YouTube creator MrBeast pulled in a cool $54 million in earnings last year, more than any YouTuber ever, according to Forbes magazine.
MrBeast, 23, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, has more than 88 million subscribers on YouTube and is popular for videos that feature money giveaways, charitable initiatives and awe-inspiring stunts. A recent viral video featured a set-by-set re-enactment of the games from Netflix hit Squid Game and awarded the winner a $456,000 prize.
The American internet personality’s popular videos and stunts range from the bizarre to the brilliant, and include sitting in slime for 24 hours and being buried alive for 50 hours, to giving away 10,000 free frozen turkeys for Thanksgiving and “tipping” a pizza delivery boy a fully furnished, mortgage-free house.
Using “philanthropy as entertainment” is a key theme in his videos. For his charity initiative #TeamSeas, Donaldson teamed up with fellow YouTuber Mark Rober to raise $30m to clean up trash from the world’s water bodies.
In 2021, Donaldson won the YouTube Steamy Awards Creator of the Year for the second year in a row. His videos have garnered 10 billion views and he has more than 150 million subscribers on his combined YouTube channels, which include MrBeast Gaming, Beast Reacts and Beast Philanthropy.
The social media star has also launched MrBeast Burger, an app-based meal-ordering service, and an interactive games company.
Posting his first YouTube video at the age of 13, his early content focused on video game playthroughs and, somewhat ironically, videos that estimated the wealth of popular YouTubers. His first viral video in 2017 only came after he had spent five years on the platform, and showed him counting to 100,000, a task that took him more than 40 hours to complete.
Here are the top 10 highest-paid YouTube stars of 2021, as per the Forbes ranking:
1. MrBeast – $54 million
2. Jake Paul – $45 million
3. Markiplier – $38 million
4. Rhett & Link – $30 million
5. Unspeakable – $28.5 million
6. Like Nastya – $28 million
7. Ryan Kaji (Ryan’s World) – $27 million
8. Dude Perfect – $20 million
9. Logan Paul – $18 million
10. Preston – $16 million
Gender pay parity on track in the UAE
The UAE has a good record on gender pay parity, according to Mercer's Total Remuneration Study.
"In some of the lower levels of jobs women tend to be paid more than men, primarily because men are employed in blue collar jobs and women tend to be employed in white collar jobs which pay better," said Ted Raffoul, career products leader, Mena at Mercer. "I am yet to see a company in the UAE – particularly when you are looking at a blue chip multinationals or some of the bigger local companies – that actively discriminates when it comes to gender on pay."
Mr Raffoul said most gender issues are actually due to the cultural class, as the population is dominated by Asian and Arab cultures where men are generally expected to work and earn whereas women are meant to start a family.
"For that reason, we see a different gender gap. There are less women in senior roles because women tend to focus less on this but that’s not due to any companies having a policy penalising women for any reasons – it’s a cultural thing," he said.
As a result, Mr Raffoul said many companies in the UAE are coming up with benefit package programmes to help working mothers and the career development of women in general.
The Matrix Resurrections
Director: Lana Wachowski
Stars: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jessica Henwick
Rating:****
TUESDAY'S ORDER OF PLAY
Centre Court
Starting at 2pm:
Elina Svitolina (UKR) [3] v Jennifer Brady (USA)
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) v Belinda Bencic (SUI [4]
Not before 7pm:
Sofia Kenin (USA) [5] v Elena Rybakina (KAZ)
Maria Sakkari (GRE) v Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) [7]
Court One
Starting at midday:
Karolina Muchova (CZE) v Katerina Siniakova (CZE)
Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) v Aliaksandra Sasnovich (BLR)
Veronika Kudermetova (RUS) v Dayana Yastermska (UKR)
Petra Martic (CRO) [8] v Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE)
Sorana Cirstea (ROU) v Anett Kontaveit (EST)
Race card for Super Saturday
4pm: Al Bastakiya Listed US$250,000 (Dh918,125) (Dirt) 1,900m.
4.35pm: Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $200,000 (D) 1,200m.
5.10pm: Nad Al Sheba Conditions $200,000 (Turf) 1,200m.
5.45pm: Burj Nahaar Group 3 $200,000 (D) 1,600m.
6.20pm: Jebel Hatta Group 1 $300,000 (T) 1,800m.
6.55pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round 3 Group 1 $400,000 (D) 2,000m.
7.30pm: Dubai City of Gold Group 2 $250,000 (T) 2,410m.
The years Ramadan fell in May
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
