YouTube has a huge, thriving community of creators. Still, many of the most successful among them tend to be white, especially in the US.Â
In this article, we’ll show that the creator community is more diverse than that – by spotlighting the most famous black YouTubers out there.Â
Heads up: We’ve excluded some big names who’re most active on other platforms, like TikTok stars Khaby Lame (who we’ve discussed before) and DreaKnowsBest. We’ve also limited ourselves to active YouTubers, ruling out some famous creators like Liza Koshy, who last posted a year ago.Â
That said, here’s our round-up of the most famous black creators on YouTube.
Contents
Heading our list of the most famous black YouTubers is JJ Olatunji, whose personal channel has 16.3 million subs. His music channel, which he runs as KSI (Knowledge Strength Integrity), is even bigger, with 24.1 million subscribers.Â
Born in Britain, his full name is Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji, with the acronym JJ standing for JideJunior. Apart from his rapping, he’s also a professional actor, filmmaker, and amateur boxer.
On top of that, he’s known as a founding member of the gameplay and comedy channel The Sidemen, with over 19 million subs.
Dive into the life of KSI.
Today, he even has his own Amazon Prime series. He’s one of the most famous British YouTubers out there.Â
Next up, there’s Marques Brownlee, aka MKBHD, who runs one of the biggest tech YouTube channels. He has over 17.6 million subscribers and has posted over 1.5 K videos to date.Â
MKBHD’s content revolves around reviewing gadgets, from the newest iPhone to smartwatches and even Teslas. He’s also well-known for testing products from lesser-known brands and for giving his viewers no-nonsense recommendations for what to buy.
MKBHD’s reviews are accessible, opinionated, and focused on real-world usefulness.
Plus: He really tests how various appliances perform in real-world situations, rather than just doing a superficial unboxing and running through the technical specs.
Another famous black YouTuber is Cory DeVante Williams, aka CoryxKenshin. He’s a US-based creator with 17.2 million subs, and he’s especially known for his comedy and gaming content.Â
When he first started out on YouTube 14 years ago, he focused on comedy skits. Later, he expanded into gaming videos, especially horror games like Ao Oni and Five Nights at Freddy’s.
Cory has also made waves because he’s publicly called YouTube out for discrimination. In particular, he’s criticized the platform for age-gating some of his content while videos by other YouTubers, notably Markiplier, weren’t – even though they focused on the same games.
Cory’s playthrough of Amanda the Adventurer is off to a compelling start.
Heads up: Cory occasionally goes on hiatus for a few weeks.
In fourth place on our list of the most famous black YouTubers is Deji Olatunji, aka ComedyShortsGamer, who can boast 11 million subscribers and more than 2 K videos. He posts roughly weekly.
Deij is a British creator and the younger brother of JJ Olatunji, who heads this list. Like his brother, he creates gaming content, videos of pranks and challenges, as well as boxing and music content.Â
Together, they’ve even taken on the Paul brothers in a fight.Â
Olatunji brothers, ready to rumble?!
Rounding out our list of the biggest black YouTube creators is Patricia Bright, with 2.8 million subs. She’s huge in the beauty niche and focuses on fashion, makeup, and hair tutorials. Plus, she gives out not only style, but also life advice.Â
Patricia started out working in investment banking, but has since become a full-time content creator. Her side-channel, The Break, reflects both interests: Here, she and her guests talk about finance, career, and personal development topics.
Bestie vibes and bite-size life advice with Patricia Bright.
What makes her content unique is her infectious personality and dry sense of humor. She’s straightforward, open, and can easily feel like your best friend.Â
It’s no wonder she became the first black British YouTuber to cross one million subs!Â
The Bottom Line on the Most Famous Black YouTubers
The black YouTubers on this list all create outstanding content and have gathered massive audiences of loyal followers.Â
While diverse creators are still in the minority among the biggest YouTubers out there, YouTube did launch an annual program – YouTubeBlackVoices – in 2020 to amplify a new generation of black creators specifically.
FAQs
The biggest black YouTuber who’s currently active is JJ Olatunji, with 16.3 million subs on his personal channel and 24.1 million subs on his music channel.  Â
The most famous black YouTuber is JJ Olatunji, followed closely by Marques Brownlee and CoryxKenshin.Â
The black YouTuber with the most subs is JJ Olatunji, with 16.3 million followers on his personal channel and 24.1 million subscribers on his music channel.  Â
JJ and Deji Olatunji, Marques Brownlee, CoryxKenshin, and Patricia Bright are some of the best, currently active, black YouTubers out there.Â
Some of the most famous black YouTubers out there are JJ and Deji Olatunji, Marques Brownlee, CoryxKenshin, and Patricia Bright.
