Rhett
McLaughlin and Link Neal, more commonly known as just Rhett and Link, host one
of the most popular YouTube channels with their daily talk show Good Mythical Morning, with over 3.6
billion views and over 12 million subscribers. Rhett and Link have also brought
forth a “show after the show” called Good
Mythical More with another 3 million subscribers and 529 million views.
Their final channel on YouTube, “This is Mythical”, features bonuses, outtakes, and more from
the crew that help make Good Mythical
Morning happen. They also have a podcast called “Ear Biscuits” which is
currently ranked 22 on the iTunes charts. Lastly, they just finished their
first season of their YouTube Red series, a Netflix style streaming service new
to YouTube, Buddy System. They have
put everything under one banner name, ‘Mythical Entertainment,’ in which they
have a 16 person crew working for them. Moreover, they have appeared on The
Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon multiple times.
When I first watched them five years
ago, I was immediately enthralled with the spontaneity of Rhett and Link. When
talking about their YouTube channels and success Rhett and Link say, “The thing
that brings it all together is this concept of a mythicality- it’s a
combination of curiosity, creativity, and tomfoolery, and we want everything
that we do to have that value.” Being at the mercy of the ever changing
internet, Rhett and Link are devoted to combing through comments and using the
wisdom of their “Mythical Beasts,” a.k.a. their fans. Their label of
“Mythicality” allows them to be themselves and will never be locked down into a
certain category. They do weird food challenges, the hosted a “smelling bee”,
their famous “will it” challenges, and other wacky ideas.
Rhett and Link met in first grade
and have been friends since even going to the same college, where they
graduated with engineering degrees. Considering their career choices this has
somewhat helped them. Steven M. Smith, a professor at Texas A&M, and Thomas
B. Ward, a professor at Alabama University, wrote in a published article, “Two
mysterious phenomena, reminiscence
(and the related phenomenon hypermnesia)
in memory, and incubation effects in
creative problem solving, have been linked to the same underlying cognitive
mechanisms.” This is to Rhett and Link’s advantage. They have no formal
education or schooling in anything relating to film or writing, they really have
a clean slate when creating for their show. That’s what makes everything they
do so amazing. It seems to be made from a blank page every time. Yes they have
reoccurring themes, but they always surprise me with their improvisation and
ability to keep things fresh.
What keeps them still relevant is their wide audience.
They are geared towards a college style audience but their style allows them to
be enjoyed by all ages. Parents and children can both enjoy it because Rhett
and Link have never been crass but their humor hits home to all ages. In
speaking about their show, Rhett says, “We wanted to create a new world that
people would look forward to seeing each week. We want people to step into this
world and say, ‘Yes! I like that you’re doing this.’”
Resources:
I really enjoy the educational value of Rhett and Link's videos. I'm an environmental educator over the summer and I used the videos a number of times with my students, particularly ones that are scientific! I think its super interesting none of them have any formal schooling, as the production quality of their videos are usually very high.
ReplyDeleteI was excited to see an article about Rhett & Link as I am actually pretty familiar with their YouTube videos! I also find it interesting that they have no formal education; I didn't know that and it's surprising to me considering how successful their videos are. I think it goes to show that creativity can stem from anyone regardless of background or previous knowledge on a topic, and that a major aspect of becoming successful regarding one's creative abilities is being able to relate to / appeal to a wide audience.
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