Dwelling the LGBTQIA+ side of YouTube in the 2010s was an interesting thing, wasn’t it? It felt like for every 1 video holding important conversations about LGBTQIA+ joy, coming out, and romance there were 15 channels dedicated to fetishizing queer relationships. I am so glad we have slowly grown past promoting queer videos with sheer “shock factor” and there seems to be more positive corners of the internet. The following creators have been pivotal for me in feeling welcomed to YouTube and have created positive content for me to ignore my work with. These are not ranked in any way because we don’t do that here!
I first discovered Benji through a video where he gave a tour of his LA apartment full of houseplants. Even though I’ve killed almost every plant I’ve tried to take care of them (I don’t think I’ve watered my snake plant in a year but it’s still kicking), I never miss an upload. Benji’s soothing personality are only made more comforting by the subjects ranging from plant care to honey vlogs. Though his channel started as an educational channel for plants, it has matured to a lifestyle channel in which Benji, his boyfriend Chris, and their adorable chihuahua, Theo.
Annamarie for me is one of the examples of how commentary YouTubers are keeping the website alive! Like most YouTubers in their niche, Annamarie covers every topic from politics to pop culture. Her humor and commentary is a refreshing take on a pretty male-dominated space.
Every couple of weeks I fixate on one YouTuber and religiously watch every single video they have ever created. For Joe Lee, this fixation has not ended and I doubt it ever. His videos are addicting not just because of his personality, but also because he promotes taking care of yourself and living a more positive life. His vlogs range from chronicling the running of his brand, Less Shiddy, his brick and mortar shop, and living life in Vancouver with his partner, Ryan, and dog, Jasper, that looks very much like a cow. To me, his videos perfectly encompass the energy of a Sunday; days to reset and reflect.
I first found Ryan on TikTok while he talked about his life as an American in Japan. His content centers around what he learns while exploring the streets of Tokyo which is comforting for someone like me that is scared of leaving my house and planes. On his secondary channel, ryan crouse podcast,
I would only ever recommend you waste almost 2 hours of your life-giving money to Google if I truly believed it would be well worth it. ContraPoints’ way of explaining deeply complex and polarizing concepts is truly magical. She’s also fully an academic, and she was on track to get her Ph.D.…. Crazy!
Damon Dominique is one of those YouTubers whose videos I can watch for hours on end, then repeat, then repeat again,. He uploads some of the most entertaining and aesthetic travel content. His videos have such a charm to them not just because he shares his lessons on travel and life, but because they are visually stunning and encapsulate so many different feelings through the colors, angles, and subjects.
Joel is one of my favorites of the “BookTube” variety because of his incredibly infectious personality and joy. I first found his videos on Hearstopper and fell in love with his extremely soothing content. Something about watching someone passionately talk about their favorite books that fix a lot of my issues…
While compiling this list, I could not help but realize the lack of Queer women and non-binary people I have in my YouTube subscription! It is so important that we realize that we live in a time when white cis men are still at the forefront of LGBTQIA+ content.
Feel free to drop your favorite creators in the comments!
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You ate this little one upppp
Thank youuuuuuuuu