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'''Connor Joel Franta''' (born September 12, 1992) is an American [[Entrepreneurship|entrepreneur]], [[writer]], and [[YouTuber]].<ref name="business">{{cite web|url=http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/241009|title=How YouTube Megastar Connor Franta Is Channeling His Eclectic Passions into Entrepreneurial Gold|work=[[Entrepreneur (magazine)|Entrepreneur]]|date=December 18, 2014|accessdate=December 25, 2014|first=Geoff|last=Weiss}}</ref><ref name="book">{{Cite book|title=A Work in Progress|last=Franta|first=Connor|publisher=Simon and Schuster Publishing|year=2015|isbn=978-1476791616|location=|page=34}}</ref> As of November 2015, his self-named main channel on YouTube has 5 million subscribers. Franta was formerly a member of YouTube group ''Our Second Life'' (stylized ''Our2ndLife'' and ''O2L'') under the [[Fullscreen (company)|Fullscreen Network]],<ref>{{cite news|title=Connor Franta Says Farewell to His 2nd Life|url=http://www.thevideoink.com/news/connor-franta-says-farewell-2nd-life/#.VKdEGiuUesk|accessdate=January 3, 2015|publisher=TheVideoInk|date=July 8, 2014}}</ref> but is now an independent member of the [[Big Frame]] network, managed by Andrew Graham.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Haines|first1=Reyne|title=Celebrity vs. Social Influencer|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/reyne-haines/celebrity-vs-social-influ_b_6167776.html|publisher=Huffington Post|accessdate=January 17, 2015}}</ref> Franta has recently become involved in various entrepreneurial enterprises, including a clothing line, music curation, as well as a coffee and lifestyle brand named Common Culture. His debut book, a [[memoir]], ''[[A Work in Progress (book)|A Work in Progress]]'', was released on April 21, 2015. In July 2015, details of Heard Well, a record label Franta co-founded, were announced.<ref>{{Cite web|title = YouTube Star Connor Franta Launches Music Label (Exclusive)|url = http://variety.com/2015/digital/news/connor-franta-youtube-music-label-1201541447/|accessdate = 2015-08-01|first = Todd|last = Spangler}}</ref>
'''Connor Joel Marvin Franta''' (born September 12, 19992) is an American [[Entrepreneurship|entrepreneur]], [[writer]], and [[YouTuber]].<ref name="business">{{cite web|url=http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/241009|title=How YouTube Megastar Connor Franta Is Channeling His Eclectic Passions into Entrepreneurial Gold|work=[[Entrepreneur (magazine)|Entrepreneur]]|date=December 18, 2014|accessdate=December 25, 2014|first=Geoff|last=Weiss}}</ref><ref name="book">{{Cite book|title=A Work in Progress|last=Franta|first=Connor|publisher=Simon and Schuster Publishing|year=2015|isbn=978-1476791616|location=|page=34}}</ref> As of November 2015, his self-named main channel on YouTube has 5 million subscribers. Franta was formerly a member of YouTube group ''Our Second Life'' (stylized ''Our2ndLife'' and ''O2L'') under the [[Fullscreen (company)|Fullscreen Network]],<ref>{{cite news|title=Connor Franta Says Farewell to His 2nd Life|url=http://www.thevideoink.com/news/connor-franta-says-farewell-2nd-life/#.VKdEGiuUesk|accessdate=January 3, 2015|publisher=TheVideoInk|date=July 8, 2014}}</ref> but is now an independent member of the [[Big Frame]] network, managed by Andrew Graham.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Haines|first1=Reyne|title=Celebrity vs. Social Influencer|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/reyne-haines/celebrity-vs-social-influ_b_6167776.html|publisher=Huffington Post|accessdate=January 17, 2015}}</ref> Franta has recently become involved in various entrepreneurial enterprises, including a clothing line, music curation, as well as a coffee and lifestyle brand named Common Culture. His debut book, a [[memoir]], ''[[A Work in Progress (book)|A Work in Progress]]'', was released on April 21, 2015. In July 2015, details of Heard Well, a record label Franta co-founded, were announced.<ref>{{Cite web|title = YouTube Star Connor Franta Launches Music Label (Exclusive)|url = http://variety.com/2015/digital/news/connor-franta-youtube-music-label-1201541447/|accessdate = 2015-08-01|first = Todd|last = Spangler}}</ref>


==Personal life==
==Personal life==
Line 58: Line 58:


