Embarrassment isn’t in Chris Lee’s vocabulary anymore.
The YouTuber and Auburn sophomore in media studies has amassed over 18,000 subscribers since starting his channel on the popular website.
Lee received his first wave of success when he posted a prank video where he attended class lectures, all of which he was not enrolled in, and played music from his computer loudly, acting as if he accidentally forgot to plug in his headphones all the way.
With shocked faces and giggling crowds staring at him, Lee acted like it was an accident each time and fled the scene of the prank.
That video has over 950,000 views on Youtube.
“People have done blasting music in the library and stuff, but nobody had ever done it in a lecture,” Lee said. “I just kind of figured, why not? I could do it.”
When executing the prank for the first time, Lee was nervous, but each take got easier for him. Now, he doesn’t get embarrassed or nervous anymore.
After receiving an increased amount of views and being shared online by other accounts, Lee knew YouTube was for him, and he wanted to devote more time to his channel to help it grow into a more established business and exciting job.
Alongside the prankster is his right-hand-man and camera guy, Aidan Kowalski, who is a sophomore in industrial engineering. Together, the duo works hard to come up with inspired and entertaining ideas for pranks and social experiments to do around campus.
“Preparation wise, we kind of just brainstorm a bit,” Lee said. “We take inspiration from other channels but don’t try to copy exactly what they did.”
Kowalski enjoys being behind the camera and wants the spotlight to be on Lee. However, Lee insists that the channel is a team effort between the two men even though it is solely under Lee’s name.
With a New Year’s goal of 100,000 subscribers, Lee is hitting the pavement running when it comes to video ideas this year.
He started off the semester with his newest prank in which he asked a friend to marry him just to be rejected in front of a full Au Bon Pain in the Student Center. The friend was in on the joke, but the people surrounding them felt bad for Lee.
However, Lee and Kowalski have come across an issue when filming at the University: Lee gets recognized when filming.
This has made the production duo take on more, unsuspecting campuses around the region, starting with Georgia Tech. They want to make their way to Tuscaloosa, too.
YouTube channels normally see a spike in subscribers after a video goes viral, Lee said.
The popularity of the first lecture prank video increased his subscriber count, but it has since stayed level. However, he and Kowalski are just waiting on the next hit they upload to take the channel to the next level.
“We’re not worried about that,” Kowalski said. “We’re just waiting for the next big one, and it’s all intakes at this point.”
His channel has collected over 7.5 million views, but that includes football highlight videos he has uploaded.
The money is nice, Kowalski and Lee said, and it plays a big factor in their dedication to the channel. However, in the end, if they didn’t enjoy making content for YouTube, they would not be doing it.
“Really you just try to make people laugh, make people happy,” Lee said.
Many laugh as they view Lee’s pranks, but with fans come haters.
Lee has experienced hate on social media, mostly in the comment sections of his accounts.
However, he doesn’t let it get him down.
“[The hate] is inspiration for me – the classic answer,” Lee said. “I used to care a lot about what other people think.”
Kowalski said Lee used to read through all of the comments, which could get him down at times.
Since the first video, Lee has stayed away from reading opinions and taken the negative comments with stride.
“Now, it’s like they envy me,” Lee said. “I’m making profit off of this. People know who I am, and I don’t care what another person thinks anymore.”
Lee surrounds himself with Kowalski and other good friends that know who he truly is.
“We’re not that big yet,” Lee said. “We’re like, I don’t need to focus on what other people think. Just keep doing me and just trying to improve myself like my videos and getting to the point where you don’t have to prove anything.”
Through the pranks and laughs, Lee and Kowalski still prioritize their studies and try to respect the University when embarking on video ideas. They don’t want to do something to upset the University and find themselves dismissed from campus.
The year has only just begun, and Lee and Kowalski have already uploaded their first prank of the year.
They are excited to see where it takes them, but they know they have a lot of hustling ahead of them to reach their year-end goal of 100,000 subscribers.
“This is only the beginning,” Lee said. “2019 is the year.”
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
Mikayla Burns, senior in journalism and Spanish, is managing editor of The Auburn Plainsman.
