Dan and Phil Part 104: DAPG IS BACK FROM THE DEAD

[DeadlyNova]

Postal service hates me...
First my calendar and sweatshirt are supposed to be delivered the 23rd but aren't, then they are supposed to be delivered the 26th, are in my town and out for delivery, an hour after going out for delivery instead go to the post office in the next town over, and have now arrived at another post office 100 miles/two hours away. Cool.

Needed to vent to people who might understand.

[TuxedoSam]

people are talking about the anime poster behind phil in that story - i know his dad watches anime, but i wonder if that could be martyn's new house? though i guess he's less likely to have tallphobic decorations lol

Hi ! Popping out of nowhere but i have been wondering who the heck is on that painting, first is it a girl or a boy and then which anime is it from or is it AI ? I have seen someone say it looks like Rin from free but i don't think so. At first glance i thought it was a girl and Nobara from Jujutsu Kaisen. I hope someone solve that mystery

Also it's such a weird canvas to have in a house that seem to have ""classical"" decoration too. Very ecletic.

[tinnie]

Postal service hates me...
First my calendar and sweatshirt are supposed to be delivered the 23rd but aren't, then they are supposed to be delivered the 26th, are in my town and out for delivery, an hour after going out for delivery instead go to the post office in the next town over, and have now arrived at another post office 100 miles/two hours away. Cool.

Needed to vent to people who might understand.

I feel you because my calendar is lost somewhere. I got no response from the D&P shop and the shipping company probably had a bot responding to me based on how little sense their reply made. So I'll have to try to message them again but I'm upset about it.

[DeadlyNova]

Hi ! Popping out of nowhere but i have been wondering who the heck is on that painting, first is it a girl or a boy and then which anime is it from or is it AI ? I have seen someone say it looks like Rin from free but i don't think so. At first glance i thought it was a girl and Nobara from Jujutsu Kaisen. I hope someone solve that mystery

Also it's such a weird canvas to have in a house that seem to have ""classical"" decoration too. Very ecletic.

In what world does that look like Rin from Free?

The art style definitely reminds me of Jujutsu Kaisen, but I dunno about specifically Nobara. It does seem very random here but I do like it.

I feel you because my calendar is lost somewhere. I got no response from the D&P shop and the shipping company probably had a bot responding to me based on how little sense their reply made. So I'll have to try to message them again but I'm upset about it.

I hope you're able to locate it soon. Mine is out for delivery AGAIN so we will see if it actually shows up this time.

[alittledizzy]

Hi ! Popping out of nowhere but i have been wondering who the heck is on that painting, first is it a girl or a boy and then which anime is it from or is it AI ? I have seen someone say it looks like Rin from free but i don't think so. At first glance i thought it was a girl and Nobara from Jujutsu Kaisen. I hope someone solve that mystery

Also it's such a weird canvas to have in a house that seem to have ""classical"" decoration too. Very ecletic.

In what world does that look like Rin from Free?

The art style definitely reminds me of Jujutsu Kaisen, but I dunno about specifically Nobara. It does seem very random here but I do like it.

I feel you because my calendar is lost somewhere. I got no response from the D&P shop and the shipping company probably had a bot responding to me based on how little sense their reply made. So I'll have to try to message them again but I'm upset about it.

I hope you're able to locate it soon. Mine is out for delivery AGAIN so we will see if it actually shows up this time.

Mine finally just came at like 9 pm last night - fingers crossed for you!!

[Maybeyes]

First time posting, long time lurking, etc. etc.

I was rewatching “Dan and Phil finally tell the truth” a couple of weeks ago, and it made me so curious about what the thing they were forced to do was!
They say that:
- they signed an NDA
- it was something they had to do as part of a contract
- it’s so long ago that Dan thinks the NDA is no longer valid
So I’m thinking that it probably is not just a sponsor thing, cause first I thought of the Krave sponsorship where I think they/Dan deleted the video?
So maybe it’s something to do with a tour…
I think Interactive Introverts is too recent for Dan to think the NDA is void. I know nothing of contracts, but I don’t think five years is that long for him to think it’s not valid anymore.
Then I thought about DAPGO, cause that seemed a little strange, but I didn’t really follow them that closely back then, so I don’t remember the discourse about it back then…

What do you guys think? Does anyone have a qualified guess? Or will I just have to keep wondering?