==== Writing ====
==== Writing ====
Franta spent over a year writing his memoir, ''[[A Work in Progress (book)|A Work in Progress]]'', which talks about moments from his life since birth and personal stories. It was released on April 21, 2015.<ref name="AWIP">{{Cite web|url=http://www.people.com/article/connor-franta-book-a-work-in-progress|title=Connor Franta Announces His Latest Secret: 'I Wrote a Book!'|date=March 10, 2015|accessdate=April 21, 2015|website=People.com}}</ref> Accompanying the release of the book, Franta had a book tour in the United States with appearances in [[Minnesota]], [[Houston]], [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]], [[New York City|New York]], [[Jersey City, New Jersey|New Jersey]], and [[Los Angeles]],<ref name=AWIP/> [[London]], [[Birmingham]], [[Manchester]], [[Liverpool]] and [[Leeds]] in the [[United Kingdom]],<ref>[http://www.clickplaymagazine.co.uk/2015/05/connor-franta-brings-book-tour-to-uk.html Connor Franta brings book tour to UK], clickplaymagazine.co.uk; accessed June 6, 2015.</ref> and [[Sydney]], [[Melbourne]], [[Brisbane]] and [[Perth]] in [[Australia]].<ref>{{Cite web|title = ANDPOP {{!}} Connor Franta Wrote A Book And Told No One About It — Until Now|url = http://www.andpop.com/2015/03/09/connor-franta-wrote-book-told-one-now/|accessdate = 2015-09-01}}</ref> The book spent 16 weeks on [[The New York Times Best Seller list|''The New York Times'' Best Seller list]] and sold over 200,000 copies.<ref>{{cite news |title = Young and quirky YouTube stars lift traditional book publishers |first = Lisa |last = Richwine |url = http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/09/02/us-books-youtube-idUKKCN0R223F20150902 |agency = [[Reuters]] |date = September 2, 2015 |accessdate = September 13, 2015 |archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/6bVM3RHcQ |archivedate = September 13, 2015 |deadurl = no }}</ref>
Franta spent over a three year period writing his memoir, ''[[A Work in Progress (book)|A Work in Progress]]. This is obviously done to achieve high poplarity as'' ''it draws attention.'' which talks about moments from his life since birth and personal stories. It was released on April 21, 2015.<ref name="AWIP">{{Cite web|url=http://www.people.com/article/connor-franta-book-a-work-in-progress|title=Connor Franta Announces His Latest Secret: 'I Wrote a Book!'|date=March 10, 2015|accessdate=April 21, 2015|website=People.com}}</ref> Accompanying the release of the book, Franta had a book tour in the United States with appearances in [[Minnesota]], [[Houston]], [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]], [[New York City|New York]], [[Jersey City, New Jersey|New Jersey]], and [[Los Angeles]],<ref name=AWIP/> [[London]], [[Birmingham]], [[Manchester]], [[Liverpool]] and [[Leeds]] in the [[United Kingdom]],<ref>[http://www.clickplaymagazine.co.uk/2015/05/connor-franta-brings-book-tour-to-uk.html Connor Franta brings book tour to UK], clickplaymagazine.co.uk; accessed June 6, 2015.</ref> and [[Sydney]], [[Melbourne]], [[Brisbane]] and [[Perth]] in [[Australia]].<ref>{{Cite web|title = ANDPOP {{!}} Connor Franta Wrote A Book And Told No One About It — Until Now|url = http://www.andpop.com/2015/03/09/connor-franta-wrote-book-told-one-now/|accessdate = 2015-09-01}}</ref> The book spent 16 weeks on [[The New York Times Best Seller list|''The New York Times'' Best Seller list]] and sold over 200,000 copies.<ref>{{cite news |title = Young and quirky YouTube stars lift traditional book publishers |first = Lisa |last = Richwine |url = http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/09/02/us-books-youtube-idUKKCN0R223F20150902 |agency = [[Reuters]] |date = September 2, 2015 |accessdate = September 13, 2015 |archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/6bVM3RHcQ |archivedate = September 13, 2015 |deadurl = no }}</ref>


==References==
==References==

Revision as of 23:34, 21 March 2016

Connor Franta
Franta at VidCon 2014
Personal information
Born
Connor Joel Franta

(1992-09-12) September 12, 1992 (age 32)
Wisconsin, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Vlogger, writer, entrepreneur
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2010–present
Subscribers5.3 million[1]
(March 3, 2016)
Total views318.4 million[1]
(March 3, 2016)
NetworkBig Frame
100,000 subscribers
1,000,000 subscribers
Last updated: January 5, 2016

