Welcome to TopBuzz Creator Spotlight, where we’ll be profiling a handful of notable creators who are expanding their distribution prospects onto TopBuzz — a two-year-old content aggregation app owned by Chinese mobile giant Bytedance. Even in a crowded platform landscape, TopBuzz offers discovery and revenue prospects that these creators describe as irrefutably additive.
Earlier this month in Shane Dawson’s Jake Paul docuseries, former Team 10 COO Nick Crompton made a proclamation that was somewhat revelatory and also blindingly obvious: all of Paul’s headline-grabbing pranks are fake, he said.
This is something of a regrettable state of affairs for Jack Vale — one of YouTube’s earliest pranksters who has eschewed the genre in recent years amid its descent into new depths of depravity. Rather than stunts that push the bounds of human decency or find their perpetrators in legal hot water, Vale has attempted to hone a family-friendly brand on his 11-year-old channel, which still houses pranks today.
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As the genre has changed, however, the 45-year-old has sought to maintain his momentum by foraying onto new platforms, including a podcast called The JackPod in which he waxes philosophical about life happenings and recounts funny family stories. In addition to pursuing feature film and linear TV opportunities, Vale has also begun working with content discovery app TopBuzz for the past year.
You can read more about his experiences below:
Tubefilter: You’ve always been a prankster. How has the genre evolved in online video and how have you stuck with it?
Jack Vale: Sadly, I think the prank genre has mostly evolved with a negative stigma that has gotten more obvious over the years. I stuck with it by staying true to myself and my brand, knowing that in the end, it would be worth it. I have always wanted to be a positive role model for kids, especially my own. It would be pretty hard to do that if I were creating videos with sexual or mean-spirited content, paying people to run away while I chase them, or getting them to chase me.
TF: How do you pull of the balance between creating compelling prank videos and remaining family friendly?
JV: It has always been important to me to create clean, funny content and be involved in projects that are family-friendly because I have always been more interested in the comedy of each bit, rather than the potential shock value. Growing up, I paid close attention to Don Knotts, Leslie Nielsen, and others who came across as extremely funny because of the way they talked, walked, and behaved. I loved watching them because they had a natural, comedic appeal.
I enjoy knowing that families and kids can watch my pranks without worrying about inappropriate content. I do know that there is a big audience for creators who offer adult-oriented, shock value videos, but it’s just not who I am and in this business, the most important thing is always being true to yourself. I don’t push the envelope as far as reactions go. If it’s a funny idea, the reactions will come. You don’t have to fake anything if you are creative enough. The other thing about keeping it clean is that brands are generally more likely to work with creators who appeal to families.
TF: What’re you working on currently?
JV: I am now involved in TV and film production and I love it. Recently, I started my own podcast called The JackPod and I love it. I’m a talker so it’s fun for me to talk about my videos, my faith, and what’s in the news lately.
TF: When did you start working with TopBuzz? How did you link up with the company?
JV: I’ve been working with TopBuzz for about a year after the company reached out to me. At the time, I hadn’t heard of the platform but decided I wanted to be a part of it once I downloaded the app and couldn’t look away from it. A warning: be prepared to get good at time management. You’ll have to. Aside from being a creator, the general user will have a blast, and you will get addicted to it fast.
TF: How much and what kinds of content are you distributing on the platform? Any future plans?
JV: I basically synced up all of the content from my other social media platforms (YouTube, Facebook, etc.) so my videos pretty much automatically import themselves into TopBuzz. I am also uploading videos natively to the site on a daily basis. Recently, I started re-editing my existing videos, many times making multiple videos out of one. I think it’s good to experiment with the length of my videos so I can see what performs the best.
TF: What is the benefit, in your eyes, of distributing on TopBuzz, in terms of both exposure and revenues?
JV: Simply put, the benefit to uploading on TopBuzz is the exposure to a new audience and the extra income. I made more on TopBuzz last month than I did on YouTube, and that has helped tremendously. I’m able to have more funds for creativity. As someone who gets hit up by companies all the time, I have to pick and choose who it makes sense to be involved with. So far, joining up with Top Buzz has been the best thing I’ve done for my online comedy career this past year. I expect the next year to be even better.
This Creator Spotlight is brought to you by TopBuzz. TopBuzz is a distribution platform that uses powerful AI and algorithms to help creators and publishers discover new audiences for their content. If you’re interested in monetizing your content join TopBuzz for free. Take the AI-powered app for a spin and see how your customized feed improves with every touch. Download TopBuzz for iOS or Android.