[LAshleigh]

If anyone here filled out the gamingmas tier list I would be interested to know your thoughts! I think I have to watch them all a second time before ranking but I definitely have faves.

(I can't find the original tweet from the person that made it, my apologies!!)

[anathema]

First time posting, long time lurking, etc. etc.

I was rewatching “Dan and Phil finally tell the truth” a couple of weeks ago, and it made me so curious about what the thing they were forced to do was!
They say that:
- they signed an NDA
- it was something they had to do as part of a contract
- it’s so long ago that Dan thinks the NDA is no longer valid
So I’m thinking that it probably is not just a sponsor thing, cause first I thought of the Krave sponsorship where I think they/Dan deleted the video?
So maybe it’s something to do with a tour…
I think Interactive Introverts is too recent for Dan to think the NDA is void. I know nothing of contracts, but I don’t think five years is that long for him to think it’s not valid anymore.
Then I thought about DAPGO, cause that seemed a little strange, but I didn’t really follow them that closely back then, so I don’t remember the discourse about it back then…

What do you guys think? Does anyone have a qualified guess? Or will I just have to keep wondering?

I totally believe that DAPGO is the most likely thing. Iirc a lot of YTers with book deals at the time had two-book deals (at the very least you can find articles about Zoella signing a two-book deal with the same publishers (Penguin Random House) that published TATINOF and DAPGO). So it would check out as the "part of a contract thing." I'm assuming with things like that you'd have to sign an NDA about the specifics of the contract? But with that aspect I'm a little in the dark.

There were definitely mixed opinions on d&p's motivation behind the book but for the most part people supported it. When it was announced, on tumblr I said I thought it was a cash grab and I had anons tell me to k*** myself so there's that. But, I mean, it's literally just a book of photos of them. Pretty low-effort for everyone involved.

[jmorton]

What's with Youtube keeping Phil's soup video on the trending page for days now? I don't find it to be the most representative of DnP's videos/humour. Is it, again, because it is 'very specific'?

Not that it's helping with views - stuck at 200K

Not to get depressing in the holiday season but ... Phil's channel slowly dying is one of my least favorite things. Probably because I discovered Phil pre-Dan. He was this really quirky British vlogger in 2008 who was obviously greatly influenced by Fred but ... he had a 'thing' that was quite unique to Phil. I took a look at Phil's views and the last Phil Vlog that got over 1 million was the second What Dan and Phil text each other video from 2021. Since then Phil averages probably about 200 - 250k views. That is a lot to a regular person like me but to Phil that has to be jarring. Phil can keep going for ages but I don't see a video pivot that will resurrect his channel to the good old days.

Also to be fair Dan's dystopia daily stuff wasn't exactly burning up the views like the days of old, either but Dan was basically using those videos as a vehicle for his tour. Phil seems to be stuck.

[Birdie]

I might be completely off but he doesn't seem unhappy about being a "smaller" Youtuber now. I got the impression that he's quite happy making semi-regular content in his own little corner of Youtube (and it will still pay him a lot, let's make no mistake about that, it's not like this would be a financial worry for him). I watch a lot of video essay channels that are doing quite well and most of them have about 1-2 million subs and around the views per video that Phil's videos get. He's still doing well, he's just not at the level of Youtube stardom they were at in 2014 but I'm getting the impression that they don't hate that. They've both talked about how the fame came with a lot of negative attention they didn't like and obligations they didn't like either. Like in the video where they rate their red carpet looks they are very clear about not missing going to those events and I think Phil even says he doesn't miss doing the BRITs livestream? I bet it was a great time for them but I also don't think they're too sad it's over.

Also we shouldn't forget that Youtube changed a lot in the last ten years. Phil's content used to be right on trend in 2014, now it's not, so it's just natural he doesn't get millions of views anymore. He found his niche and he's doing well for a Youtuber in 2023, his channel is not dying.

