A YouTube grandpa has skyrocketed to fame, gaining over 150,000 subscribers in 2 days after an Instagrammer implored his fans to support him

• A popular Instagrammer asked his followers to help make an elderly YouTuber famous.
• Over 170,000 people subscribed to the YouTube channel Grandpa Reads the Comics in two days.

A grandfather's YouTube channel has blown up with tens of thousands of new fans after an Instagrammer implored his followers to make the elderly content creator famous.

On April 18, an Instagrammer who goes by @karvetv posted a video to his 109,000 followers which featured clips of an elderly man playing the piano, dancing, and making a smoothie. In a series of on-screen captions, the Instagrammer wrote that the man was a YouTuber he'd discovered who made videos that ended with a positive message for the audience, but they received very few views, and he hadn't posted in over a year.

At the end of the upload, the Instagrammer asked his viewers if they could help convince him to return, and shared what appeared to be a screenshot that showed the channel, named Grandpa Reads the Comics, had posted over 400 videos in which he read from various comic strips and left words of wisdom for his viewers. According to the screenshot, the channel had just 222 subscribers, although social-analytics tracker Socialblade lists the channel at 2,800 subscribers the day before the Instagram post was uploaded.

The post received over 581,000 likes and 2,600 comments, many of which said they had subscribed, and left excited updates on the YouTuber's vastly growing follower count, as it shot up to over 180,000 subscribers in just two days.

New subscribers rushed to the YouTuber's most recent video, which was published in September 2021, and featured the grandpa sharing a "Dennis the Menace" comic, as well as positive affirmations and advice for his followers. Over 2,600 people left comments beneath the upload, praising the grandpa for his words of wisdom and asking him to resume the videos.

A day later, the YouTuber made his return to the channel in a YouTube short, originally filmed for his TikTok account where he now has 42,000 followers, in which he thanked all of his new fans "and all the new friends we have," and pledged that he would try to make a new video every day going forward. In a further follow-up also posted to TikTok in which he directly responded to the growth of his YouTube channel, he said, "you've like, breathed life into this old man."

This isn't the first time @karvetv has helped shine a spotlight on little-known content creators. The Instagrammer has posted multiple videos on his account in which he highlights Twitch streamers with little to no viewers, and encourages his own followers to watch and support their videos.

After his channel blew up, the YouTuber appeared in a further Instagram video with @karvetv in which he showed appreciation for the Instagrammer and the attention he'd brought to his channel. "If there was a Mount Rushmore of people that have helped my life, you'd be on my Mouth Rushmore, buddy," he said.

On June 11, 2020, the YouTuber said in an introduction video to his channel that he originally started making the videos as he loved reading comics to his kids and grandchildren, but wasn't able to do so during the pandemic. "So if any of you need a grandpa, or want an extra grandpa, join me," he said.

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