Yousef Erakat

Yousef Saleh Erakat (Arabic: يوسف عريقات‎ /ˈjuːsəf ˈsælə ˈɛrəkæt/; born January 22, 1990), better known by his stage name FouseyTube (stylized fouseyTUBE) or Fousey, is a Palestinian-American YouTube personality and actor, who produces parodies, vlogs, comedy sketches and pranks on YouTube.[1]

Yousef Erakat
Erakat in 2016
Personal information
BornYousef Saleh Erakat
(1990-01-22) January 22, 1990
Fremont, California, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
OccupationYouTuber, actor
YouTube information
Also known asfouseyTUBE, fousey
Channel
Years active2011–present
Genre
Subscribers10.6 million
Total views1.7 billion
NetworkCollective Digital Studio
100,000 subscribers 2012
1,000,000 subscribers 2014
10,000,000 subscribers 2017
Updated: July 6, 2020
Statistics shown are representative of the main "fouseyTUBE" channel only.

Early life

Yousef Erakat was born on January 22, 1990[2] in Fremont, California[3][4] to Palestinian parents. He has three older siblings, Mohammad, Ahmad, and Noura Erakat, who is a legal scholar. Erakat attended San Jose State University and majored in theatre arts. He moved to Los Angeles after graduating in 2013 to pursue his acting career.[5][6][7]

YouTube career

Erakat has had multiple YouTube channels in the past, namely ones relating to fitness. It wasn't until he started making Middle Eastern videos that his popularity grew. His past channels included him following a workout routine, P90X, and giving a review and before and after of his journey.[8]

In 2012, Erakat was listed 3rd on the list of "40 Inspiring Muslims Under 40" by MBMuslima Magazine.[9]

On January 1, 2015, Erakat released his first single "Prideland" under the stage name "fousey".[10] A music video for the song was released the same day on his daily vlog channel DOSEofFOUSEY.[11]

Erakat was invited by Quest Nutrition to unveil their newest protein bar flavor by allowing him to prank other popular YouTube personalities, namely by pieing them in the face. The video has reached over a million views.[12]

On October 3, 2015, Erakat showcased his BMW 435i with a full transformation. Inspired by his Nike shoe composed of his favorite colors, he took his car to West Coast Customs in hopes of drastically changing his car to represent not only his favorite colors, but his YouTube audience as well, which he used to call the "bruh bruhs". Erakat enjoyed the turnout and showcased it on both his daily vlog channel as well as his main channel fouseyTUBE.[13][14]

On October 6, 2015, it was announced that Erakat had signed with Creative Artists Agency, a popular agency located in Century City, Los Angeles.[15][16]

Erakat embarked on a five-day tour with friend and YouTube star Roman Atwood called the "Roman vs Fousey Tour" on February 24, 2016. They performed in five states along the west coast as a preview/test for their upcoming 30-day tour of the same name.

On June 3, 2017, Erakat officially reached the YouTube milestone of 10 million subscribers, thus earning him a YouTube Diamond Play Button.

On August 31, 2018, Erakat retracted all of his material from his social media accounts.[17]

On September 15, 2018, a video was uploaded to the FouseyTube channel stating that he has opened his YouTube channel up, allowing low-profile content creators to publish content as moderated by a team made up of his friends. According to a statement made by Erakat, he said that he thinks that opening his channel upon his website is the best way of giving back to his fans.[18] This was later shut down in mid-October, likely due to the GoFousey's unpopularity among his fans, as Erakat's channel lost over 60,000 subscribers during September.[19]

On February 26, 2019, Erakat posted a video on the FouseyTube channel, acknowledging his responsibility for the channel's decline and his fear and reluctance to resume vlogging on the channel. He added that he will continue vlogging as well as trying to pursue an acting career.[20]

In January 2021, it was announced that he was going to release a book, titled Warning: This is Not a Motivational Story.

Personal life

Erakat was brought up in a religious Muslim family, but has repeatedly struggled with his own religious identity.[21] He has on several occasions criticized negative stereotyping of Muslims.[22]

On July 1, 2014, Erakat uploaded a video to his vlog channel titled "WHY I WANTED TO END MY LIFE".[23] In this video, Erakat discussed how he passed by a tattoo parlor and got a tattoo on a whim, followed by another. He later had a nervous breakdown due to the stigma in some Arab and Muslim families concerning tattoos and had them removed.[24][25]

Erakat struggles with ongoing depression, addiction and bipolar disorder. He mentions it frequently in his daily vlogging, and also announced it on VH1.[26]

He was nominated for Pranks and Show of The Year at the 5th Streamy Awards, and on September 18, 2015, won the Show of The Year award.[27]

Erakat started dating fellow YouTuber Simmi Singh in July 2018.[28] They later broke up.