Edit: Years and years I have waited to not be a stress mushroom anymore, only to be a blobfish now.

[jmorton]

I might be completely off but he doesn't seem unhappy about being a "smaller" Youtuber now. I got the impression that he's quite happy making semi-regular content in his own little corner of Youtube (and it will still pay him a lot, let's make no mistake about that, it's not like this would be a financial worry for him). I watch a lot of video essay channels that are doing quite well and most of them have about 1-2 million subs and around the views per video that Phil's videos get. He's still doing well, he's just not at the level of Youtube stardom they were at in 2014 but I'm getting the impression that they don't hate that. They've both talked about how the fame came with a lot of negative attention they didn't like and obligations they didn't like either. Like in the video where they rate their red carpet looks they are very clear about not missing going to those events and I think Phil even says he doesn't miss doing the BRITs livestream? I bet it was a great time for them but I also don't think they're too sad it's over.

Also we shouldn't forget that Youtube changed a lot in the last ten years. Phil's content used to be right on trend in 2014, now it's not, so it's just natural he doesn't get millions of views anymore. He found his niche and he's doing well for a Youtuber in 2023, his channel is not dying.

Edit: Years and years I have waited to not be a stress mushroom anymore, only to be a blobfish now.

I don't disagree with any of what you said and I think you are right from his perspective. My only caveat is Phil hasn't actively disengaged with his channel like Dan did. Phil has consistently posted so I don't think reducing his views was particularly part of his plan but it might have resulted in the pressure being off of him, such as it was in peak Dan and Phil era from 2013-18.

It's just weird from my perspective. A lot of people who watched Phil when he first gained some notoriety in 08 actually fell off post D&P. I actually enjoyed seeing Phil get that fame and it's been a bit jarring to see how much it has fallen off. As you correctly point out though the YouTube algorithm isn't the same as it used to be and people who do the kind of content Phil does don't get the views they once did. Like I said even Dan's views fell off but I look at him as a different case than Phil who kept posting through it all.

[kittenwhiskers]

In regards to smaller channels doing well in their niches - it's certainly possible to make a decent living servicing a very niche audience that has advertisers looking to reach those audiences - but those aren't necessarily going to be springboards to bigger opportunities. I think Dan and Phil have made it clear that they have bigger aspirations and, the truth is, a lot of those opportunities also dry up when the video views are at those numbers. I work in Film and TV, and a Phil Lester project would be a REALLY HARD SELL, no matter how good it was. He doesn't have the fan base anymore for it to be an influencer play and he doesn't have a history of film/tv projects. Unscripted and in the UK would be the "easiest" for him, but even then I'm not sure he'd have much luck - though I don't know the current market there as well.

Along the same lines, I don't think we'd have seen the return of Dan and Phil Games if there wasn't an interest in them rebuilding their brands and viewership - with the understanding that the best way in is through their content as a duo. You see the same thing happening on the Amazing Phil channel - a lot of the recent content has involved Dan. The clickbait titles back this up for me. However, I think they're going to have to up their creativity to make a real dent in numbers these days. They're putting out a lot of the same content that they did ten years ago and it is a different landscape. (On that note, I'm also not sure I would classify Phil's content as "niche" content. He serves his existing fan base, but its not like he's got a certain topic or type of video he makes.)

All that said though, I think it's probably true that Phil is happy to avoid a lot of the things that came with "being famous on YouTube" and he really does seem to enjoy making silly videos without it causing the same kind of crisis it seems to cause Dan. So maybe he is happy just keeping his own channel humming along and bringing in the AdSense without bigger aspirations. There is certainly more they could do if they really did want to increase their viewership, but it would be out of their comfort zone and they don't seem to be willing to go that far yet.

[PolarFox]

I might be completely off but he doesn't seem unhappy about being a "smaller" Youtuber now. I got the impression that he's quite happy making semi-regular content in his own little corner of Youtube (and it will still pay him a lot, let's make no mistake about that, it's not like this would be a financial worry for him). I watch a lot of video essay channels that are doing quite well and most of them have about 1-2 million subs and around the views per video that Phil's videos get. He's still doing well, he's just not at the level of Youtube stardom they were at in 2014 but I'm getting the impression that they don't hate that. They've both talked about how the fame came with a lot of negative attention they didn't like and obligations they didn't like either. Like in the video where they rate their red carpet looks they are very clear about not missing going to those events and I think Phil even says he doesn't miss doing the BRITs livestream? I bet it was a great time for them but I also don't think they're too sad it's over.

Also we shouldn't forget that Youtube changed a lot in the last ten years. Phil's content used to be right on trend in 2014, now it's not, so it's just natural he doesn't get millions of views anymore. He found his niche and he's doing well for a Youtuber in 2023, his channel is not dying.

Edit: Years and years I have waited to not be a stress mushroom anymore, only to be a blobfish now.

I don't disagree with any of what you said and I think you are right from his perspective. My only caveat is Phil hasn't actively disengaged with his channel like Dan did. Phil has consistently posted so I don't think reducing his views was particularly part of his plan but it might have resulted in the pressure being off of him, such as it was in peak Dan and Phil era from 2013-18.

It's just weird from my perspective. A lot of people who watched Phil when he first gained some notoriety in 08 actually fell off post D&P. I actually enjoyed seeing Phil get that fame and it's been a bit jarring to see how much it has fallen off. As you correctly point out though the YouTube algorithm isn't the same as it used to be and people who do the kind of content Phil does don't get the views they once did. Like I said even Dan's views fell off but I look at him as a different case than Phil who kept posting through it all.

I am emerging from my own posting hiatus to chip in a little on this. Current YouTube algorithm is absolutely ruthless to anyone who doesn't post super optimised videos on a practically daily basis. So unless you're already into the DnP content niche (and there aren't many content creators that fall in there that you would know without knowing deppy already)

So Phil throwing in a whimsical fun videos twice a month isn't going to get him recommended to new viewers all too much. Which is fine, they are lucky to have a very very loyal core fanbase that will emerge like a bunch of dragons from the mountain whenever they upload. And their videos contain by this point so much inside humour and lore, that it even might be difficult to dive in, without the context.

Though, maybe the Tumblr question videos might bring in new casual viewers who like the AITA and r/relationshipadvice content.

[troyiesivanie]

Popping in on a few topics from the past few weeks:

Someone mentioned about Dan not coming out til after interactive introverts - I believe he talks about that in dystopia daily

Also seen talk of the BONCAS I always have to pinch myself because I was actually in the audience that day and it was actually so crazy - Dan and Phil weren’t even announced to be there until the day before the show - they had meet and greet tickets if you wanted to meet some smaller youtuber (can’t even remember who) but everyone else filled the seats for free! I got my ticket by lining up the morning of the event (was anyone else there??) I remember making friends in the crowd but have long since lost touch lol

Gamingmas has been such a pleasure - I loved the penguin game - any game that makes them angry is my fave lolll
I was surprised to see the sims videos get like 1 M views where as all the others haven’t done as well , I didn’t realise sims content was so popular, although I do watch shorts of people building sims houses (surprised Dan and Phil haven’t been using shorts to promote the channel like other people do)
I haven’t seen all of gamingmas yet as the Christmas season was soooo busy so I’ve saved a lot of them for jan when life gets slower!

[tinaoe]

What's with Youtube keeping Phil's soup video on the trending page for days now? I don't find it to be the most representative of DnP's videos/humour. Is it, again, because it is 'very specific'?

Not that it's helping with views - stuck at 200K

Not to get depressing in the holiday season but ... Phil's channel slowly dying is one of my least favorite things. Probably because I discovered Phil pre-Dan. He was this really quirky British vlogger in 2008 who was obviously greatly influenced by Fred but ... he had a 'thing' that was quite unique to Phil. I took a look at Phil's views and the last Phil Vlog that got over 1 million was the second What Dan and Phil text each other video from 2021. Since then Phil averages probably about 200 - 250k views. That is a lot to a regular person like me but to Phil that has to be jarring. Phil can keep going for ages but I don't see a video pivot that will resurrect his channel to the good old days.

Also to be fair Dan's dystopia daily stuff wasn't exactly burning up the views like the days of old, either but Dan was basically using those videos as a vehicle for his tour. Phil seems to be stuck.

I had similar thoughts, but then I remembered that the Vlogbrothers tend to pull between 140k-200k for regular videos as well, with almost 4 million subscribers and a boost in general acknowledgement due to Hank's cancer diagnosis early this year. And yet they have probably the most thriving and wonderful online community.

[jmorton]

I might be completely off but he doesn't seem unhappy about being a "smaller" Youtuber now. I got the impression that he's quite happy making semi-regular content in his own little corner of Youtube (and it will still pay him a lot, let's make no mistake about that, it's not like this would be a financial worry for him). I watch a lot of video essay channels that are doing quite well and most of them have about 1-2 million subs and around the views per video that Phil's videos get. He's still doing well, he's just not at the level of Youtube stardom they were at in 2014 but I'm getting the impression that they don't hate that. They've both talked about how the fame came with a lot of negative attention they didn't like and obligations they didn't like either. Like in the video where they rate their red carpet looks they are very clear about not missing going to those events and I think Phil even says he doesn't miss doing the BRITs livestream? I bet it was a great time for them but I also don't think they're too sad it's over.

Also we shouldn't forget that Youtube changed a lot in the last ten years. Phil's content used to be right on trend in 2014, now it's not, so it's just natural he doesn't get millions of views anymore. He found his niche and he's doing well for a Youtuber in 2023, his channel is not dying.

Edit: Years and years I have waited to not be a stress mushroom anymore, only to be a blobfish now.

I don't disagree with any of what you said and I think you are right from his perspective. My only caveat is Phil hasn't actively disengaged with his channel like Dan did. Phil has consistently posted so I don't think reducing his views was particularly part of his plan but it might have resulted in the pressure being off of him, such as it was in peak Dan and Phil era from 2013-18.

It's just weird from my perspective. A lot of people who watched Phil when he first gained some notoriety in 08 actually fell off post D&P. I actually enjoyed seeing Phil get that fame and it's been a bit jarring to see how much it has fallen off. As you correctly point out though the YouTube algorithm isn't the same as it used to be and people who do the kind of content Phil does don't get the views they once did. Like I said even Dan's views fell off but I look at him as a different case than Phil who kept posting through it all.

I am emerging from my own posting hiatus to chip in a little on this. Current YouTube algorithm is absolutely ruthless to anyone who doesn't post super optimised videos on a practically daily basis. So unless you're already into the DnP content niche (and there aren't many content creators that fall in there that you would know without knowing deppy already)

So Phil throwing in a whimsical fun videos twice a month isn't going to get him recommended to new viewers all too much. Which is fine, they are lucky to have a very very loyal core fanbase that will emerge like a bunch of dragons from the mountain whenever they upload. And their videos contain by this point so much inside humour and lore, that it even might be difficult to dive in, without the context.

Though, maybe the Tumblr question videos might bring in new casual viewers who like the AITA and r/relationshipadvice content.

I was thinking about this recently. Phil has privated a TON of videos but he has left up some of the most wacky and creative ones he did back in 07-08. Two of the most out there/creative videos he ever did was back before he was even a mildly known British Youtuber. His video for Lonely Day and a year later The Basket. I wouldn't suggest Phil violate copyright laws again or Make up a sci fi horror story about a hungry wicker basket but ... maybe Phil needs to just say "eff it" and do some crazy stuff again.

(Side note I am routinely stunned that Lonely Day is still on YouTube. SOAD or their company must be ok with Phil's video ... which would be really cool)

[literally_formless]

The gaming channel's return is in this article rounding up the YouTube comebacks of the year, alongside Smosh and Charlie:

https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/og-youtube ... rcna127668

I wish they had given a comment for the article!

[alittledizzy]

Do we know if anything went down between Seth Everman and Dan? A friend of mine asked me about it, apparently Seth used to like/comment on Dan's posts a lot but now they don't even follow each other. It seems like he hasn't liked anything of Dan's since mid 2021 but he does still follow Phil and he likes and comments on Phil's posts.

