LOLs Acquired: Here Are YouTube’s Next 16 Comics

About a month ago, YouTube put out a request to its creators, asking for the funniest among them to apply and be considered for the newest version of its YouTube Next Creator program. While YouTube has previously sought creators in health and fitness, cooking, and vlogging categories, this time around the video site wanted some comic relief. And so it put out a call for YouTube Next Comics.

This morning, YouTube announced the 16 winners, who will receive some new equipment and a little jolt of promotion from the giant video site. Participants in YouTube Next programs get $5,000 in video equipment and $10,000 worth of ads on YouTube for their channels. They also receive a little bit of mentorship from other successful creators — in this case, three months of educational workshops, including help from the folks at CollegeHumor and Glozell.

The whole idea is to help already good creators get event better, to up their game a little bit. That means improving production values and also getting ideas about how to better promote their content. Because the more successful its creators are, the more successful YouTube can be. A rising tide and all that.

Anyway, here’s the list of YouTube’s Next Comics: