Daniel El Travieso discusses what Hispanic Heritage Month and being a YouTuber means to him
Oct 09, 2020 – minute read
It was like love at first sight.”
Four years ago, when I uploaded my first video to YouTube, I had no idea I’d one day have 9.57 million subscribers on my main channel. Now, I’m proud to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with you all, as a Latino YouTuber who has gotten this far because of my community.
People think that my career was planned and organized since the beginning for me. They think that I wanted to be a YouTuber from day one, and it wasn't like that. When I got started, I started on a platform that no longer exists. It shut down. I immediately thought my world as an entertainer was over, until a friend told me about YouTube. It was like love at first sight. I started to create that same kind of comedic content — all from my cell phone — but now for YouTube.
When I took my hobby to YouTube and saw how YouTube compensated its creators through the monetization of Google ads, I thought, “Wow!” After a year of uploading content without stopping, revenue sharing was a huge incentive. For me, it was a dream come true! Being able to do what I love from my home, Puerto Rico, was actually more than a dream come true.
This island has something that generates strong, talented people who don't give up!”
I was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, a magical island! I love where I come from. People still ask me, “Is everything okay in PR? Didn't Maria destroy it? The earthquakes? Pandemic?”
And that's what I mean when I say that I am proud of where I come from because even after all that, in my humble opinion, I think that the Island after Maria looks even more beautiful. It's sad what it did for many of us, but just as magical as this island is, so are the people. This island has something that generates strong, talented people who don't give up! And that is why I laugh when they ask me about Puerto Rico, because PR will always be fine even during tough situations. We’ve got this.
In this time of acknowledging our Latino heritage, being a Latino entertainer feels like a true blessing, because the Latin people welcome you in a special way, making you feel part of a great family. The support of Latinos is massive and they never miss the opportunity to be connected with you, to write to you, to ask you, to make you feel that you are important.
The support of Latinos for those who make a living from the entertainment industry is unprecedented. That is why Latino figures are so successful, because they lean on a grateful and active public, which massively supports the works and material produced by their artists. I don't think there is a more devoted audience than Latino people.
Being a Latino entertainer fills me with an immense pride, because I represent the people with the biggest heart on the planet. Love, support and attention are constantly felt. The audience pays you with genuine love, and there is nothing that can compare to that. It is the true source of inspiration for everything we do and the ideal motivation to keep working harder.