Well hello there, this is a strange new sensation for me… Instead of talking to a camera, I’m typing away on my laptop. It’s strange, but I like it.
For those who don’t know who I am, hi, I’m Chani_ZA, I make content on the YouTube machine about pretty much anything and everything, as long as I’m having fun while doing it. So why am I here on Tech Girl? Well, Sam let me, which is awesome. But really, I’m here because I am a South African YouTuber who has become completely obsessed with the local content creator scene which I felt needed sharing.
There are so many incredible local content creators out there, I wish I could name them all, but for the purposes of this blog post, I’ve limited myself to 10, okay, 13, but you’ll see why the further you read. I should also add that these aren’t the biggest names in terms of SA YouTubers, but I have done this for a reason. I personally feel that because there are SO many great creators out there, the smaller channels sometimes get overlooked, even when they have incredible content to share. I have read countless articles and watched several videos that highlight a handful of SA YouTubers, and typically, it’s always the same channels getting mentioned – which is fine and all, they deserve it, but sometimes I want the spotlight to be placed on the #SmallYouTubers which is what inspired this post.
I’ve split them into categories for easy reference since we all have our favourite types of content that we binge-watch for hours instead of doing actual work.
SA YouTubers: Lifestyle Content Creators
I’ve split this even further down into the Vlog / Chatty category, and the Beauty / Fashion category
Vlogs and Chats:
Otherwise known as SomeShap, I recently had the pleasure of meeting Mr Shapiro at the Nintendo Switch Pre-Launch held earlier this year. Previously a daily vlogger, Shapiro recently deleted all of his content (explanation here), to focus on #SpotYourPineapple – a fun theme that is carried through all of his content. You can expect a lot of chats, filmmaking discussions and tips about life from his channel, along with some beautifully framed scenes – Think Casey Neistat, but he’s totally made it his own.
One half of the NerdzSquared duo, Bright recently became an owner of a start up, leading to a lot of motivational content on his channel. Embracing his South African roots, his content is locally inspired, from holiday’s in the bush to a QnA with his brothers in a bathtub – Bright’s content is the type of content that leads you to feel like you’ve been friends with him forever.
Instead of daily vlogging, Rust follows the “Document your Life” style where every month has it’s very own video. With stunning sun sets, amazing time lapses and an inspiring story about his fight against cancer, Rust’s content fills you with the need to look at our country differently, and instead of focusing on everything that is going wrong with it, be grateful for it’s beauty, diversity and most importantly, it’s uniqueness… He also recently went on a trip to the UK with his girlfriend, which helped us get to know him a little better outside of his ‘normal’ stuff.
SA YouTubers: Fashion & Beauty
Mishka Attempting to be a Hijabi
Now, I’m not a Muslim, and I don’t wear a hijab, but I find Mishka’s content absolutely fascinating. From tips and tricks on how to style your every day Hijab looks to simple henna designs, I can watch her content for hours. I’ve always been fascinated with cultures outside of my own (since we do live in a rainbow nation) and Mishka’s channel provides a lovely window into her world.
Vanilla Blonde Bailey Schneider
Now, Bailey is a radio presenter, VO artist and and and (the list is quite impressive) But above being all that, Schneider is a lifestyle / beauty blogger who branched out into YouTube (sounds familiar right?). I enjoy watching her content for not only the girliness that comes with it, but also how down-to-earth she is. Her top bun how to is what got me hooked onto her channel since I find her explanations easier to follow than some other beauty channels. She also recently (December 2016) made an announcement that she is expecting a little one due later this year. I am excited to see how this is going to change type of content she is going to be creating.
Miriam started her channel around 4 months ago, and I stumbled onto it by accident but I am so glad that I did. From skin care and make up looks for darker skinned girls, I have become completely fascinated with the effort and time that goes in to the various African hairstyles she does how to’s of on her channel – They’re so easy follow even I’m considering attempting to do Jumbo Rope Twists! Similar to Mishka’s channel, I enjoy watching her content since it is typically out of my general knowledge and completely fascinated with.
SA YouTubers: Gaming
My personal favourite category for *many* reasons.
Formally known as Pandah, Franky is one of those YouTubers that I need to include a disclaimer to say that his content is mature, includes violence and comes with a language and sexual innuendo warning. Now that the formalities are out of the way, I love Fanky’s content. He was one of the core inspirations to me starting my own channel and when we finally got to meet IRL (in real life) we hit it off like a house on fire. I have included Franky to this list because as much as he is a gaming channel first and foremost, focusing his efforts on CS:GO and Battlefield to name two of the FPS (first person shooters) he plays, he has spread his content into the vlogging category too, sometimes combining both into one video, recently discovering that this is his niche. It is for this reason that I can *highly* recommend him even if you aren’t interested in gaming content, because I can almost 100% guarantee that you’ll find something over on his channel you’ll enjoy. Gameplay vlogs, unboxings, speed arts and the occasional surfing video, he is a real clown.
Constantine104, (real name Arielle) writes gaming reviews for Tech Girl, and I really enjoy her content – which is very heavily gaming orientated so don’t say I didn’t warn you. Like with Franky, it’s not often that you watch someone online for the longest time, and when you finally meet IRL, you can get along like Consantine and I do. But that aside, Constantine shares a very unique game play commentary to her videos that make me enjoy the games I would personally never play myself. Recently she has been giving us all the nostalgia feels with replaying the original Sims, and is now the proud owner of the new Nintendo Switch – so I’m sure we can be expecting some epic Switch content from her soon.
Another Frank (seriously are all Frank’s just good at gaming and making YouTube videos??) who is a more serious / hardcore gamer than the previous two mentioned, specifically focusing his attention on all things gaming. These include let’s plays, reviews and previews, unboxings relating to gaming and even a fancy pants trip to the states to attend the Playstation Experience Event (PSX) among other cool gaming related things to do while there. I enjoy his content for a variety of reasons, but have included him here to this list because of his video quality, as well as his insights, which I felt needed to be shared with all of you.
Comedy:
Another content creator that I have had the privilege of meeting at the Nintendo Switch pre-launch, Michael is the type of creator that every single South African can identify with. His content focuses on South African humour, and I’ll be honest, he calls it like it is, from things not to say to a specific person hailing from a specific town or city, to his recent video about the different average sizes of a certain male body part across African countries (which is a lot funnier to watch than you’d think). His content is upbeat, original and extremely funny – Especially if you’re a South African who can relate.
In closing:
Remember how I said I had listed 10, but actually 13 content creators? Well here’s why. This wouldn’t be a South African creators list without mentioning the three creators currently flying the South African flag proudly over in the UK. Caspar Lee, Josh Pieters and (very recently) Grant Hinds.
Caspar, originally from Knysna, moved to the UK to pursue his YouTube career, and now has over 7.3 million subscribers across his two channels. Josh’s channel is currently sitting on 700K subscribers and our favourite pink-haired gamer Grant on 16K subscribers (all accurate at the time of writing).
Now, you must be thinking
“Chani, I thought you said this was going to focus on the #SmallYouTubers?”
I’ll explain. These three creators are such inspirations to many smaller creators, proving that we as South African creators can make it in the international space, all it takes is hard work and dedication. That is why I have included them in addition to the other 10 creators mentioned – I know I look up to them, as I know many other local creators do, so go show them some support as well.
So there they are, my 10 (er, 13) South African content creators which I can recommend checking out. I know these 13 are a drop in the ocean of SA creators on the internet, and I continue to discover new local channels every day.
But that’s the beauty of YouTube, right?
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