Just moments before he hit his milestone of 1 million subscribers, YouTube parody master Bart Baker joined us live in the studio to chat about the evolution of his channel, incredible celebrity impressions, and tips on creating the perfect parody.
"When I first started, I was like, there's no way I'll get hit a million, you know? My parents were like, 'Yeah right. Good luck, loser,'" he jokes. "No, not really. They were cool about it. But it feels crazy, I guess!" He says that the huge jump in subscribers came just within the past seven months, pointing out that last year at VidCon he had about 170,000 subs. "And it took me two years to get there!"
He attributes the growth in viewership to some key changes he made on his own. "I moved to LA so I could start making more videos. Doing collaborations helps a lot, definitely. And I kind of changed up the way I did it. I made it more creative and I took more time writing it." He adds, "I started playing the lead character instead of hiring like 90 year olds." Having started off his parody career right out of college with a spoof of "Boom Boom Pow" called "Big Old Pubes," Baker shares his learned tips for making an ultimately great parody. "You gotta pick a popular song. Go to youtube.com/music and see what's popping off," he starts. "You write it, make sure it's funny. Get a good cast. And then you gotta make sure it looks just like the original."
Want to win the teddy bear from Baker's "We Can't Stop" Miley Cyrus parody? All you have to do is follow him on Instagram, and he'll announce the winner at the end of his next video! For more exclusive chats with your favorite YouTube stars, subscribe to What's Trending.