We love watching TV and movies here at Nerdist, but since we are primarily a web presence, we spend a fair share of our time browsing YouTube. I know that personally, there are plenty of days when I watch more YouTube (shouts out to GameGrumps) than network shows or box office hits, because YouTube as a platform is capable of offering a more casual media experience than big-budgeted productions can, and sometimes, that kind of easygoing watch is all we need.
YouTube has undeniably changed the media landscape, and to commemorate a noteworthy 2016 in online videos, the video streaming service has posted a video that pays tribute to the greatest online trends of the past 12 months, and boy is it a trip down memory lane.
It opens with newfound YouTube star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson pulling a red rewind button from an equally red fanny pack and saying, “Bring it.” Set to music by The Hood Internet and Major Lazer, the original video takes a celebratory look back at what was big on the service in 2016, and they included nods to hydraulic press videos, unlikely bruise-faced sports hero Scott Sterling, the DudePerfect guys, video game “Let’s Play” legend PewDiePie, water bottle flipping, Kanye West’s controversial “Famous” music video, and others.
They even snagged some high-profile celebrities who aren’t distinctly YouTube personalities, but whose presence on the site is undeniable, like The Daily Show‘s Trevor Noah, One Direction member Niall Horan, Seth Meyers, and James Corden with a quick Carpool Karaoke segment. It just goes to show that YouTube culture is becoming an increasingly important part of pop culture as a whole, so take a look back above at what online video in 2016 was like.
Featured image: YouTube Spotlight
