I'M BACK!!!

What's up everyone in the blogosphere!
It's been a while since I posted on my blog and I gotta say...I missed it! I'm feeling like it's time to get back to some basics and this blog is one of them.

I am so excited to talk with you about the video that came out today. It's one of my favorites because it involves my favorite people...YOU! The inspiration for this video came when I was asked to participate in the very first CVX Live back in August 2015. For anyone who doesn't know about CVX Live, it's a convention here in Utah where fans and online media creators can come together. So, basically Comic-Con but replace the superheroes with YouTubers.

I had a booth where I would be meeting and talking to people and, before I was supposed to start, I walked around looking at all the other booths. As I checked things out, I saw there were some booths that were decorated and some that were plain. Then, one caught my eye that really stood out. It was a replica of the room where that YouTuber did a lot of their videos and their fans got to be in there with them. I thought that would be fun to do something like that and do something different! How could I take this experience with my fans from just a regular meet and greet, which I love, but somehow make it better? How could I create an experience for the fans that came to see me and capture that interaction on video? That's when I decided to pull out an old desk and chair and make a mini talk show.

Stay Committed

On the second day of CVX Live, I loaded up my talk show desk that I had used in another video and called a friend who just happened to have a couch we could use that was already at the event. I started setting things up at my booth and the whole time I was trying to figure out how this was going to work. All I knew, was I wanted to go for it and see what happened.

After getting the set ready I tried to figure out what to do with the fans as they came to my set, and the thing that felt most natural was playing "Heads Up". Honestly, it was kind of awkward at first. I think it was a combination of not being able to hear each other over the chatter of everyone else in the signing hall, and the fact that the other people in line watching us couldn't hear us. I stayed committed to the idea hoping it would come together when I edited the video.

The biggest challenge I faced on this video was my own self doubts of whether it would work or not. I enjoy making videos that feature my fans and I feel like making videos like this was a way for me to tell my fans THANKS.  However, that put a lot of pressure on me, because I felt there were more people I might disappoint if the video didn't turn out.

Sometimes Simple Is Better

As far as the production of this video goes, it was really simple. I just had a Sony RX100 II set up on a tripod and I hit record and let it go for about 30 minutes. Occasionally, friends would stop by and I'd have them check the camera for me. I think when I do this again I will have two or three cameras going so that I can have more variety in my video.

I have to say, this was one of my favorite videos to do because it's so real and raw. The simplicity of the one camera angle and unscripted interactions really came together to create something better than I could have imagined. I am so excited to do this again at the next  CVX Live that will be coming up on March 25-26 2016.

Thanks again for watching my videos and I can't wait to see you there!

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Let's come together and give.

For over a month I have been thinking of performing a magic trick with homeless people. These people on the streets are real people and I wanted to find a way to help them. I wanted to inspire them to help others as well. I want this video to help restart the conversation on this issue and create an environment where people can share their stories of being helped and when they helped others. Let us come together and help each other. I hope people will feel inspired to join in the conversation. 

In order to initiate the "magic" between the homeless person and myself, we had to #FistBump. We had to come together in order for the magic trick to work. We as citizens have to come together and help each other out as well. There is a power in the #FistBump. Let's #FistBump and make a difference in each others' lives.

Make the connection.

The effects are far reaching.

Homelessness effects over 640,000 people in the United States (Source). 13 percent of these homeless people are veterans who suffer from a mental disability. I got to know these people in the video very well. Before we filmed the magic trick, I would talk with each homeless person and learn about their stories. One of the guys was really sick and needed to pay for his hospital bill. Another homeless person's spouse had recently committed suicide. The gentleman in the video with a guitar had only pennies and nickels in his jar. These people are going through hard times and need help. 

I understand there are scam artists who abuse the system and take advantage of people's generosity. Do not let the decisions of a few effect your desire to help those who truly need our help. Be the change in the world and go out there and serve. 

Do not be afraid to #FistBump

In all honesty 100 dollars is not a lot. As a homeless person, there is not a lot you can do with a 100 dollars. I used a 100 dollars in the video to symbolize the importance of helping others. We need to connect with our fellowmen and assist those in need. Let us #FistBump with these people and make that connection.

We can make a difference.

Join the conversation

I want to encourage everyone to share this video and join in on the conversation through Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and the Facebook message board below. Share stories of when you have been helped by someone. Share stories of experiences you may have had or know about with homelessness. I want to hear from you. Join in on the power of the #FistBump and let's make a difference in each other's lives.

