Sidemen | |||||||||||||
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Personal information | |||||||||||||
Born |
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Origin | London, England [1] | ||||||||||||
Occupation | YouTubers | ||||||||||||
Website | sidemen | ||||||||||||
YouTube information | |||||||||||||
Channel | |||||||||||||
Years active | 2013–present | ||||||||||||
Genres |
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Subscribers | 146.2 million (combined) [a] [2] [3] | ||||||||||||
Total views | 43.6 billion (combined) [a] [2] [3] | ||||||||||||
Associated acts | Jme [4] | ||||||||||||
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Last updated: 9 February 2024 |
The Sidemen is a British YouTube group consisting of influencers and internet personalities KSI, Miniminter, Zerkaa, TBJZL, Behzinga, Vikkstar123, and W2S. The group produce videos of various challenges, sketches, and video game commentaries across their YouTube channels, which have a combined total of over 138 million subscribers as of October 2022 [update] . [2] [5]
The group has the following members: [6]
Some of the members knew each other before the group was formed. Bradley and Brown both attended Bexley Grammar School in London and Olatunji and Minter both attended Berkhamsted School in Hertfordshire. [6]
The group originates from a Rockstar Games Social Club group made on 19 October 2013 in Grand Theft Auto Online , called "The Ultimate Sidemen", which included all the members except for Lewis. In January 2014, Bradley met Lewis while at a FIFA gaming event in New York City and invited him to join the group. [6] Describing the group name, Minter said in a video that "A sideman is basically someone's bitch who just follows them around [...] I was basically JJ's bitch that followed him around." [1]
In February 2014, Olatunji, Minter, Bradley, and Barn moved into a house together near London, which they referred to as the "Sidemen House", [6] [7] [8] which allowed them to collaborate more often. [9]
In 2016, Olatunji, Minter, Bradley, and Barn moved into another "Sidemen House", living in a 15,000-square-foot, $8.5 million mansion in Bromley, London. [10] In November 2016, the Sidemen collaborated with Rocket League to release an in-game SDMN FC community flag that users can get for free inside the game. [11]
On 1 December 2020, the group's eponymous YouTube channel surpassed 10 million subscribers. Each member of the group was awarded their own Diamond Play Button by YouTube to mark their milestone. [12]
In March 2020, the Sidemen released a twenty-minute YouTube video titled "#StayHome". The video featured the Sidemen and more than one hundred other YouTube video creators and other celebrities raising awareness of the UK's "stay at home" campaign which aimed to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in the UK. [13] [14] All of the advertising revenue generated from the video was donated to the NHS. [15]
In August 2021, the Sidemen signed with a London-based digital talent management company called Arcade Media. [16]
In April 2023, the Sidemen garnered controversy when Olatunji said the racial slur "Paki" in a Sidemen Sunday video published on 2 April; a parody of the British game show Countdown . [17] [18] The Sidemen group were criticised on Twitter after a clip of Olatunji speaking the slur went viral, [17] including criticisms from DJ and presenter Bobby Friction and comedian Guz Khan among others. [19] [18] Hours later, Olatunji tweeted an apology for the slur [20] and announced that he would be taking a break from social media. [19] [21] [17] The Sidemen Twitter account also released a statement the following day apologising for the slur, with the statement reading, "We stand against racism and discrimination of any kind and we failed to do that." [22] [21] The full video in question has since been privatised. [19] In an interview held before the 2023 Sidemen Charity Match, Barn told the BBC regarding the slur that the group had "very serious meetings" about the acceptability of what they joke about, saying, "We had to acknowledge that things are different to when we first all started platforms and the world has changed as a place. We saw it as a lesson and moved on from there and I think people were very understanding of that and allowed us to carry on doing what we're doing with a better sense of responsibility." [23]
