youtube tips for artists (that are actually useful)

It's no secret that I think Youtube is an amazing platform for artists and creatives of all types, but growing a channel can seem like an impossible challenge. So, as someone who's successfully grown my channel to 150K+ subscribers in only a few years, I want to take a moment to share my tips for artists trying to grow on youtube :)

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[leannedelux]

Oh my goodness, perfect timing again, Kelsey….thank you!! (Also, I legit can’t wait to see people doing this. I need more artists to watch….!)

[littletinyegg]

Your videos have helped me so much with growing my channel Kelsey! I would not be monetized or putting out regular videos if I hadn’t listened to your advice, so thank you ❤️ There’s no shortcut, and I think people see big creators making content and think “I could do that” without realizing the work and intention that goes into it

[s.melonita]

You helped me so much and now I'm doing my social media for 4 months and on my way to becoming a partner! You made me believe it would be possible and got me going! I am forever grateful to you. Inspirational business advice I have never seen this way on here!

[haldiroot]

I definitely want to say that getting over the fear and dread that may come with editing/posting videos is also a huge help.

Sometimes you create something with a bit less effort to get the ball rolling, and then you're able to create more complex stuff if you wish. I had kept trying to create more dense videos, but realized that with my school schedule, I needed to back off of that a bit and focus on videos that feel good to make and are simple was the best option to start up again.

[Iktekenkatjes]

Haha the ending was great, and all the other advice too :) Thanks for being so realistic about how much effort you need to put into videos, and about having to treat filming and editing as an artform. It took a while for me to realise how many different skills you need to make a genuinely good youtube video. Writing, filming, editing, charisma and it's all pretty overwhelming (especially if english is not your first language and you don't want to sound super silly), but your videos really help to make it a bit less overwhelming, thank you :)

[beckylimonextras]

a tip to be interested in the film/editing process: find an aesthetic you're excited about!! if thats using a cute font to have captions built into your videos, or a format you enjoy, or even picking out some copyright free music you enjoy to place in your videos- that actually goes a really long way in inspiring you to actually sit and edit the video! for filming having a space to film in that is efficient and I really enjoy helped motivate me too!

[Celeyo]

While I understand the tip of separating the things you do, as someone with a severe energy deficiency and a complicated relationship with art, that has never worked for me and won't until I can at least get someone else to handle my socials. The only thing that happened was I became hyper aware of just how badly one of my art styles did in comparison to the other when I separated them into two different social accounts. But in reality, it wasn't actually doing that badly? It was more that me putting it on a different account made it have less eyes on it and therefore I started thinking it had less value. When I put it back on my main account? It was nerve-wracking, but ultimately I was much happier and found that I do have supporters who will love both types of work.
It's not that I don't see where you're coming from, but I also think it's important that we allow ourselves to be people rather than brands if we need it.
It's probably true that I'm sacrificing quicker growth for my sanity's sake though. But I don't want to wind up hating myself and feeling trapped years down the line. I just think sometimes taking it slow is better, for the sake of building a more sustainable foundation for your art and business.
You're damn right that you should always love at least one aspect of what you do though. And you have lots of really good advice throughout your whole channel :) Keep up the good work!

[GalletaCreates]

Something that has helped me a lot to get to more people here in youtube is shorts! As an experiment, I have been uploading everyday for a little bit more than a week some reels that I haven't share here yet and it made me get more followers, views and interaction. Hope this tip helps because growing in social media is everytime more and more difficult... I loved the painting that you created during the video and the ending was the best hahah😍

[oscardraws]

Starting my own youtube channel here has definitely been one of the beat things I’ve done for my art, I feel a lot more excited about my art, I really appreciate your videos and they’ve been extremely helpful and inspiring!😁

[paperfrost]

I saw you on the SVS Podcast, and it was great to hear Jake Parker and Lee White pick your analytical mind! 😊 Thank you for all the tips, Kelsey!

[VildrArt]

Thank you for the insights! I think I'm very much already applying most of what you talked about, I feel like I analyze everything I watch and the ending your videos part is something I picked up recently. Viewer retention and all that :')

For me, the real struggle is the mental one. All the analyzing made me twist the facts of what I could still use some work on to prove that I'm "not as good as these people" which in turn demotivates me. But I've been getting help for that too and am on my way to reprogram those thought patters.

Another topic I wanted to talk about regarding the separate channels thing: My channel grew big on animations centering around Genshin Impact and I eventually realized that that wasnt what I want my content to focus on. So basically I switched to art content (honestly I very much am not sure what type of content I want to be making yet so I'm still trying stuff out) and as you could expect, it is not doing well AT ALL. And that's frustrating because I know the content itself isn't bad. It's mainly that YouTube thinks my audience is Genshin Impact viewers and those people don't have a huge overlap with my new content.

I sometimes wonder if I should make a new channel and move my art content over there but I'm scared to abandon everything I've worked on so far. I already took a huge step (that may or may not have any impact) and unlisted most of those videos that made my channel what it is now in hopes that the algorithm will slowly learn who my new audience is supposed to be.

Tldr: content creation is hard when your mental health is scuffed so take care of yourselves 💜

And thanks again for all the great content you produce! Seeing your success gives me hope that I can make this work out eventually.

[Artementary]

I’m planning to start my own art channel, so having all of this advice is super good! Thank you very much, and I will definitely use info to my videos in the future

[lemaartist]

this comes just with perfect timing, as I'm doing a deep dive into working on my channel!! thanks a lot for your hard work

[pranjaysurya]

Thank You for the specific take and no meandering stuff like the other channels.

[ceruleanswim]

I love 19th century art history! Also, thank you for always making such practical, honest, constructive and well produced videos.

[TamilVolk]

Every single video you make is a joy! You do all the stuff I want to strive to make my own content. Cozy, relaxing, informative ( very from it myself, but still ). Keep it up.

[aohamer]

The ending...perfect 👌🏾 😅 Great tips, thanks much!

[KatieCloverArt]

Thank you for so such a good video! I always love learning about this stuff, especially since a goal of mine this year is to grow my channel. Also, I love the painting! As a digital artist, it's always fun watching the traditional art process.

[TriniRoyQuiReyes]

We need eachother, so thank you Kelsey girl. Your tips are so needed now. And I appreciate it 👍

[makinsavage]

I think that was the best explanation of why a channel should have a clear content theme that I have heard. It makes more sense now. Thank you!