anyone who displays similar characteristics or does anything that
Emma Chamberlain does is automatically labeled as trying to copy Emma Chamberlain
I can't even tell you how many comments I got saying that I copied Emma Chamberlain
I am NOT trying to be Emma Chamberlain.
I am not trying to be Emma chamberlain
Copying Emma Chamberlain
You're copying Emma Chamberlain. So, I'm going to tell
you a secret and I hope I can say between us. I'm the fat Emma Chamberlain
and I can do whatever the f I want
Emma Chamberlain is having this effect on YouTube that you can see through her fans
Left and right other creators are being called Emma copycats simply for
having self-deprecating humor, using exaggerated edits for comedic effect, and liking iced coffee
Emma does have her own personality that really separates her videos from the rest
but all those things never originated from her
what we're seeing is a group of very dedicated fans. They watch everything
Emma is in and defend her no matter what. This type of dedication is regardless of numbers
You can also see a similar dedication in PewDiePie
I have an army of 60 Million subscribers
Look at my muscles. And KPOP fans.
You don't see ASAP Science viewers criticizing every whiteboard animation video
for being a subpar ASAP science. What is it that makes these fans so dedicated ?
You since Emma Chamberlain films in her car, I thought
it would be appropriate to do this video in my car as well
Welcome to Psych IRL. My name is Donna. So last week I did a video about Joana Ceddia
Many of you in the comments mentioned Emma Chamberlain.
So I thought I'd do a video about Emma Chamberlain this week
Now just a disclaimer, A lot of you in the comments
on last week's video thought that the video was a hate video towards Joanna Ceddia
when in reality it actually wasn't. The majority of the comments were
positive but I did see some people think that the video was a hate video and it wasn't
It was very positive. So to sum things up this is not a hate or negative
video about Emma Chamberlain. Without further ado let's get started
Emma Chamberlain's growth is kind of an anomaly
she's even admitted herself that she couldn't explain how it happened
this is so insane I'm not kidding, I literally don't know what's going on
Emma has expressed that in the past doing well in school was important to her
but that very fact also put her in a negative place mentally
obtaining assistance from her school counselors didn't even help
in June of 2017 Emma created her first video with the help of her dad called
City Inspired Summer LookBook 2017. This video is exactly what it sounds like
it features her showcasing a variety of outfits in San Francisco
though it didn't do well at first, she found that it really helped her mentally. She felt like she had
something to look forward to
I was excited to kind of like be starting a new journey with my life
I guess and like it kind of gave me this feeling of
hope that depression wasn't ruling my life I had something else that was
making me happy and not with YouTube and it's still to this day continues to do that for me.
and eventually she was able to graduate early. She posted almost
every day but soon realized that being a beauty or lifestyle youtuber wasn't for her
Uploading that kind of content actually made her feel unhappy
she was posting those kinds of videos because that's what was supposed to work in the YouTube World
that's what everyone does in the beginning is that they copy what everyone else is doing
what's doing well right now with girls anyways? Beauty Stuff
I'm not that type
the videos I would do where was like my personality
and like me just like doing whatever and like being random
when that kind of started like snowballing not like subscriber- wise but like with me
I was coming up with a bunch of ideas and it just snowballed
and I made a vlog about like getting a fidget spinner
and it was so fun for me and I was like I'm never going back to that old beauty S-
and I kind of like made the videos like what I'm making now
Somehow that enjoyment must have translated through to YouTube
because these seemingly random videos are what exploded
specifically the video titled, "first time driving alone" is what gained the bulk of her subscribers in the beginning
if you watch the video it's nothing really new or revolutionary
so people are subscribing because of her personality and that is immensely powerful
you see that power through her fans dedication
your fans will watch this. I sit down with a lot of big youtubers, influencers
or whatever you guys want to call yourself today creators and you know
they've got a bunch of followers and stuff but then I look at the view times
of the interview and it's like two minutes and I go they're fans aren't really...
Yall better f- watch this s-
But I know you guys will watch this. That's the beauty of your fans.