Connor Joel Marvin Franta (born September 12, 19992) is an American entrepreneur, writer, and YouTuber.[3][4] As of November 2015, his self-named main channel on YouTube has 5 million subscribers. Franta was formerly a member of YouTube group Our Second Life (stylized Our2ndLife and O2L) under the Fullscreen Network,[5] but is now an independent member of the Big Frame network, managed by Andrew Graham.[6] Franta has recently become involved in various entrepreneurial enterprises, including a clothing line, music curation, as well as a coffee and lifestyle brand named Common Culture. His debut book, a memoir, A Work in Progress, was released on April 21, 2015. In July 2015, details of Heard Well, a record label Franta co-founded, were announced.[7]

Personal life

Connor Franta was born in Wisconsin, to Peter and Cheryl Franta, a physician and homemaker, respectively.[2] Shortly after his birth, his family moved to La Crescent, Minnesota. He has two brothers named Dustin and Brandon and one sister named Nicola.[8]

Connor attended St. Peter's Catholic School, Hokah, Minnesota, from elementary school through 8th grade.[9] As a child, he became overweight, leading his mother to sign him up for a YMCA swimming team. He ran cross country while attending La Crescent High School, where he graduated in 2011.[2] He studied business at Saint John's University, Collegeville, Minnesota. In his second year, he added an arts minor, with an emphasis on films.[2][10]

On December 8, 2014, Franta publicly came out as gay in a YouTube video, stating he has accepted who he is and is "happy with that person".[11] He also spoke on the help he got from others on the Internet, and wanted to give people struggling with their sexuality similar advice.[11] This six-minute long video, titled "Coming Out", has over 10 million views and over 890 thousand likes, being the second most viewed video on Franta's channel as of January 17, 2016.[12]

Career

YouTube

Franta (third from left) with other members of Our2ndLife at VidCon 2014

Inspired by other YouTube vloggers such as Shane Dawson and Mitchell Davis, Franta uploaded his first video to YouTube in August 2010. He has more than 270 million views on his channel and over 4.9 million subscribers, making it the 158th most subscribed channel in the world.[12][13]

In 2012, he joined a collaboration channel known as Our2ndLife along with 5 other Youtubers (Kian Lawley, Trevor Moran, Justin "JC" Caylen, Ricky Dillon and Sam Pottorff) which helped him gain popularity. He announced his departure from the group in July 2014 due to personal issues.[14]

In 2014, Franta was nominated for a Teen Choice Award in the "Web Star: Male" category, but lost to Tyler Oakley.[15] He has made cameo appearances in the 2014 and 2015 YouTube Rewind videos, a tribute by YouTube to the year's most popular videos on the website.[16][17]

In 2015, Franta was again nominated for a Teen Choice Award in the "Entertainer of the Year" category and in the "Choice YouTuber" category, but lost to Cameron Dallas and Bethany Mota respectively.[18] He also was nominated for a Streamy Award in the "Audience Choice Entertainer of the Year" category.[19] In October 2015, Franta appeared as a featured celebrity at StreamCon which took place in New York City.[20]

In January 2016, Franta won the "Favorite YouTube Star" award at the 42nd People's Choice Awards.[21]

Other Projects

The Thirst Project

Franta celebrated his 22nd birthday in 2014 by launching a fundraising campaign for The Thirst Project to build water wells for people in Swaziland. He set a goal of raising of $120,000 within a month by offering fans incentives such as T-shirts, posters, an acknowledgement in one of his videos and a Skype call with him. Within 48 hours, fans raised over US$75,000 and met the original $120,000 goal in 10 days. By the end the month, the campaign raised over $230,000.[22] Franta later visited Swaziland to see the wells the donations helped build. Franta received the Governor's Award for his work at the Thirst Project's 6th Annual Thirst Gala on June 30, 2015.[23] Franta launched a second campaign for his 23rd birthday with the goal of raising $180,000 in 30 days.[24] When the campaign closed in October of 2015, he had raised over $191,000 dollars, which contributed to the building of 16 water wells in Swaziland.[25]

Curation

On November 11, 2014, Franta released a compilation album, Crown, Vol. 1, of songs from his choice of up-and-coming musicians. The album charted on the Billboard 200 and reached number 12 on the iTunes pop charts.[26] A second compilation was released under Franta's Common Culture brand on March 3, 2015, followed by a third compilation on July 24, 2015.[27][28] In July 2015, it was announced that Franta had started a record label, Heard Well, in partnership with his manager Andrew Graham and Jeremy Wineberg of music distribution and licensing company Opus Label (through which Franta's first two compilations were released). Variety described Heard Well as "a music label focused on producing compilation albums featuring undiscovered artists as curated by digital 'influencers.'" Amanda Steele, Lohanthony and Jc Caylen are the first digital stars signed to put together compilations.[29]

