FouseyTube

FouseyTube
Erakat in 2016
Personal information
Born
Yousef Saleh Erakat

(1990-01-22) January 22, 1990 (age 34)
Fremont, California, U.S.
EducationSan Jose State University
Occupation(s)YouTuber, actor
RelativesNoura Erakat (sister)
Saeb Erakat (uncle)
Ahmad Erekat (cousin)
Websitehttps://reupcrew.com/
YouTube information
Also known asFousey
Channel
Years active2011–2024
Genres
  • Interviews
  • Comedy
Subscribers10.4 million[1]
Total views2.063 billion[1]
NetworkCollective Digital Studio
100,000 subscribers2011
1,000,000 subscribers2014
10,000,000 subscribers2017
Last updated: September 3, 2023
Statistics shown are representative of the main "fouseyTUBE" channel only.

Yousef Saleh Erakat (/ˈjuːsəf ˈsælə ˈɛrəkæt/; Arabic: يوسف صالح عريقات; born January 22, 1990), also known as FouseyTube or Fousey, is an American YouTuber and online streamer who produces prank videos, parodies, vlogs, comedy sketches and interviews.[2] He also has two other channels, Fousey and DoseOfFousey.

Personal life

Yousef Saleh Erakat was born in Fremont, California,[3][full citation needed] to Palestinian parents. He has three older siblings, including Noura Erakat, who is a legal scholar and professor at Rutgers University. Erakat attended San Jose State University and majored in theatre arts. He moved to Los Angeles after graduating in 2013 to pursue his acting career.[4][5][6]

Erakat was brought up in a religious Muslim family, and has on several occasions criticized negative stereotyping of Muslims.[7]

Erakat has spoken on his ongoing struggles with depression, porn addiction,[8] anxiety and bipolar disorder, mentioning them frequently in his daily vlogs and once on VH1.[9]

Entertainment career

2011–2014: Beginnings, fitness and controversy

Erakat has had multiple YouTube channels in the past, namely ones relating to fitness. His past channels included him following a workout routine, P90X, and giving a review and before and after of his journey.[citation needed] In 2012, Erakat was listed 3rd on the list of "40 Inspiring Muslims Under 40" by MBMuslima Magazine.[10] It was not until he began making comedic skits about his Middle Eastern upbringing that his popularity grew.

He later began creating prank videos and further grew his audience. These videos have been criticized both for being dangerous and others staged.[11] Nonetheless, he is often considered one of the original YouTube pranksters.[11]

Erakat at an event in 2014

2021–present: Return to YouTube, book and streaming

In 2021, Erakat returned to YouTube with a new YouTube Boxing related channel named Fousey (stylized in all lowercase). On this channel he has uploaded boxing related videos with Slim Albaher, AnEsonGib and other YouTubers. He started to call himself DanaTube. In the same year, he also returned to his DOSEofFousey channel. He told that he will use his DOSEofFousey channel for clips.

In January 2021, it was announced that he was going to release a book, titled Warning: This Is Not a Motivational Story.

On August 6, 2023, while Twitch streaming at an airport, he encountered an intoxicated woman who had been a victim of sex trafficking. After flirting and kissing, he and the woman disappeared for around 20 minutes. After bragging that they had sex, however, Erakat received criticism. He then claimed the event was a prank, before starting to cry because he felt "guilty". He abruptly terminated the stream soon after. After a wave of backlash, he proceeded to take a hiatus from Twitch, citing mental health issues.[12][better source needed] The day after the incident he was banned for hateful conduct towards the LGBT community.[13][third-party source needed] Shortly after his Twitch ban, Erakat announced that he would be streaming on Kick.[citation needed]

On August 23, 2023, Erakat was arrested on livestream by police in Miami, Florida after calling 911 on himself following a dispute with another streamer.[14]

Boxing career

Erakat made his boxing debut against Slim Albaher on September 29, 2019, losing by a technical knockout.[15][third-party source needed] Erakat suffered a broken nose and needed two surgeries to fix it. Following that experience, he vowed never to fight again.[16][better source needed] On August 27, 2022, he faced Deji Olatunji and lost via TKO, vowing to never fight again for the second time.

