In this Try a Trend series, we surface some top trends that our experts are seeing around the world on YouTube. Whether you’re looking for inspiration for your next video, general YouTube knowledge, or opportunities to get ahead of rising trends, here are some key trends and insights to chew on.
We welcome fall with yet another set of trends for this month, where we transition off Barbie (finally?) and start getting cozy.
Music tours coming online
What this is: The past few months have been dominated by powerhouse music tours from the likes of Taylor Swift and Beyoncé, with their Eras and Renaissance Tours respectively. Regardless of whether you were able to catch these concerts in person, Shorts has become a space for fans to share in the concert-going experience
and build community online, even if they weren’t able to snag tickets. Many partook in a wide variety of trends from home and in-person, inspired by the concerts taking place from outfit reveals to dance challenges to the "mute challenge".
Why this matters: Casual creation is on the rise, with 82% of people saying they’ve posted video content online over the past 12 months.1 This participation from audiences has expanded what it means to be a content creator, thus furthering the fan experience and expanding the reach of in-person activities globally. Every cultural moment is thus now an opportunity to connect and participate even if you aren’t physically there, making for a multitude of experiences and interactions well beyond the limitations of a few hour in-person event.
Football around the world
What this is: Football, or soccer, is the world’s most popular sport, and has been particularly newsworthy amongst sports fans recently from the Women’s World Cup to Messi’s splash in the MLS to star players heading to the Saudi Pro League. There have been more than 240B views on videos related to football so far in 2023, however, fans are engaging with their favorite sport in unexpected ways.2 One of the more intriguing trends has been creator-led football events as content, rather than creators just making content about football. In London this month, for example, U.K. creator collective Sidemen hosted their fifth annual charity match, where top YouTube creators around the world joined team rosters to compete for the cup. The event sold 62,000 seats in under two hours, and extended the match’s reach with a livestream of over 2.5 million peak concurrent viewers.3
Why this matters: The Sidemen Charity Match exemplifies how creators are successfully expanding upon their personal brands and projects, by turning them into official events with ample opportunities for exposure, growth, and expansion. Sports have become a popular entry point, with events from YouTube boxing matches to football matches that have fan engagement as any other pro sports moment on the calendar.
A parody track finds multiformat success
What this is: The brainchild of comedian Kyle Gordon, “Planet of the Bass” from DJ Crazy Times and his vibrant counterpart Ms. Biljana Electronica features an undeniably catchy parody of Eurodance hits from the ‘90s, and has become a multiformat memetic masterpiece. Starting with a short form teaser of the song published across platforms, Gordon drummed up so much excitement that the drop of the full music video amassed 1.8M views in the first seven days and appeared on trending in 9 countries.4 The conversation has since continued with audiences partaking in the faux phenomenon by using the comment section to pretend to sincerely reminisce about the ‘90s hit. The creator also released a “VHS Version” of their retro music video, solidifying Planet of the Bass as what is being called the song of the summer.
Why this matters: While we have seen the traditional music industry preview tracks with a multi-format strategy, this is an example of a nontraditional artist turning short-form success into a full-on song. The song's multiformat trajectory shows how the creators of parody songs — which have long been fodder for viral moments — are adjusting to meet audience's needs and feed into meme culture.
Over the past 90 days, views of videos with “What I would wear as'' in the title have doubled from the first 30 days through the last 90.
What I would wear as…
What this is: Over the past 90 days, views of videos with “What I would wear as'' in the title have doubled from the first 30 days through the last 90.5 This trend is multi-faceted, but builds on the foundation of Creators uploading videos showing off different outfits they’d wear in different occupations, such as “What I would wear as a teacher” or “What I would wear as a K-pop idol,.” to provide stylish inspiration. To take it one step further, people who have experience with those occupations are also posting their own videos reacting to others’ videos, giving thumbs up or thumbs down on the appropriateness of the fit, creating a full two-way dialogue.
Why this matters: Everyone has some kind of expertise that they can use to participate within a trend. By offering an informed response to other people's content, creator
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Retrogaming
What this is: Retrogaming is the collection and playing of older video games. YouTube’s retro-gaming community is made up of creators who play, analyze, and celebrate the history and impact of classic games (70’s and on) and the consoles they were created for. While many have memories of the popularity of classic games, they have seen explosive recent popularity with over 1000 times more uploads of videos related to retrogaming in the first half of this year than there were for the same period in 2007.6 Retrogaming is also a true global phenomenon, with top views this year coming from countries in South America, Europe, and Asia.
Why this matters: Even as technological advancements spur new innovations and trends within gaming, older games are given fresh life online through a community that taps into the emotional power of nostalgia — a powerful driver of audience interests.
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1. Google/Ipsos, Global (U.S., U.K., AU, FR, DE, MX, IN, ID, KOR, CAN, JP, BR, KSA, EGY), YouTube Trends Survey, n=25,892, online adults, age 18-44, May 2023.
2. Source: YouTube data, Global, 1 Jan - 18 Sep 2023
3. Source: YouTube data, Global, 9 Sep 2023.
4. Source: YouTube data, Global, 1 Jan - 18 Sep 2023
5. Source: YouTube data, Global, Jun - Sep 2023
6. Source: YouTube data, Global, lifetime