In July 2023, the group invested in The Fellas Studios, a production company founded by YouTubers Callum Airey and Joshua Larkin. [24] On 3 July 2023, the group participated in a collaborative hide-and-seek challenge video with Paradise Wildlife Park, a Hertfordshire-based zoo. This initiative was part of a broader partnership aimed at supporting the zoo's conservation efforts. [25] On 26 September 2023, the Sidemen signed with United Talent Agency, an American talent agency, for their representation in all areas of North America. [26] On 17 August 2024, the group appeared and was ranked 21st on The Times 's list of "The UK’s top 30 richest gamers and creators in 2024", estimating £50 million in fortune shared among the group. [27]
The group has five YouTube channels, Sidemen, MoreSidemen, SidemenReacts, SidemenShorts and Sidemen en Español across which it publishes a variety of videos including challenges, sketches and video game commentaries. [28] [29] [30]
As of June 2024 [update] , the Sidemen channel has over 21.3 million subscribers and 6.2 billion views, [31] MoreSidemen has over 8.5 million subscribers and 4.4 billion views, [32] SidemenReacts has over 5.6 million subscribers and 2.9 billion views, [33] Sidemen en Español has over 8.8 thousand subscribers and 170 thousand views and SidemenShorts has over 2.1 million subscribers and 1.8 billion views. [34]
Since 2014, the group has sold and distributed Sidemen Clothing merchandise. [35] [28] In October 2021, Sidemen Clothing collaborated with Ellesse, an Italian sportswear brand, and launched an AW21 collection of co-branded clothing. [36] On 15 July 2023, they opened their first physical store in the Bluewater Shopping Centre in Kent. [37] [38] [39] On 4 October 2024, they opened their second physical store in Bull Ring, Birmingham. [40] The group also announced their partnership with Paramount to produce a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles -themed Sidemen apparel line. [40]
In September 2021, the Sidemen launched a subscription service app known as Side+, where they would post behind-the-scenes content from their YouTube video recordings and other extra contents. [41] [42] On 14 January 2022, they announced that the app is now available on Xbox. [43]
In November 2021, the Sidemen partnered with Reef, the world's largest operator of virtual restaurants and delivery kitchens, to launch a restaurant chain known as Sides. [44] [45] The restaurant is serving a menu of chicken and plant-based sandos, sliders, and salads that come in flavours including chipotle, classic buffalo, BBQ, Korean BBQ, teriyaki, garlic mayo, and Louisiana. Other dishes include mac and cheese bites, waffle fries, slaw, onion rings, and cheese poppers. [45] [44] [46]
On 24 February 2022, the restaurant launched its first physical branch in Boxpark Wembley, attracting over three-hour queues on its debut day. [45] [47] [48] As of September 2022, the restaurant had over 80 dark kitchens across the UK and 20 in the UAE. [48] On 29 September 2022, the restaurant launched its second physical branch in Boxpark Croydon. [48] In October 2022, the restaurant unveiled its new partnership with Farnham Town F.C., a semi-professional football club based in Farnham, Surrey, to become the football club’s front-shirt sponsor of the newly released 2022/23 away kit. [49] [50]
In 2022, the Sidemen founded and launched their own vodka brand known as XIX Vodka. [41]
On 18 October 2016, the group released a book titled Sidemen: The Book, published by Coronet Books, and embarked on a UK-wide promotional tour. [51] [52] A number one best-seller in the UK, the book sold 26,436 copies within the first three days of its release. [53] [54]
On 18 June 2018, the group released a web television series titled The Sidemen Show , available exclusively on YouTube Premium. [55] It comprises seven 30-minute episodes filmed around the world alongside a number of celebrity guests. [56] [57]
On 14 February 2024, a documentary film about the Sidemen called The Sidemen Story was released on Netflix. [58] The film was directed by Luke Hyams, a former Head of Originals for YouTube EMEA. [58]
In June 2024, the Sidemen created a reality competition series called Inside . The series features ten celebrity guests who compete in challenges to secure a prize fund totalled at £1 million, with everything they buy or do costing money from the prize fund. The series first aired on 2 June 2024 on their YouTube account, Sidemen, and last aired on 9 June 2024. [59] [60] In November 2024, a second series, as well as Inside USA, was announced, which would be shown on Netflix. [61]