[LAshleigh]

I was thinking about this recently. Phil has privated a TON of videos but he has left up some of the most wacky and creative ones he did back in 07-08. Two of the most out there/creative videos he ever did was back before he was even a mildly known British Youtuber. His video for Lonely Day and a year later The Basket. I wouldn't suggest Phil violate copyright laws again or Make up a sci fi horror story about a hungry wicker basket but ... maybe Phil needs to just say "eff it" and do some crazy stuff again.

I would be SO happy if Phil made some more "out there" content again. He may be clumsy and say things thoughtlessly sometimes, but I also think that he is a creative genius and I wish we got to see it more. (Shout-out to the dnp games funeral video, that was a wonderful idea Phil!)

[Grey]

I was thinking about this recently. Phil has privated a TON of videos but he has left up some of the most wacky and creative ones he did back in 07-08. Two of the most out there/creative videos he ever did was back before he was even a mildly known British Youtuber. His video for Lonely Day and a year later The Basket. I wouldn't suggest Phil violate copyright laws again or Make up a sci fi horror story about a hungry wicker basket but ... maybe Phil needs to just say "eff it" and do some crazy stuff again.

I would be SO happy if Phil made some more "out there" content again. He may be clumsy and say things thoughtlessly sometimes, but I also think that he is a creative genius and I wish we got to see it more. (Shout-out to the dnp games funeral video, that was a wonderful idea Phil!)

Agreed about Phil being a creative genius. I’ve always been partial to Dan and Phil Crafts, which seems to have been Phil’s idea. I’m sure as he’s gotten older, his ideas have changed and might be a little less whacky. But I’d love to see some creative stuff from him. Something like an Amazingphil game show where he makes the rules/ premise could be great, I feel like.

Also: THE MESS in his bedroom in that “loneliest day of my life” video
If that’s part of his creative process, poor “closes the cupboards” Dan.

[parallel]

Do we know if anything went down between Seth Everman and Dan? A friend of mine asked me about it, apparently Seth used to like/comment on Dan's posts a lot but now they don't even follow each other. It seems like he hasn't liked anything of Dan's since mid 2021 but he does still follow Phil and he likes and comments on Phil's posts.

Yeah, I remember Seth and Dan interacting quite a lot a few years ago. I don't think it necessarily indicates anything, especially if Seth still follows and comments on Phil's posts—hard to have serious beef with Dan while being on good terms with Phil. Sometimes I just unfollow mutuals on social media if I don't like their posts. Most of the time it's not personal. Maybe Seth/Dan just didn't want to see each other's posts on their timeline anymore? Normally if a mutual unfollows me I also unfollow them back so maybe that's what happened. And sometimes people I was friends with years ago I no longer talk to, not because we fell out but just because we drifted apart. I assume there's not any real animosity between Seth and Dan if Seth is still pally with Phil. Otherwise that would be kinda awkward.

[hoiallemaal]

off-topic question: Do Dan and Phil still live in London? I don't remember if they ever said where there forever home is. (I don't mean this in a stalkerish way, I don't care about their neighbourhood/area/whatever), I was just wondering if they maybe moved to brighton just like PJ.

[tinnie]

So I asked paypal for a refund on the calendar that got sent back and they paid me back almost immediately. But now the question is, do I risk ordering it again? Was it just a fluke because of pre-Christmas shipments from the UK to EU or is this a sign from the universe to not pay more for shipping than the actual calendar and I'm just being dumb?

[amazing]

off-topic question: Do Dan and Phil still live in London? I don't remember if they ever said where there forever home is. (I don't mean this in a stalkerish way, I don't care about their neighbourhood/area/whatever), I was just wondering if they maybe moved to brighton just like PJ.

yes, they have mentioned that they live in london a few times since moving, that hasn't changed. london and brighton are only an hour away from each other by train, so it's easy to visit.

[Catallena]

happy new year phriends

2023 sure was a year with an unexpected twist at the end of it, may 2024 bless us with even more content