After challenging himself to survive alone for a week on a desert island (a video that has 15 million views), then to spend 24 hours in the high mountains (3 million views), Inoxtag is embarking on a project of a completely different dimension, YouTube star with 6 million subscribers. In a video posted at the end of February, the 21-year-old, a specialist in ever more incredible challenges, announced his intention to climb Everest in 2024. “Today, even though I love my life with the Internet, I I want to do something that I don’t feel capable of. I want to achieve a challenge that may seem unconscious, but which I have dreamed of for a long time, ”he justified.
While some fans rejoiced at this news, encouraging the youtubeur, others were worried about this project. And there is something. Because Everest, aka the highest peak in the world is more than 8,800 meters to climb. And every year, between the risks of avalanches, the lack of oxygen, the cold and injuries, several mountaineers – sometimes even professionals – lose their lives there. While some people prepare their whole lives for this extraordinary physical exercise, Inoxtag – Inès Benazzouz, her real name – only allows herself a year of preparation.
“For this challenge, my life will have to change this year. I will have to train tirelessly to be able to achieve my goal. I have a precise schedule throughout the year to keep, with more than 10 peaks to climb, in order to obtain the right to climb Everest. Many of you are wondering, worrying, or others say it’s impossible. It will be difficult yes, and a whole team will be there to supervise me on my preparation to be safe in the mountains, for me and for the others, ”he tried to reassure.
One-upmanship among youtubers
If this “project of a lifetime”, as Inoxtag says in its video, has aroused many reactions, it is also because it marks the climax of a trend that has existed for several years on YouTube: that of ” always more “. Like the Grand Prix Explorer, organized by Squeezie, the most followed streamer in France with 17 million subscribers. Last October, twenty-two web stars competed at the wheel of real Formula 4 cars on the famous Bugatti circuit in Le Mans. An exceptional event held in real conditions: real layout, mechanics, engineers or even judges.
But in real conditions, real risks. You probably won’t learn anything by telling you that the discipline, like mountaineering, is extremely dangerous. To minimize risk, each of the participants underwent several days of intensive circuit training, driving lessons and training provided by the French Federation of Motor Sport. During the race, one of the drivers, the youtuber Joyca hit the edge of the track after a bend, destroying part of his car. Another accident occurred a few hours later when two vehicles collided. More fear than harm, but a little reminder of the risks of this sport.
But why are Squeezie, Inoxtag and other YouTubers looking to do “always more”? Quite simply because in the world of content creation, competition is raging, says Caroline Mignaux, creator from the Marketing Square Podcast : “There is an escalation. It’s no longer enough to turn on your webcam to gain an audience, you have to diversify, be spectacular, look for the extraordinary. »
The challenges, the DNA of social networks
It must be said that in a decade, the number of content creators has literally exploded, forcing videographers to compete in imagination – or in risk-taking, as desired. “Before, we knew almost all the youtubers. Today, there are a lot of them, we discover them every day. The audiences are so large that there are a lot of requests, so inevitably, there are a lot of offers. You have to be visible in all of this. To be visible, you have to be sensational, to stand out,” deciphers Jonathan Condessa, strategic planner at the Otta agency. Especially since the remuneration is no longer the same as in the early days of YouTube, adds the specialist: “Before, it was more advertising that was profitable. Now it’s brands. But they require new content to stand out and get views. It’s a circle. »
However, this race for challenges is far from surprising Caroline Mignaux, because it is not new. “Social networks are natively based on challenges. This is the case for all platforms and it has existed for a long time, especially on Facebook before. Challenges bring virality”. And in addition to the competition on YouTube, videographers have to compete with those on TikTok. And one of TikTok trending – like 20 minutes explained to you a few weeks ago – these are the dangerous challenges. “YouTubers must align themselves with this to reach young audiences”, adds Jonathan Condessa.
It is also the challenges that seem unachievable that work best, continues Caroline Mignaux. “It’s in the DNA of the challenge to prove that we can meet it. It is said that it takes a lifetime to climb Everest, Inoxtag’s challenge is to show that this is not the case”, she illustrates. And if content creators embark on the race for sensationalism, it is also a question of time, analyzes the specialist. “It’s one of the characteristics of this generation. It is known to value skills over experience. It is the generation of all possibilities. And inevitably, it has the defects of these qualities.
An impossible pace
But wouldn’t this quest for the sensational also be a sign that the platform is running out of steam? In any case, this is Jonathan Condessa’s theory: “YouTube is a platform that works in cycles. At the beginning, we had facecam formats, with Cyprien and Norman, then video games. Now what works are the long formats. But these contents have become superproducts, because they bring in a lot of money. The sensational race shows that we are coming to the end, at the end of a cycle”.
A grueling pace for some videographers, “whom YouTube requires to post content on a very regular basis”, deplores the specialist. Recently, the mega star Squeezie denounced this system, announcing “need to do simpler things”. “You can’t just do huge formats all the time,” he explained during a Twitch live, citing his cult format as an example. Who is the impostor?. “We don’t realize it, but the video with Eric and Ramzyit’s three and a half weeks of editing”, he explained, adding, “if all the videos I make have to be in this line, my teams and I are going to do a gigantic burn-out”.
For the specialist, you have to wonder about the rest: “This is the moment when you have to ask yourself questions. When do we say stop? Is it the role of the spectators not to watch? Is it that of YouTube which endangers creators with an algorithm that is too demanding or that of videographers who should not be in a race? “. Inoxtag, he warned: “I will take the least possible risk. I will surround myself properly, he explained on the Popcorn show. People know me as a stubborn person. But if I have to go down because it’s dangerous, I’ll go down. Maybe I won’t make it to the top. But even if it’s a failure, it will be beautiful and I would have tried. »