i'm about to try something i've never
done before
i'm edward scissorhands i'm exploring
the unique world of asmr and i thought
why not try to create an asmr video
myself
i got water on the lens
[Music]
before i make my own video it's probably
a good idea to talk to some
professionals
how do these videos make you feel
uncomfortable
relaxed okay do you like it
these videos are designed to create asmr
or autonomous sensory meridian response
a soothing and tingly feeling in the
brain and body and while these visual
and audio triggers might seem weird to
some
they're the draw for a growing online
subculture when i first discovered asmr
online i thought it was really strange
and it gave me the tingles but what i
didn't know at the time is that the asmr
community is an online support system
even a family for people struggling with
stress and sleep issues
[Music]
hello testing
this is carlson one of many converted
asmr fans and creators he started by
making comedy videos on youtube
actually his first ever asmr video was
more of a prank
but his viewers were so enthralled by
how soothing his voice was they
requested serious asmr only videos and
from there his reputation as an asmr
creator took off
how did you go from doing asmr like
prank videos to doing asmr real videos
well basically when i kept doing the
parodies uh the times where i actually
was talking or doing like real asmr i
got a lot of comments on that
specifically
looks fine to me so
were people commenting on those prank
videos being like oh i wish that these
weren't a prank like i wish that we just
had these videos without the prank part
yeah it was a lot of that
i'm curious like what's your perspective
of asmr i thought a lot of it was weird
like certain videos that i was exposed
to yeah until i had to you know actually
get into it and see that there's so many
videos and it's not like weird
i remember finding asmr videos back in
high school i experienced asmr myself
and i remember the tingly sensation
catching me off guard the first asmr
videos were uploaded to youtube in 2009
but they weren't called asmr back then
they were called whisper videos asmr
wasn't coined until a year later in 2010
by jennifer allen who started a facebook
group to create a community where people
could discuss their asmr experiences
but asmr videos aren't for everyone some
people find the triggers really
irritating especially the mouse sound
because the awareness of asmr is so new
the science hasn't caught up yet to the
intense curiosity about it
but understanding the hard science isn't
necessary for asmr to be beneficial for
a huge group of people
there's even unintentional or accidental
asmr videos that's a genre where the
creator didn't intend to create asmr but
the audience frequently experiences it
from the videos anyway we don't make
mistakes we have happy accidents
youtube continues to be the major place
that members of the asmr community enjoy
videos by creators called asm artists
ray moon has been an asm artist since
2019. she began producing asmr videos
more consistently after retiring from
her job as a teacher do you think being
a teacher
helps you now as an asmr artist
definitely especially teachers that
teach younger students because you know
it's so hard to keep their interest and
then if it's not working you move on
yeah your eyebrows are so thick i can
use a comb that's amazing yeah i don't
know if i've totally gotten over the
like strange
factor of it i think some people still
have that
they don't even want to
tell people that they watch you you know
so you're saying that a lot of people
might feel shame about it or be shy
about the fact that they watch asmr
did you experience that when you got
into asmr with your friends and family
no but i did not tell my extended family
and my my brother actually called me up
on the phone and said
and said he was whispering he says hey
rainbow this is your
and he says i was worried about you
but then he says i found out that you're
helping people
get in a relaxing position
for people who experience the physical
sensation of asmr these videos often
help ease stress and aid falling asleep
eloisa is one of ray moon's biggest fans
she found rey on youtube and was drawn
to her motherly loving energy what made
you want to watch asmr videos i have
insomnia since i was a kid you know it's
crazy how only a video and sounds
can make you sleep better and it really
helps me
can you tell me about how you discovered
rae moon and why you like her videos
around the time that i
found out about her videos i was being
diagnosed with a chronic illness so i
was going through a lot of anxiety and
stress
you know real life can be hard sometimes
so when i found her channel and
i saw the
mom roll place
i'm so excited it's your first
office christmas party and i get to
stick
you see in the comments that a lot of
people feel that way too
you see people saying that they didn't
have this
mother figure in their lives
and i have to say i love the new dress
you got
even from far away you know she really
helped me to
move on with things and
please send me a snapchat or an
instagram story okay because i want to
see how much fun you're having
some of the most popular asmr videos are
role plays like this
please if you need me give me a call
okay
and uber oh
people outside the community might not
get it but the community itself is
uniquely supportive in a world where
spreading hay online is common asmr is
an anomaly a little island of positivity
i would consider it one of those
neighborhoods that everyone knows each
other
so whether that be creators or people in
the comment section finding another
commenter like i've seen it so many
times
what misunderstandings do you think
people have about asmr in general a huge
one is
that it's adult content
a research study found that only five
percent of viewers watch asmr for sexual
stimulation the majority of asmr is
intimate but it's not sexual
you know when you see it on shows they
will make it you know they'll sexualize
it you know it's on the whole it's not
adult content a lot of times people
don't even tell you know their families
that they're doing asmr because it is so
misunderstood y'all want to see me pray
i've gotten
uncomfortable messages or dms or emails
uh or video requests to do certain
things and that's not what i do bad
after researching asmr for weeks i
wanted to see if i could do it myself
i'd love
to attempt to make an asmr video myself
but i know that i'm gonna feel
goofy when i try to do it so do you have
any tips for me the way i would start is
to start with the triggers that you like
is there a trigger that you like i like
getting my hair washed you would be a
great asm artist i could just see you
because you do you have a calming voice
as well i appreciate that
my friend vinnie owns a hair salon so i
gave him a call to see if he'd let me
borrow it for the afternoon
[Music]
put this
wrap around you
we'll get you a brand new haircut uh
i'm so awkward
okay what do we have here conditioner no
shampoo
gotta get you and this hair salon dried
off because i spilled water everywhere
all right let's do your bangs
that's the hardest part ready
they look terrible
just kidding
perfect i can't do this
this is so hard ray moon how do you do
this
trying to make an asmr video myself was
really really hard i couldn't get over
how awkward i felt trying to talk
quietly in my camera
i have so much respect for these artists
who are able to connect a community
through these hard to make videos i hope
you like it too
everyone can find something that they
like you know from
role plays to washing your hair
it has the potential to grow
wherever asmr is headed in the future it
seems the global phenomena will continue
to reach even larger audiences
it could become just another tool in the
toolbox of relaxation techniques like
yoga meditation or calming music
maybe sometime soon it won't be a
phenomenon at all but just another way
we regularly unwind
thanks for watching our episode about
asmr but before you go i want to tell
you about a new pbs digital studios
channel called pbs origins and if you're
a history buff i know you're going to
love it the channel will be home to
multiple shows including a new series
called historians take the show explores
history through the lens of pop culture
examining what that culture can tell us
about its time period and what it means
for our future pbs origins will have
even more new stuff on the way so hit
the link in the description and don't
forget to subscribe so that you don't
miss a thing