YouTube is out with its year-in-review lists for 2019, documenting the top videos, trends, creators, music, games and more.
Leading the list of U.S. top-trending videos was beauty influencer James Charles’ “No More Lies” (pictured above), his video response to accusations of betrayal and misbehavior by vlogger Tati Westbrook. After the controversy blew up in May, Charles was targeted by “cancel” culture and his YouTube channel lost millions of subscribers; after he apologized his subscriber counts rebounded.
Charles, who recently inked a deal with YouTube to host a reality-competition beauty show to award one aspiring up-and-coming makeup artist $50,000, also had the most-liked beauty video in the U.S. for the year with “Makeup Tutorial en Español” (1.6 million likes to date).
Popular YouTuber Shane Dawson hit YouTube’s top-trending U.S. video list twice: His investigation into conspiracy theories and what happened to Lisa Schwartz, ex-girlfriend came in at No. 3 and his collaboration with Jeffree Star dissing Kylie Jenner’s skin-care product line was No. 7.
NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” also made YouTube’s top-trending list, hitting the No. 8 spot with its parody of the R. Kelly interview by CBS News’ Gayle King in May.
YouTube’s ranking of trending videos is not based only on views, factoring in multiple variables including views, likes, comments and searches.
On the music front, Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus topped the most-viewed music videos in the U.S., both at the No. 1 and No. 5 spot with the “official movie” version of the video.
The other most popular songs on YouTube in the U.S. this year were Dababy’s “Suge (Yea Yea)”; Yo Gotti’s “Put a Date On It” featuring Lil Baby; Polo G’s “Pop Out” featuring Lil Tjay; Offset’s “Clout” ft. Cardi B; Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy”; 21 Savage’s “A Lot” ft. J. Cole; Ariana Grande’s “7 rings”; and Daddy Yankee and Snow’s “Con Calma.”
The lists will be part of YouTube Rewind 2019, the video site’s annual mashup of top memes and trends of the year, set to be released later Thursday.
Here are YouTube’s lists for 2019 of the top videos in different categories:
Top-Trending Videos (U.S.)
- James Charles – No More Lies
- First We Feast – Gordon Ramsay Savagely Critiques Spicy Wings | Hot Ones
- Shane Dawson – Investigating Conspiracies with Shane Dawson
- MrBeast – I Bought Everything In A Store – Challenge
- Gillette – We Believe: The Best Men Can Be | Gillette (Short Film)
- DAZN USA – HIGHLIGHTS | Anthony Joshua vs. Andy Ruiz Jr.
- Jeffree Star – Kylie Skin Review with Shane Dawson
- Breakfast Club Power 105.1 FM – Soulja Boy Drags Tyga, Drake, Kanye West & Reclaims The Best Comeback Of 2018
- Saturday Night Live – R. Kelly Interview Cold Open – SNL
- TheOdd1sOut – The Spiders and the Bees
Most-Viewed Music Videos (U.S.)
- Lil Nas X – Old Town Road (feat. Billy Ray Cyrus) [Remix]
- Dababy – Suge (Yea Yea) Official Music Video
- Yo Gotti ft. Lil Baby – Put a Date On It (Official Video)
- Polo G Feat. Lil Tjay – Pop Out By. Ryan Lynch Prod. By JDONTHATRACK & Iceberg
- Lil Nas X – Old Town Road (Official Movie) ft. Billy Ray Cyrus
- Offset – Clout ft. Cardi B
- Billie Eilish – bad guy
- 21 Savage – a lot ft. J. Cole
- Ariana Grande – 7 Rings
- Daddy Yankee & Snow – Con Calma (Video Oficial)
Most-Viewed Games (Worldwide)
- Minecraft
- Fortnite
- Grand Theft Auto
- Garena Free Fire
- Roblox
- PUBG Mobile
- League of Legends
- PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
- Brawl Stars
- Mobile Legends: Bang Bang
Most-Liked Beauty Videos (Worldwide)
- James Charles – Makeup Tutorial en Español
- Shane – The Beautiful World of Jeffree Star
- Kylie Jenner – Kylie Jenner: A Day in the Life
- Jeffree Star – Kylie Skin Review with Shane Dawson
- Anaysa – 7 Life Saving HACKS for Perfect SKIN & HAIR | #Beauty #Skincare #Sketch #Anaysa
- Mari Maria – Maquiei a HUDABEAUTY!
- Kimberly Loaiza – ME MAQUILLO SIN ESPEJO
- Tati – JLo’s MAKEUP ARTIST Does My MAKEUP
- Safiya Nygaard – Melting Every Lipstick From The Drugstore Together
- Franciny Ehlke – TRANSFORMEI UMA FÃ PRA VALER!
