YouTube has been established for 20 years now, and the scale, type, and linguistic diversity of platform content continue to expand. In 2025, creators in the United States will demonstrate unprecedented diversity, attracting large audiences with everything from 3D printed art creations, independent animated productions, mixed reality dating shows, to gaming and current affairs live streams. Although the content produced is completely different, many rising YouTube creators share a common characteristic: they actively produce various novel content, deepening the connection with their audience. Below is the analysis of YouTube's year-end report.
The rise of amateur stars
American audiences have seen many viral contents this year, stemming from successful cases of 'packaging non-traditional protagonists in a traditional show format.' Druski, IShowSpeed, and Quenlin Blackwell are representatives of this trend.
Druski's reality show Coulda Been House sparked heated discussions right after its first season ended, and his quickly released dating show Coulda Been Love and the production of the second season further expanded his creative universe. The show format mirrors classic reality shows but is reinterpreted in Druski's personal style, making the content both familiar and fresh.
IShowSpeed has serialized content related to sports over the years, documenting his interactions with professional athletes in Speed Goes Pro. The show features NBA star Kevin Durant and NFL legend Tom Brady honing their skills, providing both entertainment and professionalism, allowing this creator, known for his livestreams, to enter the realm of more structured narrative series content.
Quenlin Blackwell found a new direction with her comedy interview show Feeding Starving Celebrities. On the surface, it appears to be a cooking show, but it humorously interacts with celebrities, presenting a relaxed, highly watchable format that showcases her creativity in breaking away from traditional food content frameworks.
These series-formatted shows generally keep to ten episodes or fewer, having clear narrative contexts, which makes them more conducive to continuously attracting audience viewership compared to many vlog-style freeform contents.
Interactive content that enhances fan participation is very popular.
Another type of rapidly growing creators focuses on enhancing the sense of engagement with the audience to establish deeper interactions. The independent animation channel Glitch gained popularity in 2024 with The Amazing Digital Circus. This year, the team launched Glitch Direct, allowing fans to gain direct insights into animation production and project progress. The first video, presented in a nearly seminar-like format, features the founder previewing upcoming series and project plans to the audience, strengthening the connection between fans and the creative team.
3D printing creator SleepyCrafter has surpassed 2.8 million subscribers since opening her channel at the end of 2024. She shoots a series of challenge videos themed 'Finding My Creations,' hiding self-made items in different locations and inviting the audience to guess or search for them. This combination of physical treasure hunting and online interaction allows fans to connect with creative content in the real world beyond just watching videos.
Glitch and SleepyCrafter's commonality is allowing viewers to play an active role in the content structure rather than being passive viewers, which also rapidly increases their community engagement.
The eternal connection between creators and fans
Minecraft creator Technoblade passed away in 2022, but his channel remains one of the fastest-growing channels in 2025. His family and friends held a large online event this year, including a live stream that attracted 20 million participants, paying tribute to him and continuing his creative spirit. The community expressed collective memory with #technobladeneverdies, allowing his works to continue influencing the platform even after his passing.
Creators expand entertainment IP by producing creative videos
In addition to native YouTube content, many entertainment IPs not originating from YouTube have also reached a broader audience due to creators' adaptations. The Netflix entertainment challenge show 'Squid Game' has many similar challenges and adaptations on YouTube, reigniting its popularity. The virtual girl group in K-Pop Demon is viewed by fans as 'real idols,' producing various shorts and music review videos that continue to generate buzz online. Game-related shows exhibit a similar trend, as this year's most popular games did not originate from large studios but from independent creators on the Roblox platform, such as Grow a Garden and Steal a Brainrot. These community-driven contents have reinforced the creators' status.
Creators and music MVs that dominate the charts
In 2025, MrBeast topped the YouTube creator rankings for six consecutive years. He maintained global popularity with large-scale challenges and charity projects, followed closely by IShowSpeed showcasing incredible energy with 24/7 live IRL broadcasts, while gaming and horror creator CoryxKenshin expanded his influence through a loyal fanbase and successful self-published comics.
In music, the collaboration between ROSÉ and Bruno Mars on the song APT has become the fastest K-Pop music video to surpass 1 billion views on YouTube, breaking the record set by Gangnam Style, marking a new milestone for the platform's 20th anniversary.
The list of global trending topics, creators, songs, and podcasts on YouTube is as follows:
Trending Topics (USA)
User-Generated Roblox Experiences: Grow a Garden, Dandy’s World, Forsaken, Steal a Brainrot
KPop Demon Hunters
Brainrot
Charlie Kirk
Labubu
Nintendo Switch 2
Cookie Run: Kingdom
Blue Lock
Katseye
Top Creators (USA)
MrBeast
CaylusBlox
IShowSpeed
Double Date
Cadel and Mia
Charlie Kirk
Law by Mike
CoryxKenshin
Zack D. Films
Outdoor Boys
Hot Songs (USA)
Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga – Die With A Smile
Rosé, Bruno Mars – APT.
HUNTR/X (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – Golden
Saja Boys (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – Soda Pop
Saja Boys (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – Your Idol
Victor Valverde, Jr Torres – El Mayor de los Ranas
HUNTR/X (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – How It’s Done
Alex Warren – Ordinary
Kendrick Lamar, SZA – Luther
Kendrick Lamar – tv off
US Hot Songs Chart (Shorts)
Forrest Frank – YOUR WAY’S BETTER
ATLXS – Passo Bem Solto (Slowed)
Black Eyed Peas – Rock That Body
Connie Francis – Pretty Little Baby
Joyful – Chess
Doechii – Anxiety
Skrilla – Doot Doot (6 7)
Saja Boys (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – Soda Pop
Jiandro (feat. ola.wav) – Confess your love
Billie Eilish – Ocean Eyes
Top Podcasts (USA)
The Joe Rogan Experience
KILL TONY
Good Mythical Morning
Rotten Mango
The MeidasTouch Podcast
48 Hours
Shawn Ryan Show
Smosh Reads Reddit Stories
This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von
This article discusses the collaborative power of reality shows, streamers, and entertainment IPs, presenting a new landscape of competition as highlighted in YouTube's year-end report. First appeared in Lian News ABMedia.