Thank you.

Stuart

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Famous YouTuber seeks cheap vending machine.

In front of my friends’ apartment, there is a vending machine. Every time I pass it, I always think of how freaky it would be to have someone hidden inside it. I always wanted to do a prank video about it but only if I could find a vending machine to use. I had no idea where to look for a used vending machine but low and behold the Internet had the answer.

Moving the vending machine took some coordination.

I woke up one day and said to myself, “I am going to look for a vending machine.” I found a place online that was selling it for 250 bucks. I drove out there, bought it and brought it back to my place. On the way back from the purchase, my friend P.J., who was in the Pick My Nose Prank, called me to let me know he was going to Las Vegas the next day. He thought it would be a great idea to film the vending machine prank on the strip but two things had to happen in the next few hours. I had to clean out the inside of the machine and find a truck to transport it the six hour drive to Vegas.

I posted a comment on Facebook wondering if any of my friends would like to lend their truck out for the weekend and I began cleaning the machine.  It took my friends and I until one in the morning to finish cleaning the inside. A friend of mine responded to my post and let me borrow his truck. We were ready to drive to Vegas.

A Russian vending machine.

A few months ago I attended Playlist Live, a convention for YouTubers, where I met the Crazy Russian Hacker. I had seen his videos and he had seen mine. We always talked about possibly collaborating sometime in the future. He let me know a few weeks ago that he was going to be sightseeing through the United States and he was going to be in Utah in the upcoming week. Well it turns out that this particular weekend he happened to be in Vegas, so he met up with us there and helped us with the shoot.

Only in Vegas can you high-five an alien.

My friend P.J. goes to Vegas about every other week so he was really familiar with the strip. He found us a great spot to place the vending machine but unfortunately we were asked to leave after only getting a few shots.  We spent the next hour and a half looking for another great spot to film. We finally found one and it turns out it was directly across the street from the first filming location. 

I was a little more worried about this shoot because we didn’t have extra days to come back and film. We were only going to be in Vegas for one day.  We had to get it right. It all went smoothly. Thanks to Crazy Russian Hacker’s Go Pro, we were able to get some great shots of people’s reactions. I was so surprised people didn’t notice the GoPro on the top right corner of the machine. Apparently people never look up.

Steven, it’s Stuart. You all right in there?

I only ran into two problems with this particular video. The first problem was keeping my brother Steven from over heating inside the machine. We tried putting ice in the box with him but it just turned to hot water and made it even worse for him. But Steven was a pro and stuck through it.  In the second location there was a lot more shade, which made it a lot easier for my brother and we were able to get some great reactions.

My brother and I getting ready for the shoot.

The second problem was in postproduction. This was my first out-of-state video. In Utah you rarely have to worry about language or nudity but in Vegas it is a whole different story. Since I want my videos to be watched by all age groups, I had to do a lot of editing to cut out swearing and certain billboards that would pass by on the street.  With Crazy Russian Hacker’s GoPro, I was able to change between camera angles to edit out unnecessary language and billboards.

What would you do?

I would love to do another vending machine prank since I own one now. If you have any ideas on possible pranks with a vending machine please feel free to leave them in the comments below.  If you have any other comments or questions, comment below as well.

Thanks for watching.

Stuart

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Over 10 million views, now what do I do?

After the success of "The Magic Kissing Card Trick" video, I was not sure what video to release next. I could tell people really liked my new video but I wanted to wait another month before I released another magic-related video. I wasn't able to get any of my other videos uploaded because I became very busy. I had many interviews including an opportunity to be on Jimmy Fallon's late night show.  Since three weeks had passed since my last video was uploaded, I thought it was a perfect time for another magic trick video.

I decided that my next video was going to be on how to get a girls number using magic. There were a lot of magic tricks I could have done but I needed something equally as impressive. Since the new trick would not involve kissing, its shock value had to be equal or greater than getting a kiss. I thought to myself, "What trick could I do that would be really cool?" Then a thought popped in my head: What if I had a girl sign a card, shuffle the deck, then, after I threw the deck at the window, she would see the card appear on the other side of the glass? Now that would be cool.

Night Waffles and a Magic Trick

A shot of me performing the trick in the day time.

So I figured out how to do it and went about performing and perfecting it. After some practice, I decided to go out and film it. I needed to film at a place that was sociable, had cute girls and was well lit. I decided to film in front of the Awful Waffle, this really great waffle place built in the courtyard of a new apartment complex in Provo.

