Rolling Stones Start Up YouTube's Living Legends

A few weeks ago, at the Vidoecracy party in New York, YouTube announced a trio of new content initiatives for the coming year: The YouTube Games (basically an Americanized MXC), The YouTube Global Gathering (kinda like Live Earth, but different) and Living Legends. Today, the video-sharing site let the latter one loose.

In what’s a thinly veiled promotion for their just-released, Scorsese-directed, career-spanning, documentary feature, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards (at a cumulative age of 128) address YouTube nation as its first Living Legends. Once a month, the program will feature “luminaries from around the world to communicate directly with the YouTube community by answering your questions and becoming a genuine participant on the site.” Here it is from the original tongue and lip:

They ask for “burning questions,” though I doubt any regarding the band’s alleged involvement in the occult, Richards’ blood transfusions to steady the rattles of heroin addiction, and the snorting of one’s parents will be entertained. Still, it could be a good venue for fanatics concerned with the bands minutia, influences, etc. to find answers.  Plus, YouTube’s homepage features renditions of Start Me Up – from the likes of Tay Zonday to the salt of the earth – in honor of the event.

###Instead of pop stars, future months are set to showcase people prolific in “film, sports, politics, and a whole lot more.” So far, I have to say I kinda agree with oldhacks, who commented that Mick Jagger isn’t a living legend, “Mick Jagger is a pop star. There’s a HUGE difference!”

YouTube has the opportunity to highlight some truly extraordinary people. I suppose Mick Jagger is one, but that his coronation coincides with his movie premiere cheapens the honor. Until there’s a legend that’s less shill, I’ll stick to watching vids about people trying to do legendary things.

Queen Rania of Jordan just started her own YouTube channel to “encourage a global dialog to dismantle stereotypes of the Muslim and the Arab world.” That should be a good place to start.