Owner of X (previously known as Twitter), Elon Musk, reached out to MrBeast, the most popular user on YouTube, to allow him to upload his films on the site. He was quickly turned down.
Jimmy Donaldson, better known online as MrBeast, announced on X on December 30, 2023, that his most recent video was now live on YouTube, with the caption, “I uploaded, go watch or I’ll drop kick you.”
Donaldson had recorded a 20-minute video and posted it to YouTube, detailing his week-long solitary confinement. These kinds of movies, when Donaldson either puts himself or someone else through an extraordinary endeavor, have made him a household name all over the world. With an expected $82 million in revenue in 2023, the social media virtuoso is the biggest personality on the network, having amassed over 225 million members on his primary channel alone.
After Donaldson posted the appeal to head to YouTube on X, one fan replied: “Upload on this platform too,” which is when Elon Musk chimed in with: “Yeah.”
Since assuming control of the social media site in 2022, Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk has been attempting to pique users’ interest with videos.
Plans have included streaming series from the likes of former Fox star Tucker Carlson and a media deal with heiress Paris Hilton, both of which have since been canceled.
In an effort to increase money, Musk has launched premium membership services on the website, which among other things let users appear as “verified” and send direct messages to other accounts. Musk is now working with CEO Linda Yaccarino on this project.
The actions were required when a large number of sponsors abandoned the website due to concerns that their logo would be shown next to pornographic material.
Musk, a fervent supporter of free speech, has resisted caving in to worries expressed by marketers that X will stop their messages from, say, appearing next to Nazi material.
However, Musk was turned down by MrBeast when he tried to get his stuff on his website—not even solely.
Donaldson replied to Musk directly: “My videos cost millions to make and even if they got a billion views on X it wouldn’t fund a fraction of it : I’m down though to test stuff once monetization is really cranking!”
The courteous reply stands in stark contrast to Donaldson’s earlier strong interest in Twitter. In fact, Donaldson’s bio still refers to him as “X Super Official CEO,” which is reminiscent of the days when there was a lot of conjecture about who would succeed the constantly busy Musk as the platform’s daily manager.
My videos cost millions to make and even if they got a billion views on X it wouldn’t fund a fraction of it :/
I’m down though to test stuff once monetization is really cranking!
— MrBeast (@MrBeast) December 30, 2023
The YouTuber had even teased Musk about using the site in the event that the richest man on the planet passed away in “mysterious circumstances.” Musk claimed in May of last year that Donaldson might have X in such a situation. The latter then screenshotted the conversation and captioned it, saying, “No takesies backsies.”
A $20 million fund
It’s really not surprising that artists like Donaldson aren’t lining up to make the platform their main outlet—or divide their viewership over many sites—despite his ardent support for X.
Some content makers who had previously utilized the site for free have applauded X CEO Yaccarino’s announcement in September that the platform has paid out over $20 million to the “creator community” of the website.
Create. Connect. Collect all on X. We’re enabling the economic success of new segments like creators. And so far we've paid out almost $20 million to our creator community. https://t.co/kk137uPkAo
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) September 29, 2023
The amount given to each creative on the site, however, is minuscule compared to Donaldson’s earnings in 2023 alone—possibly showing that rewards still have a long way to go before they can compete with larger platforms.
Furthermore, there are conditions associated to creator checks, and they have previously experienced delays.
Musk stated in August that “everyone” who has more than 500 followers and is over the age of 18 is eligible for the program, but that “you must be an X Premium (Blue) subscriber to be eligible for your ad revenue share.” In the event that you are not an X Premium (Blue) customer, X will retain the advertising revenue.”
X Premium’s opt-in subscription packages have three tiers, with blue being the middle option. Blue costs $8 a month or $84 a year.
In addition, having launched the scheme, Musk then told users payouts would be received later than expected. He wrote on X: “Interest in ad rev share by content creators has far exceeded our expectations, so will take a few more days to process.”
2024 might end up being just another difficult year for the X team. Musk has been candid about the likelihood that X will endure, but this week saw another revaluation report from Fidelity, indicating that X’s value has dropped by 71.5% from the $44 billion Musk paid for it.
This includes an almost eleven percent drop for November, when Musk had a tantrum and urged advertisers to “go fuck yourself.”