Winston Sterzel

Last updated

Winston Sterzel
Picture of Winston Sterzel, also known as SerpentZA in Shenzhen (cropped).jpg
Sterzel in 2017
Personal information
Born (1980-08-17) August 17, 1980 (age 44)
Cape Town, South Africa
Occupation YouTuber
Website advchina.net
YouTube information
Channel
Genre Vlog
Subscribers1.43 million [1]
Total views244.25 million [1]
Associated acts
YouTube Silver Play Button 2.svg100,000 subscribers2016
YouTube Gold Play Button 2.svg1,000,000 subscribers2022
Last updated: November 6, 2023

Winston Frederick Sterzel, also known by his YouTube pseudonym SerpentZA, is a South African vlogger and video producer. He lived in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China for fourteen years. [2] His videos cover a variety of topics relating to Chinese politics and life in China from his personal perspective.

Contents

Early life

Sterzel is of British heritage and was born and raised in South Africa. He moved to China [3] [4] to work as an English teacher after first visiting on business in 2005. [5]

Career

Life in China

In 2015, he was one of twelve South Africans in China profiled by China Radio International. [6] He started uploading videos in China in 2007, and became a full-time vlogger in 2016. [7] His videos primarily focus on life in China as viewed from his personal perspective. [3] [4] [8] [9] [10]

Sterzel has also made videos about motorcycle trips through China. With fellow YouTuber Matthew Tye (who goes by Laowhy86) [11] and other friends, he has taken extended journeys and produced documentary series titled Conquering Southern China [12] [13] [14] and Conquering Northern China. [14] [11] He and Tye operate the YouTube channel ADVChina, a motorcycle travel vlog. [15] Sterzel was also co-founder of a small, China-based custom motorcycle business, Churchill Custom Motorcycles, that is no longer in business. [10]

Departure from China and subsequent videos

In late 2018, according to Sterzel and Tye, they faced increased harassment and threats from Chinese internet trolls. According to Sterzel, the trolls had threatened his wife and her employer with letters accusing Sterzel of being a spy, in an effort to get her fired. The month after, Michael Spavor, a business partner and friend of the pair, was detained by Chinese authorities. They reported this increased their fear for their own safety. As a result, Sterzel and Tye chose to leave China and moved to Los Angeles in 2019. [16]

Following his departure from China, Sterzel's YouTube channel took a sharp turn into criticism of the Chinese government, using video titles such as "How China is slowly KILLING us all." [11]

Related Research Articles

A vlog, also known as a video blog or video log, is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in one take or cut into multiple parts. Unlike a more general video diary, vlogs are often recorded depicting the maker throughout.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PewDiePie</span> Swedish YouTuber (born 1989)

Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg, better known as PewDiePie, is a Swedish YouTuber known for his comedic videos. Kjellberg's popularity on YouTube and extensive media coverage has made him one of the most noted online personalities and content creators. He has been portrayed in media as a figurehead for YouTube, especially in the genre of gaming.

Trisha Paytas is an American media personality and singer. Her content consists of a wide variety of genres including lifestyle-oriented vlogs, music videos, and mukbangs. As of July 2022, she has accumulated roughly 5 million subscribers and almost 1 billion lifetime views on YouTube.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laci Green</span> American YouTuber

Laci Green is an American YouTuber. Her content focuses on sex education; Green also hosted Braless, the first MTV YouTube channel, as part of a 12-week deal with MTV. The first episode aired November 4, 2014. In 2016, Time named her one of the 30 most influential people on the Internet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">El Rubius</span> Spanish-Norwegian YouTuber and Twitch streamer (born 1990)

Rubén Doblas Gundersen, better known as elrubiusOMG or simply El Rubius, is a Norwegian-Spanish YouTuber whose channel primarily consists of gameplays and vlogs. He has the most subscribers in Spain and is among the top 50 most subscribed-to channels of the platform in the world.

A beauty YouTuber is an individual who creates content for YouTube, publishing videos in the realm of cosmetics, fashion, hairstyling, and nail art. In 2016, there were more than 5.3 million beauty videos on YouTube, with 86% of the top 200 beauty videos created by individual beauty vloggers, as opposed to marketers using the platform to promote cosmetic brands.

Wil Dasovich, is a Filipino-American television personality, model, and vlogger. He is known for his vlogs on YouTube. He has appeared on various television shows but most notably on Pinoy Big Brother.

A YouTuber is a type of content creator and social media influencer who uploads or creates videos on the online video-sharing website YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 2006, and subsequently appeared in the 2006 Time Person of the Year issue.

YouTube may suspend accounts, temporarily or permanently, from their social networking service. Suspensions of high-profile individuals from YouTube are unusual and when they occur, often attract attention in the media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trevor James (traveler)</span> Canadian-born food and travel vlogger and YouTuber

Trevor James, also known as "The Food Ranger" on YouTube, is a Canadian food and travel vlogger and YouTuber known for his street food tours on YouTube, which have been viewed over 649 million times. James started filming his food and travel videos in March 2013 and his channel has since grown to have over 5 million subscribers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Etika</span> American YouTuber and live streamer (1990–2019)

Desmond Daniel Amofah, known online as Etika, was an American YouTuber and live streamer. Amofah became known online for his enthusiastic reactions to Super Smash Bros. character trailers and Nintendo Direct presentations and for playing and reacting to various games. He resided in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, and his father is the Ghanaian politician Owuraku Amofah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam B</span> YouTuber from Northern Ireland

Adam Beales, known as Adam B, is a YouTuber, actor, and television host from Derry, Northern Ireland. He is a former co-presenter of the CBBC shows The Dog Ate My Homework and Blue Peter. Beales has over 4 million subscribers on YouTube and has collaborated with Disney.

