Golden Age of YouTube Family Vlogging Is Over

    👪 The Golden Age of YouTube Family Vlogging Is Over

    CREATOR ECONOMY NEWSLETTER Issue 48 | July 7, 2022 Online content featuring children has been criticized since the days of the earliest mommy bloggers. However, it seems like audiences have become more fatigued by and critical of family content. This is likely, in part, due to the various controversies around YouTube’s biggest families like the…

  • 💪 VidCon: Best Tips for Sustaining and Scaling Your Career

    💪 VidCon: Best Tips for Sustaining and Scaling Your Career

    CREATOR ECONOMY NEWSLETTER Issue 47 | June 30, 2022 We’re continuing with our VidCon takeaways today, with Passionfruit reporter Grace Stanley writing about the best advice and tools they saw at the conference. In case you missed the Tuesday newsletter, you can find it here. In it, you’ll find how creators mitigate burnout and how…

  • 🔥 VidCon: Internet OGs Share How They Fight Burnout

    🔥 VidCon: Internet OGs Share How They Fight Burnout

    CREATOR ECONOMY NEWSLETTER Issue 46 | June 28, 2022 Happy Tuesday! Beginning today, we’ll be bringing you two newsletters per week (although, as a programming note, we will be skipping July 5 to account for the holiday). This week, we’re sharing some of our dispatches from VidCon, which returned to Anaheim after three years away…