A few friends and I started filming at around 6 o'clock that day. We felt rushed for time because we wanted to film everything before it got dark. But after awhile, we realized the shots looked better at night. So we waited until dark and began filming again. It proved a little difficult to get girls to be in my video but, after some clarification, we got a lot of volunteers.

When I asked girls to be in my magic trick video, a lot of them recognized me and thought I was going to incorporate kissing in the trick. Not until I mentioned there was no kissing, did they agree to participate. I got so used to explaining that the new trick wouldn't have kissing in it, that I ended up saying it to girls who had never seen my videos before. Then I had to awkwardly explain to them that I make kissing videos but that this new video didn't have any. I swear they probably thought I had a windowless-van parked out front with a sign that read "Free Candy."

"You want my number and a date?"

On the first day of filming, I would only ask girls to write down their phone numbers on the card. It wasn't until the last trick of the night that I incorporated an additional part. I was performing the trick for a girl that night who was really cute. When I got to the part where I explain how she would give me the last four digits of her number if I found her card, I couldn't help but ask her out. I showed people footage of that trick and they suggested I incorporate asking out the girl every time. So for the other two days of filming, I added the extra line.

Would you give your number to this guy?

The weirdest experience of the three days of shooting is when I performed the trick for a girl who is on the video. I told her if I could find her card, she would give me the last four digits of her number. She agreed. It wasn't until I added that I get to take her on a date did she say she had a boyfriend. Why did she wait until then to let me know? There is only one reason a guy asks for a girls number. Well, at least she was being honest.

"Oh my gosh you're great!"

What really surprised me about the three-day shoot were the reactions. I didn't expect the girls to be as amazed as they were. With magic, you have to practice a trick many times to master it. Through these practices, I forget how cool it is until I perform it for someone who is seeing it for the first time. 

It was so much fun to perform! I worked with some great people and had some really great volunteers. Thanks to the support of many of my friends and strangers, I was able to take my magic to the next level. 

If you have any questions or comments feel free to message me below.

Hope you enjoyed the video!

Stuart

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"There is a power in kissing."

"Jimmy is a huge fan of your work."
Last week I received an email from "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" asking me if I would like to be on the show in a few weeks. Apparently Jimmy Fallon had brought me up in one of their meetings and wanted me on the show. I was blown away. I love Jimmy Fallon and now he wanted me on his live show. I responded immediately and began to free up my schedule in the upcoming weeks. Something must have changed because the next day I got a call from the show and they asked, "How about this Friday?" I couldn't believe it. I was going to New York! 

For the trip I decided to take my friend Nate from the Mistletoe Kissing prank. He had been with me since the beginning and I didn't want to go to New York by myself. The late night show had someone pick us up from the airport and put us in a hotel right in front of Rockefeller Plaza. Before getting some shut eye, Nate and I walked around Times Square and took in the city life. 

Back Stage

The next morning we spent exploring New York because we didn't have to be in the studio until 3:30 P.M. Before the show, I wanted to practice my magic but in New York this proved to be difficult. In Utah, people are always excited to see a magic trick. In New York, People there don't like getting stopped on the street. The only way I could get people to stop was by saying, "I'm going to be on Jimmy Fallon doing magic, you want to see one of my tricks?"

"I'm saving some of this food for the plane!"
At 3:30, Nate and I entered the "Late NIght With Jimmy Fallon" studio. They took us to the dressing room and explained how things were going to happen. Then we had a run through on stage. Not once did the producers try to script my performance or change it in anyway. All they suggested was for me to incorporate Jimmy Fallon in my trick.

Nate in the dressing room.

Then we hung out in the dressing room until it was my time. The staff told us we could eat anything in the dressing room. Nate took that a little literal. He was eating everything he could and then he started putting food in his pocket. "I'm saving some of this food for the plane!"

Jimmy Fallon, the Johnny Carson of our times.
At 5:45 P.M. make up came in to do a few touch ups and by 6:00 P.M. I was on stage ready to go. Right before it went live, I met Jimmy Fallon for the first time. He shook my hand and said, "Thanks for coming, I am a huge fan." Then we went live. A lot of times when I am introduced on television shows, people get information wrong. They may mix the number of subscribers I have with number of Facebook fans or the number of views on one of my videos is over-exaggerated. All the information Fallon gave was correct and up-to-date. Once the trick was over, the show went to commercial and Fallon chatted with me a bit. He then let me sit on the couch with him while the band played. 

