From dense forests and Great Lakes to beach days and scolding weather, Minnesota and California couldn’t be more different. For most teens, moving 2,094 miles away from your hometown is a daunting prospect. But, for junior Alyssa Darland, this affair was a mere stepping stone in her rise to YouTube fame. 

“I moved at the beginning of the summer in 2019, so when I got here we weren’t in school to meet people so the whole summer I was just stuck,” said Darland. 

Shortly after getting somewhat familiar with her new school, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, forcing everyone to remain indoors. 

As with many other teens during this uncharted period, Darland had an extensive amount of free time. To fill that time, Darland decided to upload a seven-minute YouTube video entitled “spring haul 2020!!” on May 5, 2020. 

Although her first video initially gained only a few hundred views, Darland regularly posted once a week and promoted her channel through all of her social medias. 

“Initially I was scared of judgment, but then when I really thought about it…I didn’t really know that many people that could judge me here anyways,” said Darland. 

Flash forward two years, that video now has over 30,000 views.

The first video of hers to gain traction was a nine-minute video entitled “unboxing my new iphone 12 pro!!,” and it still stands as her most viewed video with over one million views. 

“After I posted that video, I gained around 10k followers. It was such a surreal experience,” said Darland.

After experimenting with tech-related videos and hauls for over six months, Darland eventually found that vlogging was her video-style of choice. 

“I personally like my vlogs the most, especially the ones in the summer with my friends because they usually have the most memorable moments in them. It’s like a time capsule that I get to look back on,” said Darland. 

Another huge milestone in Darland’s YouTube journey was getting her first sponsorship. After almost a year of posting, Darland partnered with the brand uni.

Today, Darland has partnered with numerous well-known brands including Princess Polly, Curology, Glossier, Yesstyle, White Fox, Hollister, and Notability. 

One of the most exciting experiences thus far into her career has been with the brand Notability. In the summer of 2023, Darland was flown out to Boston for a creator event promoting Notability’s new app launch. 

“When my manager texted me about the opportunity, I couldn’t believe it,” said Darland. 

As a sixteen-year-old high school student with a rigorous class schedule and an active social life, balancing a regular posting schedule and answering emails can become quite strenuous. 

For this reason, Darland signed with the digital marketing and social media agency SmallScreen in 2023. 

“What I love about SmallScreen is that they do it differently than most. Your YouTube revenue is from Google AdSense, but then there’s sponsorship revenue that’s separate. Most managements take from your overall revenue, but SmallScreen only takes from your sponsorship revenue,” said Darland. 

Since posting her first video, Darland has grown up in many ways. 

“My confidence has definitely grown, it’s so funny looking back at my old videos where I wouldn’t look at the camera or would speak super slow. I’ve also become a much better communicator, and I even learned how to file taxes which is crazy,” said Darland. 

After posting over 280 videos, gaining over 184,000 subscribers, and partnering with numerous brands, Darland would like to thank her fans, her family, and her friends for their unconditional support and love. 

“As of now, I don’t know where my channel is going to go, so in terms of the future, who knows what could happen?,” said Darland.