The Untold Truth Of Rachel Levin
What started with one makeup tutorial video has became a full-fledged business for YouTube sensation Rachel Levin. The star first found her way to YouTube in 2010 and has not looked back. Today, she has continued to grow her empire and expand her fame with over 12 million YouTube subscribers.
While the star shares a lot about her life in her videos, there are some untold truths about Levin and her success over the years that you probably don't know. Let's take a closer look and get to know Levin even better.
It all started with looking in a mirror
Levin's YouTube career began when she was 15 years old in 2010. Already a big fan of YouTube content, the then-teenager found herself watching videos all of the time. So what made her decide to post her own video?
She spoke to Adweek about this, sharing, "I would watch all these beauty tutorials to the point where in the mirror when I did my makeup in the morning, I would be like, 'OK, now we're going to apply this product to our outer v' [of the eye]. Once I came to the conclusion that I was doing makeup tutorials in the mirror, I decided that I should just film a video. So I filmed a how-to conceal under-eye circles video, posted it and didn't think anything of it."
The rest is history.
The first time is always awkward
As Levin's fan base grew and her success continued, she didn't realize that she was becoming more famous at that same time. In fact, her first encounter with a fan was awkward because she couldn't understand how this person knew her.
She described the interaction with Instant, and said, "It was very awkward because I was very in shock ... I didn't know why they knew me. I just saw them looking at me, and I was like, 'Oh my god, is there something in my teeth? Like, oh my god, do I have a stain on my pants? Oh god, this is so awkward they keep staring at me.'"
Eventually the two spoke, and Levin was thrilled to realize that people were watching her content and enjoying it.
No crying over burnt bubblegum
For Levin, creating YouTube content is all about finding those inventive topics to share with fans. One of her most well-known videos can definitely be described with that word. She created a piece on how bubblegum can be used to make lipstick.
She spoke with Instant about the process behind this video and the trial-and-error steps she faced along the way, including not only her thought process, but also the struggles of making it happen. She shared, "'Huh, this does not exist anywhere in the world. How do I figure this out?' So I like spent like probably 12 hours buying ... I bought a lot of bubblegum and was just testing out different ways of like melting it."
And while she ended up with a successful video, not all outcomes were good. She continued, "There [were] a lot of things that were burnt after that day. My microwave was just ... terrible."
How bullying almost shut down her page
When Levin created her first videos, she was not expecting any recognition to come from it. As she shared during her interview with Instant, she was not thinking that far into the future.
However, she was eventually forced to think more about it once everyone at her school found out about her YouTube page. It was the one moment that Levin considered shutting down her channel. The response she received from her fellow students was hurtful. She said, "And people were just ... very ... mean about it for no reason."
Yet she has been able to keep things in perspective. Now with all of the success she has, Levin went on to say, "But ... I mean, I'm here, they're there. I'm not as upset anymore."
Is that a lamb?
Levin is already pretty cool, but then she took it to a new level when she got an unusual pet. Yeah, that's right, a pet lamb.
She shared news of Alo on Twitter in 2015, correcting a fan who called her pet a goat. She also shared that Alo was rejected by his mom and would be staying with Levin until he could return to the farm. Oh, and she had to post a video of that time Alo ate her sister's homework, creating the ultimate excuse for school the next day.
Since then, Alo has made appearances in Levin's content. Although Alo hasn't been in any recent content because he went back to the farm in mid-2016, this is one of the coolest fun facts about a YouTube celebrity.
All in a (full) day's work
Levin does an amazing job of creating great content that looks so effortless. However, "effortless" is far from the word to use when it comes to Levin's dedication to her craft.
She puts in major hours to create the perfect content. During the interview with Instant, she shared that it normally takes nine hours to film one video and 18 hours to edit it. She does recognize that some of that time is because she is a perfectionist.
During the interview she said, "It's mostly just because, like, every single time I'm editing ... 'Ok I need to take out that little tiny millisecond, otherwise the entire video is just terrible and everyone will hate it.' So that's probably why it takes that long."
No Hollywood sign in sight
While it has become a trend over the years for some YouTube stars to pack up and move to Los Angeles, that is far from the plan for Levin. When asked this question by one of her fans in a YouTube video, her answer was pretty clear: "Hell-to-the-no."
For Levin, the reason has to do with her content creation. She continued on to say, "I was in LA for a week and I had no motivation at all to film a YouTube video." That's enough to keep this YouTube celeb far away from Hollywood.
Now that doesn't mean that this YouTube star won't ever find her way to the other coast. Even though she still calls Philadelphia her home, she makes trips to LA to meet with her management team.
Creative freedom is key to her success
Levin doesn't just make videos for fun — she's also partnered with other brands in her content, making this a solid career for herself. When speaking with Digiday about partnering with brands, she brought up what she believes makes a partnership most successful.
"What I find most effective when I work with brands personally is when they give me the creative freedom to do what I know best with my channel," she said.
She referenced a video she created for Birchbox at Coachella. Instead of creating the typical "how to get ready" video, she created her own take on it, still showcasing all of the products and creating more humorous content. It worked out for both parties in the end.
Pushing the YouTube game in new directions
With so much success, it would be easy for a star like Levin to have the fame go to her head, but that is not the way this YouTube star lives her life. During an interview with Forbes, the interviewer shared that Levin's number of viewers is around the same number as the entire population of Brazil. Whoa.
Levin spoke about her success and her outlook on her accomplishments, like the number of viewers she has accumulated, thus far. She shared, "I normally try not to look at how many people it is because I don't want to get cocky. I want to be more humbled and honored by it. But I try not to be like, 'Yeah. The whole country of Brazil just watched my video.'"
For this star, her focus is more on pushing boundaries and not becoming a stereotypical content creator. Being a beauty guru who also has comedic videos is a clear example of how Levin does the unexpected. She said during the interview, "I actually like to be the one who pushes, not the industry, but the YouTube game in different directions."