Welcome to YouTube Millionaires, where we profile channels that have recently crossed the one million subscriber mark. There are channels crossing this threshold every week, and each has a story to tell about YouTube success. Read previous installments of YouTube Millionaires here.
In a YouTube landscape filled with fashion and beauty vloggers, Evelina Barry does her best to stand out. On her mononymous YouTube channel, the 26-year-old content creator shares everything from DIY projects to new looks to explorations of her Russian heritage with her subscribers, who now number more than one million. Evelina is also expanding beyond her home base; she hosts a web series with Refinery29 called Daycation. Here are her thoughts on her web success:
Tubefilter: How does it feel to have 1 million subscribers? What do you want to say to your fans?
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Evelina Barry: It feels pretty amazing and surreal. I’ve never had a million of anything besides fruit flies in my downtown loft when I forgot peaches on the counter before leaving to New York.
TF: Why did you decide to start a YouTube channel?
EB: Back when it used to say “Broadcast Yourself” on YouTube it kind of got me thinking what a powerful tool this Internet thing is. I could upload a video and people I’ve never met could click and instantly know something about me. Out of curiosity to see if anyone would watch, I started uploading silly videos about my day or how I braid my hair, and here we are today.
TF: Lots of people love talking about fashion on YouTube. How do you set yourself apart?
EB: I try to take a more fun approach. For the longest time fashion has been this exclusive club that only the cool rich kids could be a part of. My main message is to make fashion inclusive and accessible.
TF: You said on your YouTube channel about page you would love to be a fashion editor and stylist someday. If you could be a style editor for any magazine or brand, what would it be and why?
EB: Vogue, they’re kind of the boss.
TF: And where’d that love of tomato juice come from? What’s your favorite recipe/drink to make with it?
EB: I’ve been drinking it for as long as I can remember myself. In my head it’s like the tastiest thing on the planet, I don’t know why.
TF: Where do you get your fashion inspiration from? We noticed you did a video (which has over a million views) about Russian vs. American fashion in particular.
EB: My ideas are sporadic and random. I’ll usually just sit down and come up with a bunch of topics I will eventually film. Some days I just get ready and hope to come up with something by the time I’m done putting on mascara.
TF: If you could collaborate with any one fashion star or stylist, who would it be and why?
EB: I would do a beanboozled challenge with Anna Wintour, it would probably break the internet.
TF: What is one non-fashion topic you’d like to address in a video but haven’t gotten around to yet?
EB: Probably my near eating disorder I had in my teen years. It’s a bit of a sensitive subject, but I’ll get to it.
TF: What’s next for your channel? Any fun plans?
EB: I want to take my production quality to the next level and work on that consistency. I also enjoyed opening up to my audience more this year, I’ll keep doing that.
On Deck (channels that will soon reach one million subscribers): JackandJackVideos, Henrique e Juliano, Moo Snuckel