what is it about Emma that allowed her to gain such a committed viewership
that not a lot of creators who have a larger sub count than her have
now stay with me here but that can be explained the same way friendships are formed
I get to meet all the girls and I'm so excited. Okay bye
The first key factor is her demographic or who her target audience is
Emma Chamberlain's audience tends to skew younger, teenagers and preteens
During one's teenage years the individual is actively developing their sense of self
and identity that is separate from their parental figures
This is done through an exploration of personal values, beliefs, and goals
According to social psychologist Henry Tajfel, one influence that develops our sense of self
is based on our sense of belongingness to a group or our friendships
from an evolutionary perspective, it's necessary to have this innate drive to seek groups
separate from one's parents in order to avoid inbreeding
although youtubers aren't exactly replacements for companions in real life
many have expressed that watching their favorite creator feels like watching a friend
the show is framed as though it is a convo between friends
Emma Chamberlain fills that need for a friend in at that demographic
So Emma Chamberlain's super fan dedication isn't just
attributed to her young fans. If you look at the current scientific literature of friendships are built
You'll see certain similarities there are between
youtubers and building friendships
According to Carolyn Weiss and her colleagues,
one of the biggest predictors of friendship is the support of social identity
that is the perceived support for valued aspects of the self that are
related to identification with social groups, categories, and roles
When you watch Emma's videos and think there's nothing really different or exciting this content
exactly. teenage girls are relating to the normalcy
In a social media driven generation where the youth seem to be all born from luxury
Emma stands out by showcasing ordinary. She's indirectly affirming the identity of many teenagers
that there are regular people on YouTube and it's okay to be that
once again as presented by Weiss those who validate our social identity
are likely to become our long lasting friends
another component to friendship is familiarity
the mere-exposure effect theorizes that people are attracted to those they are familiar with
or those they have been exposed to often
think about all the people you've dated or made friends with in the past
you've likely met most of them at work, school, or someplace you regularly visit
although painstakingly obvious, studies have also shown that just being exposed to a word
frequently tends to cause the individual to like it more
You see this in advertising all the time
Now Emma isn't in proximity physically to every teenage girl but the internet
and social media give young girls easy access to her even if that access is somewhat one-sided
Emma Chamberlain is also not afraid to express her vulnerabilities with her audience
I was just having a sh- time like a-
I maybe showed up to school three times a week. I couldn't f- do it like I
would just I sit in class and I just cry like I don't even know why
it wasn't my school's fault. it wasn't anyone's fault
I just didn't like the environment
This detail is an additional ingredient to building a strong friendship
It shows there is trust between two parties where one can share sensitive information and
be assured that the other won't belittle or exposed such personal details to another
furthermore the YouTube platform is designed as a community
where creator and viewer can interact. Despite Emma not being able to respond
to all comments, the mere act of being able to respond and communicate with
viewers simulates reciprocity in a friendship.
In essence to be a friend means being able to share vulnerable moments with each other
Now a lot of you may feel like I'm reaching
but when you watch big youtubers who can obviously afford the
higher budget production quality stuff
that didn't make any sense
you'll notice that even though they do seem to have the budget to be able to afford the
higher production stuff they still stick to this home video personal style that
YouTube is known for.
We can see that same awkward persona from creators like Colleen Ballinger
Every single Tuesday I ask your qu...
answer your questions
I don't ask them... I answer them
And Grace Helbig. as these creators grow older though, they either keep their
same style and risk losing their audience because their
viewers have grown with them and no longer relate to the awkward teenager or
they adapt and lose that I'm an awkward vlogger persona
To put it simply, Emma is the relatable role model
for her generation and this is an ongoing cycle as future generations grow
there will be new relatable role models for different generations
because Emma is drawing in an audience that is seeking identity
friendship and self-confidence
that fan base will be more dedicated than the average because they see her as a friend
and not just an entertainer
sadly my XD phase is still continuing
I still do use the words XD more than I should
I think it's the reason why...
A lot of boys don't talk to me.
Contrast to her success you can single-handedly see what
happens when she loses relatability with her audience
when Emma released her first clothing line,
it received a lot of backlash because of how it was marketed
and how it was priced. The promotion featured Chamberlain wearing her
products but they were pixelated so the customer had a very vague idea of what
they were buying. When the items arrived many were very disappointed with the
merchandise they received in relation to the price
and I really appreciated it
that I was handmade just for me even though it was like mass-produced but
like it's still handmade which is like impossible but the Queen did it
Emma got massive criticism over the Internet. Around that time a number of videos even
claimed that she had changed once she moved to Los Angeles, After explaining
herself she still received resistance. Many of her viewers had lost
relatability with her. Though some fans were lost through her controversy
As of recent Emma has began to rebound back
it's almost as if it's standard for
personalities to go through controversy. Some of the most established creators on this platform
have gone through something
I'm really sorry if I offended
hurt or disappointed anyone with all of this
Being in the position I am, I should know better
Perhaps age is a defining factor of what a youtuber will go
through and since many were young at the time it's inevitable mistakes will be made
the spotlight just amplifies them. Ultimately we've seen some youtubers
grow and these mistakes become part of the reason we admire them
As time progresses the viewers see it as an evolution of the person, something to
have been learned from. Now Emma hasn't been fully forgiven by everyone just yet
but just like friendships, youtubers aren't perfect
there will be ups and downs and many disagreements but as you resolve those conflicts you both grow as people
your friendship is tested and if it survives, it's much stronger than before
one of the things that I do wonder is,
is controversy necessary to build that super fandom that you see within the largest creators
you know it shows a lot of vulnerability
it shows a lot of humanness
so I wonder if that aspect to have such dedicated fans is necessary
anyway let me know your thoughts I will see you guys next time stay psyched