You know it's the 21st century when a child
who only recently gained the ability to practice
basic motor functions is having more success
at the age of 6 than you might over your whole
life.
Meet Ryan, who over the last couple of years
has become among the most viewed YouTubers
in the U.S. Yes, it may be hard to believe,
but it's true: this 6-year-old is the world's
biggest YouTube celebrity.
Unpacking Ryan ToysReview
Ryan became such a big deal thanks to his
YouTube channel, Ryan ToysReview.
As the name suggests, it features videos of
Ryan unboxing new toys, playing with them,
and then giving his candid opinion about whether
the toys are actually fun or not.
In an age where many YouTube videos seem staged
and overproduced, Ryan's natural charm has
been a welcome antidote for many fans.
His parents started it
In what might be considered a sign of the
apocalypse, Ryan ToysReview began when Ryan
asked his mother, "How come I'm not on YouTube
when all the other kids are?"
They responded by setting him up with his
own channel.
But his father told Tubefilter that he actually
had an alternative motive for putting the
channel together.
"Ryan has a lot of extended family outside
of the U.S.
So YouTube was a great way to share childhood
memories with them.
It's also a great way for us to spend more
time together as a family and to bond with
him."
Entertainment factor
Unboxing videos have been popular on YouTube
for a long time, but Ryan's stand out from
the rest because not only are they entertaining,
they are actually useful.
Getting the perspective of a kid helps parents
and children alike decide whether or not a
toy is worth buying, or whether maybe it's
just not as fun as the advertising suggests.
But unboxing isn't all Ryan does.
On the sister channel Ryan's Family Review,
the whole clan gets in on the action, branching
out into game nights, trips to the amusement
park, or fact finding expeditions to the toy
stores.
Ryan isn't just a celebrity - he's a brand
with billions upon billions of views.
Those toys
While cynics may wonder if toy companies are
providing toys to Ryan in exchange for positive
reviews, his parents insist that isn't the
case.
Instead, they buy all the toys themselves.
In fact, they buy so many toys, they have
an entire room in their house dedicated just
to storing toys.
Don't worry, though, Ryan isn't a hoarder.
Once he's done with his reviews, most of the
toys end up donated to charity.
Nice job, Ryan!
Play money
Ryan may spend his time playing with toys,
but the money he's making is very, very real.
Exactly how much a YouTuber makes is always
hard to guess, but Nailbuzz estimates that
Ryan's net worth is already a cool $20 million.
In fact, Ryan makes so much money these days
that his mother ended up quitting her job
as a high school chemistry teacher in order
to focus full-time on producing Ryan's YouTube
videos.
Sounds like a formula for success.
The channel ends when Ryan wants it to
Before you get worried that Ryan is being
exploited, though, Ryan's mother is quick
to say that the channel only exists as long
as Ryan wants to keep doing it.
If he ever decides he's had enough, they will
respect his wishes and pull the plug.
Here's hoping that day never comes, though,
because without Ryan's guidance, how will
America know what toys to buy?
For all our sakes, let's hope Ryan keeps having
as much fun making his videos as we have watching
them.
Thanks for watching!
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