Boxing record

Professional

1 fight 0 wins 1 loss
By knockout 0 1
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
1 Loss 0–1 Deji Olatunji TKO 3 (4) 1:28 27 Aug 2022 The O2 Arena, London, England MF–Professional bout

Amateur

1 fight 0 wins 1 loss
By knockout 0 1
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
1 Loss 0–1 Slim Albaher TKO 4 (6), 1:30 Sep 29, 2019 York Hall, London, England

Filmography

Film

Year Film Role Notes Ref.
2014 Twin Blocke Trevor Short film
2016 We Love You Ford
Boo! A Madea Halloween Jonathan
2017 Boo 2! A Madea Halloween
#Reality High Himself

Web

Year Series Role Notes Ref.
2016 Experiment 88 Himself Episode: "HELP ME!! FIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD" [17]

Awards and nominations

Year Work Category Award Result Ref.
2014 fouseyTUBE Pranks 4th Streamy Awards Nominated [18]
2015 YouTube Comedian Shorty Awards Nominated [19]
YouTube Star of the Year presented by A&E Nominated
Snapchatter Nominated
Pranks 5th Streamy Awards Nominated [20]
Show of the Year Won [21]
2016 DOSEofFOUSEY First Person 6th Streamy Awards Nominated [22]
Yousef Erakat Entertainer of the Year Won

Further reading

  • Erakat, Y. S., with Martin Svensson and Leif Eriksson (Sept 28, 2021). Warning: This is Not a Motivational Story. Brentwood, Tennessee: Permuted Press. ISBN 978-1682619858
  • The Guardian
  • San Jose Mercury News
  • BBC News
  • The National
  • The Rise, Fall, and Re-Birth of Fousey: The Untold Truth (May 17, 2021). No Focks Given podcast (28).

References

  1. ^ a b "About fouseyTUBE". YouTube.
  2. ^ Tomchak, Anne-Marie (April 25, 2014). "#BBCtrending: How FouseyTUBE became a YouTube star". BBC News. BBC News. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  3. ^ DOSEofFOUSEY, "YouTube", September 6, 2014.
  4. ^ "#BBCtrending: How FouseyTUBE became a YouTube star - BBC News". BBC News. April 25, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  5. ^ "Comedian FouseyTUBE to perform in Dearborn Jan. 17". www.arabamericannews.com. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  6. ^ "The Argus: Theater Student Becomes YouTube Sensation With Funny Videos | SJSU Newsroom". blogs.sjsu.edu. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  7. ^ "Yousef Saleh Erakat aka FouseyTUBE speaks out against American Sniper: "this movie is propaganda"". The Muslim Vibe. January 25, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  8. ^ Khalife, Leyal (March 12, 2018). "Men asked Palestinian vlogger how to get over porn addiction ... he responded". StepFeed. Retrieved November 29, 2023.
  9. ^ "Best Speeches of the 5th Annual Streamy Awards". Entertainmentmonthly. September 18, 2015. Archived from the original on October 8, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  10. ^ "The Stories of 40 Inspirational Muslims under 40". Issuu. February 2, 2012. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  11. ^ a b "Timeline: FouseyTube's rise and fall as YouTube's troubled prankster". The Tab. May 14, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  12. ^ "Fousey taking streaming break after controversial airport stream with "trafficked" woman". Dexerto. August 7, 2023. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
  13. ^ @fousey (August 7, 2023). "know how bad you want to capitalize on this because I am now friends with H3. But I got banned for using the "F" slur" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  14. ^ Press-Reynolds, Kieran. "Popular YouTube provocateur Fousey called the police on himself during a livestream, leading to an altercation with police in a hotel room". Insider. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
  15. ^ FOUSEY VS SLIM (full fight), retrieved May 1, 2021
  16. ^ "Fouseytube explains why he has "no purpose" after boxing loss". Dexerto. October 17, 2019. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  17. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "HELP ME!! FIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD: EXPERIMENT 88! (Ep 1)". YouTube. August 17, 2016.
  18. ^ "4th Annual Winners & Nominees". Streamys. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  19. ^ "Yousef Saleh Erakat - Shorty Awards". ShortyAwards. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  20. ^ "5th Annual Winners & Nominees". Streamys. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  21. ^ "FouseyTube, Cameron Dallas win Streamys". USAToday. September 18, 2015. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  22. ^ "6th Annual Winners & Nominees". Streamys. October 4, 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
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