Imagine being 20 years old, moving to a foreign country to work toward a degree, only to push it to the wayside. Instead, devoting 20-plus hours a week to perfect a craft becomes the utmost priority.

That is often the harsh reality for someone with their eyes set on a career in acting or music. But Salman Alotaibi, a junior majoring in civil engineering, is not an actor or musician. This is Alotaibi’s life as a YouTuber.

“I started out with no plans,” Alotaibi said. “I thought if I was ever going to take this seriously, I had to upload consistently. It not only takes a lot of dedication, but you must love the reasons you’re doing it for. If you aren’t genuine, and your passion isn’t clear, you will never get famous.”  

YouTubing is a career completely driven by views, merchandise and consistent trending. It’s also a career where keeping a plan B intact is crucial in case the fad ever runs out.

Alotaibi, also known as KuwaitiVlogger, has amassed nearly 645,000 subscribers on his channel, where he films himself trying out the newest technology for a predominately Arabic audience.

As a student at The University of Alabama from Kuwait, Alotaibi manages to receive income from an extensively produced and edited video every Friday.

“I think everyone wants to be a YouTuber, just like everyone kind of wants to be an actor, but people are usually too afraid or don’t know how to start,” said Richard Kanneh, a sophomore majoring in creative media. “Being creative and making content at your own pace from out of your house seems like the perfect job.”

Alotaibi has enjoyed the perks of an atypical job. A natural traveler, transferring from Columbia University to UCLA to The University of Alabama, he has recorded videos in Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago and his home country of Kuwait. He has filmed commercials in Europe and camped out in Miami for a video about the newest iPhone – on a school night.

YouTubing for a living is one of the newest forms of fame for this generation – something that Alotaibi is not alone in pursuing. But, the newfound trade is often met with resistance from skeptics.

“My parents know I’m doing it, but they don’t want me to lean on it too much,” said Caleb Probst, a sophomore at The University of Alabama in Birmingham and an aspiring YouTuber. “If I cared only about YouTube, then I would drop out of school. I am still ‘education first,’ so it is really difficult to fully succeed at both.”

Classes are admittedly a second priority for Alotaibi, but he constantly emphasizes his need for a backup plan. Until then, he said he will continue to work as hard as possible in the entertainment field. After all, he said, the money is too great to pass up.

Like many YouTubers, Alotaibi makes a strong percentage of his income from non-YouTube affiliated streams of income. Personal merchandise and advertising revenue make up the bulk of his paycheck.

“You don’t make a lot of money out of videos on YouTube if it isn’t viral,” Alotaibi said. “Companies care about content more than subscribers.”

Cory Paul Harrison, an instructor of communication studies, said he believes video streamed directly to an audience from the creator is a proven method of bringing content to people. But, that doesn’t mean streaming services like YouTube are in the clear.

“I think YouTube’s biggest problem for staying power is how it keeps trying to satisfy advertisers over their content creators, and there’s a whole bunch of drama involving creators and their fan base about that,” Harrison said. “If it can hold itself together, it absolutely has staying power.”

Careers in the entertainment industry are highly sought-after, and KuwaitiVlogger is no stranger to the grind. Alotaibi puts maximum effort in making videos and often stays up until 5 a.m. to edit.

With goals of one day living in Los Angeles and making a living creating fully personalized content, Alotaibi is committed to achieving this lifestyle despite the mental troubles it has given him – something he believes is underlooked as a social media influencer. A social media influencer has access to a large audience and can persuade others by virtue of his or her authenticity and reach.

“No one in social media is mentally stable,” Alotaibi said. “You may think, ‘Why would you not want fame? You don’t want money?’ No, you have no idea how much it affects you socially and mentally.”

Alotaibi had to come to grips with his own identity, and that was a struggle. He said YouTube made him constantly battle who he was versus the character he portrays.

When he would get in front of the camera, Alotaibi said he couldn’t think of anything else besides, “Be perfect.” Alotaibi does not want to disappoint fans who remove themselves from their own imperfect reality when they watch a KuwaitiVlogger video. He said this led him to become trapped in his own mental prison where he would crave the fame and impact, but just couldn’t escape the identity crisis.

Fortunately for Alotaibi, the character he wanted to build ended up becoming himself. Once a shy kid in high school, Alotaibi said he feels like he has acclimated to the YouTube world, but he wishes he could have had a better warning.

“You are going to go through depression,” Alotaibi said. “You are going to have bad mental health. You aren’t going to know who you are. You will lose a lot of friends. If you just have a heads up and are appreciative, it is going to be fine. I am fine, now at least. I am wiser, and I am thankful.”