After Beem made a video with popular creator MrBeast, his channel suddenly blew up.
Matthew Beem via YouTube
Throughout 2020, Beem posted several videos about popular YouTuber MrBeast, who currently has 96 million subscribers and is one of the most-viewed and highest-paid creators on the platform.
Beem did not know MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, personally at the time, but he used the YouTuber’s name in various video titles, such as, “I Covered My House With MrBeast’s Face,” and “Asking MrBeast to give me $100,000”
On July 27, 2021, Beem posted a YouTube video titled, “I Surprised MrBeast with a Custom Car!”
In the video, Beem filmed himself using skills learned from his car painting job to customize a Smart car for Donaldson, in celebration of the launch of the YouTuber’s new burger chain, MrBeast Burger.
Beem, who had 19,000 subscribers at the time according to analytics tracker Social Blade, told Insider he spent a month customizing and wrapping the car, and drove it to North Carolina, where he knew Donaldson was based, to try and convince the YouTuber to accept the car in a video with him.
Beem told Insider one of Donaldson’s producers had initially turned down a pitch for a collaboration that Beem sent them, saying that Donaldson was too busy to take up the opportunity. Beem said he decided to pursue his video idea to surprise Donaldson and his team.
“I bought a Smart car without asking them because I figured that it’s a lot easier to say no to an idea rather than an amazing thing that’s already done.”
When Beem drove to North Carolina, he said he called Donaldson’s producers, who agreed to let him present the car to Donaldson in a video. The video now has 4.5 million views on the platform.
Representatives for Donaldson did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.