Max McGadney is a YouTuber who makes lifestyle vlogs and informative content about his experience as a student at Howard University. Max has made over 200 videos (many private now) and has grown his channel to over 4k subscribers. In this episode, we have a casual conversation about how he grew his YouTube channel. We go through how he started, how he got his first subscribers, some of the challenges a YouTube faces, and lastly what he would say to someone just starting a YouTube channel.

Max's Links

YouTube channel

Instagram

Quaran Ahmad is a director, photographer, and musician. At just 21, he's released multiple music albums, started a freelance photography business, and most recently released the second season of his documentary series called “Burn”.

(00:00) Intro

(01:45) "I'm a Genius"

(02:56) Becoming An Artist

(06:08) What Is An Artist?

(07:45) Capturing A Feeling

(11:19) Why Quaran Created A Documentary

(17:14) Turning Smaller Projects Into Bigger Ones

(20:56) Owning Your Platform vs Relying On Algorithms

(25:46) Feeling Like An Outcast

(29:58) Not Hiding His Old Work

(31:37) Learning To Love Himself And His Art

(34:41) "I'm Not A Black Artist"

(38:58) Shifting To An Entrepreneurial Mindset

(45:35) Wanting A Slow Life

(49:56) Prioritizing Himself

(53:30) Being Critical Of His Own Work

(56:36) Not Being Too Hard On Himself

(1:04:38) Spending Too Much Time Alone

(1:10:01) Not Wanting Fame

(1:13:42) Creating Your Ideal Audience

(1:24:20) "Hidden Colors" Influence

(1:31:03) Minimal Organization System

(1:34:24) Challenge

Quaran's Links

Website: https://quaranahmad.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quaranahmad/

Burn Documentary: https://www.youtube.com/@BURNDocumentary

My Links:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kenyachestnut/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kenya_chestnut

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kenya-chestnut-00a70919a/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmJzlbfkNZD1ybDCGY88IBg

The video I created where I felt like myself (Quaran also talked about it towards the end):

https://youtu.be/Wjh4b_QIopI?si=elks9RmNlAQbDTpb

This is a solo episode about why I started this podcast. Future episodes will have interviews with creators, founders, and other college students. Let me know your thoughts about this episode below. Hope you enjoy this one!

Timestamps:

(00:00) - Intro

(01:51) - Why I Stopped Making YouTube Videos

(05:17) - A Complicated Summer

(13:42) - Embracing An Untraditional Path

(15:25) - Not Worrying About Post-Grad Plans

(19:55) - Designing The Podcast I'd Want To Listen To

(26:39) - The Goal Of The Podcast

The Serge Experience (My Friend's podcast)

https://open.spotify.com/show/2e6vstCWDagUi3zyqpdtnM

My links

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kenyachestnut/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kenya_chestnut

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kenya-chestnut-00a70919a/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmJzlbfkNZD1ybDCGY88IBg