In March 2024, the Sidemen and British oat producer Mornflake launched a cereal brand called Best Cereal. It debuted with two flavours, Choco Crunch and Caramel Gold. [62]
In August 2015, all of the Sidemen members except Olatunji and Barn participated in the 2015 Wembley Cup football charity match, facing Spencer FC, with Minter captaining the Sidemen United team. The match ended with Spencer FC beating Sidemen United by five goals to two. [63]
The Sidemen Charity Match is an recurring football friendly match run by the Sidemen to raise money for various charitable causes. They have been held since 2016, barring a four-year hiatus between the third and fourth matches, while the upcoming sixth match is being held eighteen months after the fifth. In all matches so far, the group's seven members and various affiliated YouTubers competed as the Sidemen Football Club, while various other YouTubers competed as the YouTube Allstars. The first match, on 3 June 2016, was held at St Mary's Stadium, Southampton, raising over £110,000 for the Saints Foundation. [64] [65]
Title | Year | Peak chart positions | |||||||||||
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UK [66] | UK R&B [67] | UK Ind. [68] | IRE [69] | NZ Hot [70] | SCO [71] | ||||||||
"The Gift" [72] (featuring S-X) | 2019 | 77 | 40 | 11 | — | 27 | 26 | ||||||
"This or That" | 2022 | — | — | 23 | — | 14 | — | ||||||
"Christmas Drillings" (featuring Jme) | 3 | — | 2 | 25 | 7 | — | |||||||
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
Award | Year | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
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British Book Awards | 2017 | Non-Fiction: Lifestyle Book of the Year | Sidemen: The Book | Nominated | [73] |
Shorty Awards | 2019 | Best YouTube Ensemble | Sidemen | Nominated | [74] |
Publication | Year | World record | Record holder | R. Status | Ref. |
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Guinness World Records | 2023 | Most viewers for a charity sports match live stream on YouTube | Sidemen | Record | [75] |
Olajide Olayinka Williams "JJ" Olatunji, better known by his online alias KSI, is an English influencer, professional boxer, and musician. He is a co-founding member of YouTube group the Sidemen, the CEO of Misfits Boxing, and the co-owner of Prime Hydration, XIX Vodka, Sidemen Clothing, restaurant chain Sides, cereal brand Best Breakfasts, and pre-made lunch brand Lunchly.
Caspar Richard George Lee is a British-South African YouTuber and investor. He was featured in Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2020 for his work in media and advertising.
Linus Gabriel Sebastian is a Canadian YouTuber, known for creating and hosting YouTube channels that cover technology. On November 24, 2008, he started publishing videos on his main channel Linus Tech Tips (LTT) which has 16 million subscribers and 8.27 billion views as of December 1, 2024. His channels have a combined subscriber base of over 32.01 million and over 11.04 billion views.
Logan Alexander Paul is an American influencer, professional wrestler, entrepreneur, and actor. He has over 23 million subscribers on his YouTube channel Logan Paul Vlogs, and has ranked on the Forbes list for the highest-paid YouTube creators in 2017, 2018, and 2021. He is the co-founder of beverage company Prime and snack brand Lunchly. Paul has also run the Impaulsive podcast since November 2018, which has over four million YouTube subscribers. As a wrestler, he has been signed to WWE since June 2022 where he performs on a part-time basis as part of the Raw brand and is a former WWE United States Champion.
Jake Joseph Paul is an American professional boxer, influencer and actor. He began his career posting videos on Vine in September 2013 and had amassed 5.3 million followers and 2 billion views before the app was discontinued. As an actor, he played Dirk Mann on the Disney Channel series Bizaardvark (2016–2018). Paul launched his YouTube channel Jake Paul in May 2014, and has ranked on the Forbes list as one of the highest paid YouTube creators in 2017, 2018, 2021, and 2023.
Amin Mohamed, better known as Chunkz, is a British YouTuber, influencer, host, entertainer, and former musician. He is a member of the YouTube group Beta Squad. As of November 2024, his YouTube channel had over 3.6 million subscribers and 294 million video views.
