No one is bigger than him on YouTube. James “MrBeast” Donaldson (26) has built an empire on the video platform. In a podcast, he talks about the darker sides of success.
Update 03.03.2025: We have slightly revised the article due to ambiguity regarding the exact wording of a statement by MrBeast.
Who is it about? James Stephen Donaldson, better known as “MrBeast”, is one of the largest content creators in the world. In 2022, he rose to become the “King of YouTube”, and now he has the only channel with over 300 million subscribers there.
In January 2024, MrBeast reached a net worth of one billion US dollars (via finance.yahoo.com). In an interview with the podcast “The Diary of a CEO” on YouTube, the 26-year-old talks about his life and explains why he still does not have a million in his account.
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“No one wants to live the life I lead”
This is his relationship with money: According to MrBeast, he is “only a billionaire on paper.” In his account, he has less than a million dollars, as he reinvests a large part of his earnings. For him, money is just fuel to drive his business. He pays himself only as much as he needs to live.
In any case, the YouTuber finds his life quite exhausting. Waking up in his own bed and working 15 hours is easier than all the “bullshit” he has to deal with. He is on the road so much that he often does not know where or in which time zone he is currently located.
The average person, MrBeast believes, would not want to live the life he leads. He would work nonstop. The YouTuber also says: If his mental health were a priority for him, he would not be so successful.
You can watch the entire podcast here in English:
MrBeast says: The more good he does, the more he is criticized
What is behind it? MrBeast is known not only for his wild and spectacular videos but also for his charitable engagement.
- For example, he paid for 1,000 people with cataracts to have surgery that restored their vision
- And bought houses for all his employees
Despite doing so much good, the YouTuber often receives criticism. Some believe he showcases people in front of the camera rather than helping them selflessly. There were also controversies surrounding his snack products and serious allegations against a former employee that even threatened his own career.
MrBeast even says that the more he helps, the more hate he receives for it. He received less criticism for his video about a super yacht worth one billion dollars.
The 26-year-old believes you can never do anything right. He has surely read more than 5,000 messages telling him to take his own life.
In addition to the mental strain, MrBeast also reports health problems. He was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory bowel condition, at 15 years old. The disease often causes him great pain, as if a knife is stabbing him in the stomach.
Furthermore, the medications he has to take weaken his immune system, causing him to get sick often or develop skin rashes.
In this context, it is hardly surprising that MrBeast does not take kindly to a particularly insidious type of clickbait. We reported on MeinMMO about how MrBeast called out a YouTuber who made a video about his death.
