Indie Content Creators: Black Nerd Comedy
For those who are interested in humorous takes on the newest pop culture content, the Black Nerd Comedy YouTube Channel has 14 years of entertainment to provide. With over 1,000 videos to pick from and nearly 770,000 subscribers, Andre Meadows has had a long time to optimize and fine tune his personal brand. Yet, throughout this time, the humor has always remained consistent.
At the very beginning of the Black Nerd Comedy channel’s archive, there are primarily 2–3-minute videos, most of which are parodies of then-popular songs. The song choices as well as the camera and audio quality of these early YouTube videos are emblematic of the times when YouTube was in its infancy. The platform in 17 years old as of 2022. Black Nerd Comedy’s earliest video is 14 years old. Andre Meadows is more than a veteran content creator, he’s an ancient presence on the platform who continues to create to this day. That said, the most interesting thing about these musical parodies is their consistency in subject matter. Every single musical parody Andre has done is related to a specific pop culture IP.
The earliest content of Black Nerd Comedy not only consists of music videos. There are also videos of Andre performing both stand-up comedy and some comedy sketches. This is an element that will soon transform into its own unique video style known as the “rant”. In Andre’s “Black Nerd Rants” videos, he chooses a specific topic, and performs a two-minute stand-up set, riffing on the issues he has with the chosen topic. Unlike his early recordings of his stand-up, these videos are in direct conversation with the YouTube audience and represent a shift in strategy when it comes to audience engagement. Yes, the audience is looking at the screen, but now Andre is looking back.
While there is other interesting content on the Black Nerd Comedy channel that includes vlogs, interviews, and collaborations with other content creators, the kinds of videos that have remained consistent and continue into the present day are Andre’s television, film, and video game reviews. It is understandable that these would be the forms of content that last for a multitude of reasons. The large following of the Black Nerd Comedy channel is attractive to companies with new content that want honest, early reviews of their content to reach a wide audience. Andre’s channel is large enough to be a vehicle for that kind of spread.
Additionally, reviewing the newest shows, movies, and games automatically increases the chances of audience interest by virtue of the content reviewed being a new public curiosity. Thirdly, these reviews are an easier genre of video to organize and edit than an interview, and especially a music video. With the content review genre, Andre does not have to worry about scheduling a recording time with a guest, or scouting a location, or carefully editing to the beat of a song.
While the new content on the Black Nerd Comedy channel is mostly reviews, the playful editing skills and comedic timing is still present and always has been. Now, those skills are used to enhance the entertainment value of the content review and undoubtedly allow Black Nerd Comedy to continue to stand out as a uniquely creative channel.