Thomas Derksen, known as "Afu" Thomas, is a German internet celebrity active in China.

Raz Gal-Or is an Israeli internet businessman based in China. He attended the Canadian International School of Hong Kong, and is an alumnus of Peking University, where he studied international relations. He first gained media exposure in China when he got a single appearance on television. In July 2021, BBC News reported that Gal-Or was working as a stringer for China Global Television Network.

Calvin Lee Vail, known online as LeafyIsHere or simply Leafy, is an American former Internet celebrity, best known for his YouTube channel which focused on reaction content. Vail first gained popularity on the site for his commentary on "cringey" Internet videos and culture. Prior, he posted Let's Play content.

Lee and Oli Barrett are a British father-son Youtuber duo based in Shenzhen, China. They produce videos which defend the Chinese government, and work as stringers for China Global Television Network (CGTN).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wode Maya</span> Ghanaian YouTuber (born 1990)

Berthold Kobby Winkler Ackon, popularly known as Wode Maya, is a Ghanaian YouTube personality, vlogger, digital media influencer, and aeronautical engineer. His name Wode Maya translates to My Mother in the Chinese language. In 2017, he took a video in a bus where seats were empty beside him and other passengers stood due to his skin colour and the video went viral. He is acclaimed to be one of the top and most Influential YouTubers in Africa.

Chen Xing, better known as Mike "Mikey" Xing Chen, is a Chinese-born American YouTuber. A former staff member of New Tang Dynasty Television's YouTube channel Off the Great Wall, Chen is notable for his YouTube channel Strictly Dumpling, a series of vlogs focusing on food and travel. In addition to running Strictly Dumpling, Chen also runs the YouTube channels Cook With Mikey, Eat With Mikey, Beyond Science, Mike Chen, The Chen Dynasty, and The CheNews. Chen has over 5 million subscribers on all of his YouTube channels combined.

Austin Evans is an American YouTuber and tech blogger who creates videos on various modern technologies, such as video games, smartphones and personal computers. As of December 22, 2023, his YouTube channel has over 5.4 million subscribers and 1.3 billion views. Videos of his have been featured on technology sites such as The Verge, Eurogamer, Video Games Chronicle and Engadget.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew Tye</span> American YouTuber (born 1986)

Matthew Tye, also known as Laowhy86 or C-Milk, is an American YouTuber, political commentator, travel and vlogger. He is a commentator about political and social issues in China. According to the Associated Press, Tye is a "vocal critic" of the Chinese government.

References

  1. 1 2 "About SerpentZA". YouTube.
  2. ↑ Melody Yao (September 14, 2019). "American Youtubers In China: Q&A With Winston Sterzal And Matthew Tye". US-China Today. Winston: I have lived in China for 14 years, and that is without leaving. I've done a few holidays here and there, but not many … And one word to describe my time in China would be "challenge."
  3. 1 2 McGeary, Kevin (2014-06-05). "PRD People: Medical Trainer and Online Celebrity Winston Sterzel". The Nanfang. Retrieved 2017-03-19.
  4. 1 2 Ding, A (9 October 2017). "British YouTuber helps foreigners settle in China". Shenzhen Daily . Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  5. ↑ "My Chinese Life: Winston Sterzel--The Original China Vlogger" (with video). CRIEnglish. 21 May 2015. Retrieved 29 June 2018– via China.com.
  6. ↑ Kemp, Yunus (26 August 2015). "South Africans find home away from home in China". Xinhua. Archived from the original on 2018-06-29. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  7. ↑ Gidge, Sky (20 December 2016). "Take 5: YouTube Vlogger Winston Sterzel". That's Shenzhen. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  8. ↑ Yuanyuan, Wang (8 June 2012). "British-South African telling people 'how China is'". Shenzhen Daily. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  9. ↑ Rossman, Sean (4 May 2018). "Chinese are OK with Utah teen's controversial cheongsam prom dress". USA Today . Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  10. 1 2 Roberts, Stephen O. (4 January 2015). "Custom Start-Up: Three Expats and A Two-Wheeled Dream". Here! Dongguan. Archived from the original on 25 September 2019. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  11. 1 2 3 "US-China friction turns into YouTube fame (and laughs) for online influencers". South China Morning Post . Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
  12. ↑ Gidge, Sky (14 January 2016). "Expat's video featured". Shenzhen Daily. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017.
  13. ↑ Mullin, Kyle (20 August 2016). "Watch Two Crazy Vloggers Drive 5,000km Across Southern China on Handmade Motorcycles". The Beijinger . Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  14. 1 2 Gidge, Sky (29 March 2017). "YouTube Stars Turn to Kickstarter for China Motorcycle Adventure Series". That's Guangzhou. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  15. ↑ Babones, Salvatore. "Western Vloggers Are Making It Big In China | The Zhongguo Institute". Archived from the original on 2020-05-27. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
  16. ↑ Sjöberg, Alexander (2019-07-28). "'De ville ødelægge os psykisk': Den vilde historie om to vestlige YouTube-stjerner, der forelskede sig i Kina, så deres venner blive anholdt og til sidst måtte stikke af" ['They wanted to destroy us mentally': The wild story of two western YouTube stars who fell in love with China, saw their friends get arrested and had to flee in the end]. Politiken (in Danish). Retrieved 2020-02-18.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.