As the new year approaches, YouTube released its annual list of its top trending creators and videos of 2021. Read on to see if your favorite stars made the cut.
This is the content we’re here for!
With the new year just around the corner, YouTube has released its annual ranking of top trending videos of 2021 and—like the last 11 months itself—the list is full of surprises.
While it’s safe to say that Olivia Rodrigo had a massive year—receiving seven Grammy nominations, including in the “big four” categories—the 18-year-old singer only landed in the ninth spot on YouTube’s Top 10 trending music videos in the United States with “drivers license.” The Weeknd, whose smash hit “Blinding Lights” was arguably one of the top songs of 2020, secured the No. 2 spot with “Save Your Tears,” while Lil Nas X‘s record-breaking single “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” came in as the second runner-up.
So, who had the top trending music video of 2021? According to YouTube, that honor went to Pooh Shiesty, whose “Back In Blood” visuals with Lil Durk garnered more than 211.3 million views since its release on Jan. 2.
As for 2021’s Top 10 trending YouTube creators in the country, MrBeast, who recently made headlines for recreating the entire Squid Game competition with 456 players to play for a cash prize, nabbed the top slot.
The 23-year-old YouTuber’s March 27 video titled “I Spent 50 Hours Buried Alive,” in which he stayed underground in a coffin for more than two days, also took the No. 1 spot on the video platform’s list of top tending videos in the U.S. of 2021.
Another surprise on the top trending video list? Some of the year’s biggest moments were no match for adorable animal content. Mark Rober‘s “Backyard Squirrel Maze 2.0- The Walnut Heist” landed in the second spot, beating out both The Weeknd’s 2021 Super Bowl Halftime Show performance (No. 4) and the inauguration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris (No. 8).
Inspirational videos also proved to be a hit with YouTube users. Dhar Mann‘s video, “Kids MAKE FUN OF Boy With AUTISM, They Instantly Regret It,” which he made to raise funds for Organization For Autism Research, came in sixth place on the list of the year’s top trending videos. Meanwhile, a seven-minute audition clip from America’s Got Talent contestant Nightbirde, who dropped out of the competition this August after her cancer had “taken a turn for the worse,” was the seventh top-trending video of the year.
What will 2022 bring? We’ll just have to stay tuned to find out!