The Sidemen Show is a British reality stunt web television series starring British YouTube group Sidemen, composed of JJ Olatunji, Harry Lewis, Ethan Payne, Vik Barn, Simon Minter, Josh Bradley, and Tobi Brown. The series is produced by Blue Ant Digital Studios in association with Antenna Pictures, and executive produced by Jago Lee, Dan Lubetkin, Austin Long, and James Tooley, with Craig Pickles serving as the series director and Iain Glen narrating.
The discography of English YouTuber, musician and professional boxer Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji, known as KSI, consists of two studio albums, one collaboration album, four extended plays (EPs), 22 singles, and 33 music videos.
New Age is a collaborative studio album by British YouTube personalities and rappers KSI and Randolph. It was released independently on 12 April 2019. The album features guest appearances from Talia Mar, Jme and Quadeca. The album charted at number 17 on the UK Albums Chart.
Tobit John "Tobi" Brown, better known as TBJZL, is an English YouTuber, streamer, and influencer. He is also a member and co-founder of the British YouTube group known as the Sidemen. He is the co-owner of XIX Vodka, Sidemen Clothing, restaurant chain Sides, and cereal brand Best Breakfasts.
Ethan Leigh Payne, better known as Behzinga, is an English YouTuber, streamer, and influencer. He produces videos on gaming, football, comedy, and fitness and is a co-founder and member of the British YouTube group Sidemen. In 2019, Payne was listed as the 31st most influential online creator in the United Kingdom by The Sunday Times. As of September 2021, his main YouTube channel had over 4 million subscribers and 500 million video views. He is the co-owner of XIX Vodka, Sidemen Clothing, restaurant chain Sides, and cereal brand Best Breakfasts.
Brandon Montel Scott, known professionally as Swarmz, is an English rapper and professional boxer.
William Jonathan Lenney, better known as WillNE, is an English YouTuber and internet personality based in Newcastle. Lenney's content is noted for both his videos focusing around internet culture and his practical jokes, such as getting a variety of YouTubers to collaboratively sing the song "All Star" without their knowledge, and fooling several media organisations into thinking he was a contestant on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!. Lenney's style of content was described by Vice Media in 2018 as designed for "teenagers hyper-literate on internet culture." In January 2024, Lenney became a co-owner of Quadrant Esports, a content creation and apparel brand founded by Lando Norris.
Vikram Singh Barn, better known as Vikkstar123 or simply Vikkstar, is an English influencer and record producer. He is a member of the YouTube group the Sidemen. He is the co-owner of XIX Vodka, Sidemen Clothing, restaurant chain Sides, and cereal brand Best Breakfasts.
Joshua Bradley, better known as Zerkaa and his stage name Josh Zerker, is an English YouTuber, streamer, influencer, and Internet personality, as a member of the British YouTube group known as the Sidemen. In 2019 he was listed as the ninth most influential online creator in the United Kingdom by The Sunday Times. In 2022, he was the most watched Twitch streamer in the United Kingdom, with 17.68 million hours watched. As of October 2023, his main YouTube channel has over 4.6 million subscribers and over 800 million video views.
Simon Edward Minter, better known as Miniminter, is an English YouTuber, streamer and Internet personality. He is a member and co-founder of the British YouTube group the Sidemen, as well as a co-owner of XIX Vodka, Sidemen Clothing, restaurant chain Sides, and cereal brand Best Breakfasts. He is also the co-founder of M7 Education, a non-profit organization.
Natalia Margaret Minter, known professionally as Talia Mar, is an English singer, songwriter and internet personality. Her collaboration with Sigala on "Stay the Night" charted at number eleven on the UK Singles Chart.
"Christmas Drillings" is a song by the British YouTube group Sidemen featuring British rapper Jme. The song was written and performed by KSI, TBJZL, Vikkstar123, and Jme as part of a Sidemen Sunday video. The song was produced by Nyge.
Nikolas Daniel Adegbajumo Omilana is a British YouTuber, influencer, and perennial political candidate. He is known for posting prank videos on YouTube and running as an independent candidate in the 2021 London mayoral election and the 2024 UK general election, being unsuccessful in both elections. He is also known for being a part of the Beta Squad YouTube group. Omilana has also competed in several charity football matches, including Soccer Aid and multiple Sidemen charity matches.
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