Lilly Singh makes history as new late-night host

SCREEN CAPTURE / NBC

Jimmy Kimmel, left, and Seth Meyer, right, welcome Lilly Singh to NBC's late night lineup.

YouTube star Lilly Singh has broken through to the big time. She's been named as the new host of NBC's newest late night talk show,  “A Little Late with Lilly Singh.” 

Singh announced her new gig on social media, posting, "It's official. Ya girl is getting her own  @nbc late night show ..." Later -- much later -- she made the formal announcement on the Jimmy Kimmel Show.

She will be replacing Carson Daly for the time slot, 1:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. In her new job, she'll be marking two "firsts:" She will be the first host of Asian descent for a late-night talk show and she'll be the first woman to host a late-night talk show full-time.

“A Little Late” will feature the Asian Canadian host conducting in-studio interviews, as well as feature pre-taped comedy sketches and other “signature elements.”

“Lilly is truly a star and we’re thrilled to welcome her to our NBC family,” said Doug Vaughan, executive vice president, special programs and late night, NBC Entertainment. “She is a multi-talented performer who will surely have a great rapport with not only all her guests but also with our devoted late-night audience. We can’t wait to get started.”

Singh could not contain her exhuberance. She tweeted:

As one of the most successful and lucrative YouTube stars ever (where she’s known as IISuperwomanII), Singh has amassed more than 14 million subscribers on her channel.

She recently took a mental health break from her YouTube channel to just take a break from the pressure of creating content. "I want to be honest with you, I could be happier," she told her fans. "I'm not my optimal happiness right now, I could be mentally healthier. I don't feel like I'm completely mentally healthy. There's a lot going on up here that I need to address and I'm not able to constantly pumping out content."

She obviously took time off to refocus her career. Her show is slated to launch in September.

 “An Indian-Canadian woman with her own late night show? Now that is a dream come true,” Singh told Variety. “I’m thrilled to bring it to life on NBC, and I hope my parents consider this to be as exciting as a grandchild.”

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TGIF Feature: YouTube star Lilly Singh is burned out and is taking a mental health break

SCREEN CAPTURE / YOUTUBE

Popular YouTuber Lilly Singh needs a break, she says.

AFTER EIGHT YEARS, one of the most popular content creators on YouTube is taking a break.

Lilly Singh, AKA "Superwoman," needs a vacation. In a video (of course) she made it clear that she's not quitting YouTube, the video platform that made her one of the world's most popular YouTubers.

“I am mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually exhausted,” she told viewers in her video. “I think there’s a lot going on up here that I need to address that I’m not able to, constantly pumping out content.”

"I want to be honest with you, I could be happier," she says. "I'm not my optimal happiness right now, I could be mentally healthier. I don't feel like I'm completely mentally healthy. There's a lot going on up here that I need to address and I'm not able to constantly pumping out content."

I'm familiar with that feeling. After 28 years in journalism, most of it as an editor, I've seen reporters burn out at the constant need to produce content for the never-satisfied "Daily Beast.," whether it be a story, a brief, a caption, an expose exposing corporate graft or marking a centenarian's birthday.

The constant pressure to produce grew as the corporate media moguls gobbled up family-owned newspapers. Reporters felt like they were simply cogs in a machine.

In Singh's case, despite the glory and fame that came with her YouTube channel, the pressure seems to be self-inflicted. Singh admitted that she's not been happy with some of her latest content.

She's run into a wall that's iimpacted other content creators. They aren't paid by YouTube for all their hard work, n some cases, risk-taking. That has led to criticism of exploitation. However, YouTube offers them a platform for which they can become famous and that could lead to monetary benefits through sponsorships and endorsements. In Singh's case, some estimate her worth around $16 million.

The Canada-born Singh, 30, is the daughter of Sikh immigrants. She began vlogging in 2010, singing, rapping, just being funny. Her videos have received over 2 billion views, and her channel has accumulated over 14 million loyal subscribers, who feel they have a personal relationship with someone who is funny, creative, rich and famous.

Singh admits that she doesn’t fully understand YouTube’s current culture, which has drastically changed over the years. “I haven’t been super happy with a lot of the content I’ve created,” she says.

“You know, the thing about YouTube is that, in all of its glory, it kind of is a machine," she continued in her video. "And it makes creators believe that we have to pump out content consistently, even at the cost of our life and our mental health and our happiness because if you don’t, then you’ll become irrelevant.” Some of the content she makes, she adds, is “because I think I have to on this platform that demands constant content, but it’s not really a reflection of me.”

Singh emphasizes that she's not leaving YouTube but says she’s unsure how long she’ll be away. “I hope you know that I really need this for my sanity, for my happiness, and to just be better,” she says.

WATCH more of Lilly Singh's videos.____________________________________________________________________________________

Filipino American named Vlogger of the Year

SCREEN CAPTURE / YOUTUBE

Wil Dasovich receives his Shorty award in ceremonies in New York City.

WHILE EXERCISING, I like to watch travel videos. Searching for a video of travel to the Philippines, I stumbled upon Will Dasovich, a San Francisco-born Filipino/American, who recorded his adventures as he traveled through the Philippines and other Asian countries.

He was upbeat, having fun and seemed to genuinely enjoy himself while learning about the culture and the people of the Phiiippines. And once in a while, he'd offer a travel tip or suggest foods to try.

Watching him helps me get me through my workout and makes the time fly by.

As it turns out, last month, he name Vlogger of the Year by Shorty Awards, the vloggers equivalent to the Oscars or the Emmys.

The Shortys honors “the best of social media by recognizing the influencers, brands and organizations on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, Musically and more.”

Dasovich, 26, started on YouTube by recording his globetrotting adventures after graduating from Cal Poly in 2013. 

His travel vlogs gained him an international audience, and in 2017 he quadrupled the size of his YouTube subscriber base, ending the year with well over 1M+ people tuning into his inspirational uploads. 

"After graduating college in 2013, I decided to travel around Asia for three months. The moment I got to the Philippines, I bought a Filipino language book for beginners and started learning right away," he told Garage magazine.

His first vlogs were about his attempts in learning to speak Tagalog, the Filipino dialect of his mother.

"Back in California, I grew up in a predominantly white community with no Filipinos around. But being half Filipino I became so intrigued with the language and culture; spending entire days and nights reading and memorising words. I, then, made the decision to stay in the Philippines for at least a year, and not leave the country until I was 100% fluent in Tagalog."

Even though he's learned to speak Tagalog fairly fluently, he decided to move permanently to Manila.

Last summer, his vlog took a turn towards seriousness when he was diagnosed with state III colon cancer. He decided to not let the disease slow him down and recorded his fight against cancer, all the while, staying positive.

"It's not the years in your life, but the life in your years that count," he believed.

In September last year, the day before starting his cancer treatment, he had his sperm frozen because there was a chance that the treatment would leave him infertile. Of course he vlogged the experience.

"More than anything, however, if I can inspire, motivate, and influence people in a positive way, that is where I feel I can make a difference," he told Garage. "This is the most fulfilling part about vlogging and YouTube."

In Februrary, he learned that he was cancer-free. The Shorty was icing on the cake.

Unfortunately, Dasovich is moving on. He's sdiscontinued his daily vlog for now as he tries out a new business venture.

Fortunately, you can still watch more of his vlogs on Youtube, or at his website.

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