Awards and nominations
Year Work Category Award Result Ref.
2014 fouseyTUBE Pranks 4th Streamy Awards Nominated [29]
2015 YouTube Comedian Shorty Awards Nominated [30]
YouTube Star of the Year presented by A&E Nominated
Snapchatter Nominated
Pranks 5th Streamy Awards Nominated [31]
Show of the Year Won [32]
2016 DOSEofFOUSEY First Person 6th Streamy Awards Nominated [33]
Yousef Erakat Entertainer of the Year Won

Filmography
Film
Year Title Role Notes
2014 Twin Blocked (Short) Trevor
2016 We Love You Ford
2016 Experiment 88[34] Himself YouTube Red series
2016 Boo! A Madea Halloween Jonathan
2017 Boo 2! A Madea Halloween Jonathan
2017 #Reality High Himself

References
  1. Tomchak, Anne-Marie (April 25, 2014). "#BBCtrending: How FouseyTUBE became a YouTube star". BBC. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  2. "Yousef Saleh Erakat, Born 01/22/1990 in California | CaliforniaBirthIndex.org". www.californiabirthindex.org. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  3. DOSEofFOUSEY, "YouTube", September 6, 2014.
  4. "Yousef Erakat". Networth / YouTube. January 1, 2015. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  5. "#BBCtrending: How FouseyTUBE became a YouTube star - BBC News". BBC News. April 25, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  6. "Comedian FouseyTUBE to perform in Dearborn Jan. 17". www.arabamericannews.com. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  7. "The Argus: Theater Student Becomes YouTube Sensation With Funny Videos | SJSU Newsroom". blogs.sjsu.edu. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  8. "Team Beachbody - Member Profile". Team Beachbody. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  9. "The Stories of 40 Inspirational Muslims under 40". Issuu. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  10. "Prideland - Single - fousey". January 1, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  11. "PRIDELAND (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)". DOSEofFOUSEY / YouTube. January 1, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
  12. "Quest Prank Video Hits a Million Views in under a Week | Business Wire". www.businesswire.com. October 6, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  13. "YouTuber FouseyTube Gets His BMW 435i Officially Pimped - Video". October 5, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  14. "Yousef Erakat AKA FouseyTube Just Pimped Out His BMW 435i". Art of Gears. October 4, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  15. "FouseyTube Signs with CAA as Agency Continues its Digital Talent Drive - VideoInk". October 6, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  16. "YouTube Star FouseyTube Signs With Talent Agency". Time. October 6, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  17. Asarch, Steven (August 31, 2018). "YouTuber Fousey Deletes Twitter, YouTube Videos". Newsweek. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
  18. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZFSg9ip_Kg&t=191s
  19. https://socialblade.com/youtube/user/fouseytube
  20. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9hzqA_c_JQ
  21. "TwitLonger — When you talk too much for Twitter". www.twitlonger.com. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  22. "Yousef Saleh Erakat aka FouseyTUBE speaks out against American Sniper: "this movie is propaganda"". The Muslim Vibe. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  23. DOSEofFOUSEY (July 1, 2014), WHY I WANTED TO END MY LIFE, retrieved June 1, 2016
  24. "FouseyTUBE - two years ago this tattoo ruined my life. it... | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  25. "TwitLonger — When you talk too much for Twitter". www.twitlonger.com. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  26. "Best Speeches of the 5th Annual Streamy Awards". Entertainmentmonthly. September 18, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  27. "FouseyTUBE, Cameron Dallas Win Big At 2015 Streamy Awards". Tubefilter. September 18, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  28. fouseyTUBE (July 29, 2018), Meet My Soulmate., retrieved July 31, 2018
  29. "4th Annual Winners & Nominees". Streamys. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  30. "Yousef Saleh Erakat - Shorty Awards". ShortyAwards. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  31. "5th Annual Winners & Nominees". Streamys. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  32. "FouseyTube, Cameron Dallas win Streamys". USAToday. September 18, 2015. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  33. "6th Annual Winners & Nominees". Streamys. October 4, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  34. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EtThP-wWwM

Further reading
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