Meet the Sub-Saharan Africa YouTube Black Voices class of 2023
Nov 15, 2022 – [[read-time]] minute read
We believe in the power and importance of amplifying Black stories. From content centered around fashion and wellness, to videos about comedy and politics, Black creators and artists continue to play an important role in shaping the culture of YouTube and driving the platform forward every day. That’s why, in 2020, we created the YouTube Black Voices Fund, a global, multi-year commitment to center and grow Black creators and artists on our platform, as well as to produce and acquire new YouTube Original programs, focused on racial justice and Black experiences.
We built the YouTube Black Voices Fund to invest with an intention to present fresh narratives that emphasise the intellectual power, authenticity, dignity, and joy of Black voices, as well as to educate audiences about racial justice.
As part of this Fund, we developed the YouTube Black Voices grant program, an initiative dedicated to equipping Black creators and artists with the resources to thrive on YouTube. Our first two classes have launched short films, topped Billboard charts, been nominated for and won Grammy Awards and so much more.
Today, we’re pleased to announce that the YouTube Black Voices Class of 2023 is here! It’s our biggest class yet with 179 grantees, hailing from around the world and innovating in every way. Meet the class below, discover your new fav creator, and keep an eye out for all of the exciting content they’ll create in 2023.
We’re honoured to equip the talented creatives with resources to fuel their creativity. In the coming months, we will work closely with these creators by offering dedicated partner support from YouTube and seed funding to help them develop their channels and grow on our platform. They will also have opportunities to participate in bespoke training, workshops, and networking programs.
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We built the YouTube Black Voices Fund to invest with an intention to present fresh narratives that emphasise the intellectual power, authenticity, dignity, and joy of Black voices, as well as to educate audiences about racial justice. This initiative also includes investing in the impact of our platform, and over the program, we've directly empowered more than 500 creators and artists from across the world to support, grow, and fund their channels and content development. In addition to the YouTube Black Voices Fund grantees who partner with YouTube directly, we’ll continue to support and connect with the wider global Black diaspora and communities through a wide range of programming and events.
The YouTube Black Voices Fund is only one facet of the comprehensive work currently underway to make YouTube a place where Black artists, creators, and users can feel empowered to share their stories. We continue to make product and policy changes to meet that goal and recently provided an update on our work to make YouTube a more inclusive platform, including how we handle harmful and hateful comments.
We can’t wait for you to hear more from the Class of 2023 as they continue embarking on their journeys as creators and artists, sharing their stories and their music!
Below is our full list of the #YouTubeBlackVoices 2023 creator class from Sub-Saharan Africa.
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- Click to learn more about the creators who are joining the YouTube Black Voices Class of 2023: United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Brazil.
- Click to learn more about the artists, songwriters, and producers who are joining the YouTube Black Voices Music Class of 2023.