In the dressing room after the show, the writers came in to congratulate me and let me know they were huge fans of my videos. I was blown away. These were writers for a national broadcasted late night show telling me they were fans. That was one of the biggest highlights of that night.

Thank you note from Jimmy Fallon

The take away from the weekend: Jimmy Fallon and his crew are phenomenal! They were nice to Nate and I from start to finish. They made sure we were taken care of and always treated us with the upmost respect. Now that I met Jimmy Fallon, I can say without hesitation that he is the Johnny Carson of our times. He was classy. Fallon gave me the show for those few minutes. He let me perform my trick and for a moment he was a spectator. There are not many people who would do that. It reminded me of when Johnny Carson brought on special guests on his show. For those few minutes his guests were the stars. I'm looking forward to watching Jimmy Fallon's career grow as he takes Jay Leno's spot.



Fans: without you, none of this would be possible. 
I want to give a special thanks to all of my fans who watched my video. If it was not for your interest and support, I would never have been able to be on Jimmy Fallon's show. I am so thankful for the support of all of you! I have been able to pursue my dream of creating videos thanks to you. I can never forget you. I hope I can continue to make content you will love. Thank you.


If you haven't seen it, here it is:



What was your favorite part of the Jimmy Fallon clip? Feel free to leave any comments below. 

Thanks again fans!

Stuart Edge
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"Can I show you a magic trick?"

Over a month ago, a friend of mine Matt Hogan from Global Soup invited me to come to a conference called 'Playlist Live.' Playlist Live is a three-day event where YouTubers can interact with fellow YouTubers and fans. The first day is a business day where famous YouTubers sit on a panel and answer questions. The last two days are devoted to booths where you can interact with famous YouTubers. I decided to go and brought my friend Preston, from the "Kiss Me I'm Irish" video, along with me. Playlist Live was a blast. I had the opportunity to network with other YouTubers and meet some fans.

On the first day of the conference, many people asked for my business card but I didn't bring any. I had to awkwardly tell them to write my information in their phone or email me instead. I needed to find a better way. My answer came from a guy wearing a top hat with a face card on it. 

I asked him if he had a deck of cards and decided to perform a magic trick for him. Magic is something I love to do on my free time. I once performed magic at my fifth grade talent show. It was simple tricks but they were fun. I hadn't performed magic tricks since then until a few months ago. I showed some of the tricks I knew to the man in the top hat and he loved them. Then it hit me: What if I perform magic tricks and then use them as business cards?

"There is power in kissing."

So there I was at Playlist Live performing tricks to people like GloZell, IJustine, Overly Attached Girlfriend and many others. Every trick would end with me writing my name and YouTube channel on a card. It was an awesome experience! When I performed the trick for EleventhGorgeous, they kept telling me to do magic tricks on my channel but I wasn't sure how that related to my other videos. Then I thought of the old 'Kiss Card Trick' and decided to give it a shot.

The last kiss of the day. It was a good one.

I went to Brigham Young University campus (one of my favorite places to film) to try it out. I felt a lot more comfortable on this shoot because it wasn't a prank video. The participants knew they were on camera but the reactions were still genuine because it is the magic trick that surprises them not a camera. The video was shot over a three-day period because I had to make sure my viewers felt like they were part of the trick. I did not want them to feel like I was cheating them. In every shot I had to make sure the cards were always viewable and that the viewer never felt tricked. I didn't want to seem like I was doing camera manipulation. 

Decks of cards and sharpie thieves

A picture of my 'business card'

I performed the trick over 100 times. I probably kissed over 50 people, because some were couples and some didn't want to kiss me. One girl actually told me she had mono right before I went in for the kiss. I also spent $70.20 on decks of cards. The hardest part of the trick was chasing people down to get my sharpie back. I had four sharpies on me at all times just in case someone walked off with one. I want to thank my friends who helped me film. It is so hard to be in front of the camera and direct at the same time. Thankfully my friends were able to incorporate my vision into their filming and it turned out just like I wanted it to.

Never give up on your dreams. I never thought I would be performing magic tricks on a YouTube channel for all the world to see but here I am. You never know where you will end up or what you will end up doing. If you have a hobby that you stopped doing, pick it up again! Life is short. Carpe Diem, YOLO, Mario, Luigi, Yoshi...... you get the idea. Go out there and make a difference! Don't let anyone tell you otherwise!

I want to hear from you. 

What is the coolest magic trick you have ever seen? What was your favorite reaction? What questions do you want to ask me? Feel free to leave them in the comments below.


Stuart Edge

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