YouTube releases its report on the year's top trends

• YouTube released their yearly report on the year's top trends.

• Notably, many of the trends appeared on the list for multiple countries.

• YouTube thinks that future successful media franchises will percolate through multiple digital channels.

With 2.5 billion monthly active users, YouTube is the world’s second most popular social media platform (behind only Facebook). As such, it is more than worth it to listen whenever they speak about the creator economy.

Thankfully for us, the latest version of their yearly Culture And Trend Report just arrived.

The meat and potatoes of the report is a list of the year’s top trending topics, creators, top songs, and top songs on shorts in 12 different countries. 

Unsurprisingly, in the US, the election, MrBeast, and Kendrick Lamar are in pole position.

However, the really interesting thing about this year’s report is how much overlap there is between countries. Each list has at least one shared trending topic, with many sharing multiple.

For example, The Amazing Digital Circus, an Australian animated series, appears on the list of eight countries. Roblox’s Dress To Impress appears on three. The 2024 Olympics lands on ten. And Deadpool & Wolverine appears on five.

As YouTube puts it, this indicates that “the pace at which culture evolves is being set online and accelerating at a pace that privileges the digital media properties and franchises that emerge from within.” 

In other words, the creative brands that win in the future will be the brands that can spread their wings and become a digital global phenomenon. 

Deadpool & Wolverine is the perfect example. Yes, it was a hit movie, but what really thrust it onto the leaderboards was the actors' appearance on Hot Ones, the viral “Dancepool” trend, and its own Fortnite emote. It transcended beyond just a movie to become a full-fledged media franchise.

It’s likely we’ll see more brands and creators try to replicate that playbook in the coming years.