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It's Tuesday and the NSA has officially launched its own podcast—meaning this is your chance to listen in on them for a change. How’s that for a switch-up?

Today’s News

CHART TOPPERS

Move over, Billboard: Roblox will begin publishing its own music charts in 2025

The context: Roblox is reasserting its role as a cultural tastemaker—especially when it comes to music. Over the last few years, the platform has tapped Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and Sony Music for various in-game events, promotions, and other partnerships, and even received an investment from Warner during its $520 million H round in 2021.

Most recently, Roblox teamed up with Universal Music Group and Republic Records in March to debut Boombox: an ad-supported music player that allows Roblox’s nearly 80 million users to listen to music while they explore the platform.

The announcement: Now, Roblox is taking another step into the music world. In addition to launching a YouTube Music/Spotify-esque player called What’s Playing (which gives users the ability to discover and “like” tracks), the platform will begin publishing music charts in 2025 as part of its partnership with indie distributor DistroKid. According to Music Business Worldwide, those charts will be based on the performance of tracks available through What’s Playing, and will highlight popular artists and “audio experiences.”

The takeaway: Roblox is far from the first platform to track what music is popping with its user base. YouTube and TikTok also publish music charts, and have increasingly invested in their respective roles as musical kingmakers (just look at the rise of viral stars like Chappell Roan). Roblox wants to assert its cultural authority on the music industry, too, while simultaneously offering more listening tools. The company has generated over $1.2 billion for the creator economy since 2017, underlying its substantial impact. Now that Roblox is getting into the music biz, it’s definitely worth staying tuned in.

🔆 SPONSORED 🔆

Introducing Spotter Studio: An integrated brainstorm partner, project manager, and research assistant

Spotter is making it easier for creators to save time and streamline their workflows. 

After hundreds of conversations with the world’s top YouTubers, the leading creator company has launched Spotter Studio: an integrated brainstorm partner, project manager, and research assistant. 

Spotter Studio is a suite of next-level creative tools that combines real-time data insights, cutting-edge AI models, and personalized ideation to help creators save time, energy , and money. 

Data-driven technology designed with creators in mind.

Leading creator economy experts and stars like Dude Perfect, Kinigra Deon, and Colin & Samir teamed up with Spotter to ensure that every aspect of its creative suite—from ideation features to storytelling tools—meets the specific needs of creators. 

As a result, Spotter Studio offers a comprehensive solution for creators looking to brainstorm new video titles, perfect their thumbnails, streamline their production processes, and more.

Ready to find out how Spotter Studio can help optimize your content and workflow?

Start your 30 day free trial now →

HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

• Kid-friendly hubs dominated this week’s global YouTube charts, with five of the top ten channels appealing specifically to young audiences. (Tubefilter)
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• X has reportedly posted job listings for two dozen positions related to cybersafety and security. (TechRadar)

• Roblox CEO David Baszucki says the platform’s number of daily active users “grew by double digits in each of the regions where Roblox is available” during Q2 2024. (Ars Technica)
  
  

• Department of Justice lawyer Julia Tarver Wood kicked off Google’s trial on Monday with a statement that characterized the tech giant as “a trifecta of monopolies.” (Ars Technica)

DATA • GOSPEL STATS 📈

Top 3 Branded Videos of the Week: From atomic trampolines to time travel

Our latest roundup of top branded videos is all about the power of STEM. Science and tech-focused creators dominated Gospel Stats’ Weekly Brand Report, while sponsors like Opera, Ground News, and Brilliant enjoyed the benefits of viral viewership.

Check out this week’s Top 3 Branded Videos for more details:

🥇 NileRed x Opera: Making an atomic trampoline (6.3M views)
NileRed’s latest laboratory adventure was one of more than 30 videos sponsored by Opera over a seven-day period. The browser has thrown its financial weight behind a whopping 175 videos in the last 90 days—and we’re not surprised to see that NileRed has become a repeat partner. The tech-focused channel produced Opera’s #3 most-watched sponsored video of all time nine months ago, when it drew 14 million views by concocting purple gold.

🥈 Veritasium x Ground News: What Everyone Gets Wrong About Planes (5.7M views)
If you’ve ever wondered how to open doors or enjoy food while 30,000 feet above ground, Veritasium’s latest video was uploaded with you in mind. The Ground News-sponsored airplane FAQ offers viewers a veritable smorgasbord of aeronautical information—and a go-to news source to help them stay grounded after landing.

🥉 Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell x Brilliant: We Traveled Back in Time. Now Physicists Are Angry. (4.7M views)
This week’s third science lesson might be the most controversial on Gospel’s sponsored chart. In his latest video, Kurzgesagt jokes that he might be “lying a bit” by oversimplifying the connection between potential time travel and Earth’s journey through space. Luckily for viewers seeking a more nuanced overview of physics, Brilliant offers online courses on everything from quantum mechanics to scientific thinking.

Check out our full article here to learn about lucky video #4—or head over to Gospel Stats for more YouTube data insights.

WATCH THIS 📺

A YouTuber’s two-year “social experiment” has rocked fans to their core

The creator: Nikocado Avocado has been a pillar of YouTube’s mukbang scene for years now—but that position hasn’t always been an easy burden to bear. Viewers have often commented on Nikocado’s weight, with some expressing concerns over the long-term health effects of mukbang videos and others blatantly fat-shaming the creator himself.

At times, the impact of all those comments (and possibly the pressure of creating food content on a regular basis) seemed to weigh on Nikocado. As fellow creator MoistCr1TiKaL pointed out in a recent video, the YouTube star once described his social media journey as a “nightmare.”

The reveal: Now, Nikocado is turning that narrative on its head. In a video that has now collected over 33 million views, the creator revealed that he hasn’t actually filmed content “in two years.” Instead, he’s posted a steady backlog of mukbang videos while secretly losing approximately 250 pounds. That process—which the creator referred to as a “social experiment” that left him “two steps ahead” of body-shaming trolls—definitely ranks as one of the most unorthodox content strategies we’ve seen over the years.

Check out Nikocado’s brand-new channel to find out more.

Creator economy marketing starts here. Get in touch to advertise with Tubefilter.

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Today's newsletter is from: James Hale, Emily Burton, Drew Baldwin, Sam Gutelle, and Josh Cohen.