Cynthia Todd, MavRadio News Director
Social media has a completely different meaning to Bryan Odell.
Odell, a 24-year-old Lincoln native, runs a YouTube channel under the name BryanStars. With over half a million subscribers and over 90 million views, Odell has developed a strong brand and loyal fan base. His videos consist of interviews with alternative bands ranging from A Day to Remember to Black Veil Brides. Odell was even on 2014’s Warped Tour providing updates for all his followers.
As a YouTuber, social media plays a powerful role in his work. Pinyata, a new photo story app, is something Odell has become extremely passionate about.
“What’s really cool about Pinyata is they really get behind the people that are using it, especially the YouTubers and musicians, so that was one of the main reasons I wanted to join,” Odell said. “Although I love using Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and other forms of social media, I never really had a personal connection to the companies.”
Odell is currently participating in a contest put together by Pinyata where YouTubers are challenged to generate followers and raise awareness on current issues. The winner will receive $5,000 to donate to the charity of their choice, and Odell is supporting the American Foundation of Suicide Prevention.
“I don’t have $5,000 to give away to charity; ever,” Odell said. “So here I am supporting suicide awareness, which is really personal to me because I have a fan base that is very prone to depression and self-harm.”
Odell is very aware of the community he’s built and how a lot of his followers can closely relate to suicide.
“It was great to pick AFSP because, to be straight up, a lot of my fans struggle with depression or have lost family or friends to suicide,” Odell said. “So I really wanted to make a video talking about it to raise awareness.”
BryanStars’ “Suicide Prevention” video stresses the issue and discusses everything Odell is doing with Pinyata. The fans quickly responded to it. Odell said thousands of people downloaded the app right away to support the cause.
“We all go through life not really thinking about charity,” Odell said. “I know this is the first time I’ve made a video about it.”
He hopes the video and contest will help people learn more about the organization. Not just AFSP, but all the other organizations involved in Pinyata’s contest.
“I know the other YouTubers are supporting charities that are very personal to them as well, and I think our fans support us because they know we are genuinely passionate about the causes we are trying to raise money for,” Odell said.
He believes all the support and feedback is helping move social media in a positive direction.
“Maybe Pinyata is showing us how social media can be used for more than just selfies and cat videos,” Odell said. “They’re challenging people to do more than like pictures and retweet stuff.”
The winner will be chosen on Dec. 8 based on which YouTuber has the most followers on the app.
“I really don’t care who wins because all these organizations are amazing,” Odell said. “Honestly, I’m just glad Pinyata gave us the opportunity to get ourselves excited and to get all our fans excited about charity.”
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