In February 2015, Franta released his own line of coffee, called Common Culture Coffee.[30][31] The coffee was produced in collaboration with LA Coffee Club and $1 from each bag of coffee sold was donated to The Thirst Project.[32] In June 2015, Franta released a small limited edition line of clothing, made in collaboration with Junk Food Clothing.[33]

In January of 2016, Franta launched his new website for Common Culture.[34]

Writing

Franta spent over a three year period writing his memoir, A Work in Progress. This is obviously done to achieve high poplarity as it draws attention. which talks about moments from his life since birth and personal stories. It was released on April 21, 2015.[35] Accompanying the release of the book, Franta had a book tour in the United States with appearances in Minnesota, Houston, Orlando, New York, New Jersey, and Los Angeles,[35] London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds in the United Kingdom,[36] and Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth in Australia.[37] The book spent 16 weeks on The New York Times Best Seller list and sold over 200,000 copies.[38]

References

  1. ^ a b "About ConnorFranta". YouTube.
  2. ^ a b c d Henry, Ryan. "A Frantastic ride". La Crosse Tribune. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  3. ^ Weiss, Geoff (December 18, 2014). "How YouTube Megastar Connor Franta Is Channeling His Eclectic Passions into Entrepreneurial Gold". Entrepreneur. Retrieved December 25, 2014.
  4. ^ Franta, Connor (2015). A Work in Progress. Simon and Schuster Publishing. p. 34. ISBN 978-1476791616.
  5. ^ "Connor Franta Says Farewell to His 2nd Life". TheVideoInk. July 8, 2014. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  6. ^ Haines, Reyne. "Celebrity vs. Social Influencer". Huffington Post. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
  7. ^ Spangler, Todd. "YouTube Star Connor Franta Launches Music Label (Exclusive)". Retrieved August 1, 2015.
  8. ^ Franta, Connor (2015). A Work in Progress. Simon and Schuster Publishing. p. 25. ISBN 978-1476791616.
  9. ^ Franta, Connor (2015). A Work in Progress. Simon and Schuster Publishing. p. 46. ISBN 978-1476791616.
  10. ^ Tucker, Adam. "Internet Sensation". Saint Benedict's/Saint John's Magazine (Spring 2013). Collegeville, Minnesota, USA: College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University: 10–11. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
  11. ^ a b "YouTube star Connor Franta comes out as gay in video". TheGuardian. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  12. ^ a b "ConnorFranta YouTube Channel Stats, Subscriber Statistics, Ranking". VidStatsX. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  13. ^ "Top 500 YouTubers Filtered by Subscribers - Socialblade YouTube Stats | YouTube Statistics". socialblade.com. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  14. ^ ""Unhappy" Connor Franta Leaves YouTube Supergroup Our 2nd Life". TubeFilter. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  15. ^ Nordyke, Kimberly (October 8, 2014). "Teen Choice Awards: The Complete Winners List". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on January 3, 2015. Retrieved January 3, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ Griffin, Andrew (December 9, 2014). "YouTube Rewind: Vloggers team up to re-create a year of viral videos". The Independent. Archived from the original on January 3, 2015. Retrieved January 3, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  17. ^ Falcone, Dana Rose (December 9, 2015). "Karlie Kloss, Glozell, iJustine, and more team up for YouTube Rewind 2015". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on December 10, 2015. Retrieved December 10, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  18. ^ "5th Annual Winners & Nominees". Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  19. ^ Lamour, Joseph (September 18, 2015). "2015 Streamys Winners: Find Out Who Took Home An Award Here". MTV News. MTV. Archived from the original on September 20, 2015. Retrieved September 20, 2015. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  20. ^ "Connor Franta | Stream Con NYC". streamconnyc.com. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  21. ^ "List: Who won People's Choice Awards?". USA Today. January 6, 2016. Archived from the original on January 6, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2016. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  22. ^ "How One Guy Used YouTube To Get Thousands Of Teens To Donate $75,000 To Charity". BusinessInsider. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  23. ^ Ford, Rebecca; Jarvey, Natalie (June 2, 2015). "Wyck Godfrey, Connor Franta to Be Honored at Thirst Project Gala(Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on June 3, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2015. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  24. ^ Brouwer, Bree (September 14, 2015). "Connor Franta Launches Second Birthday Fundraising Campaign For The Thirst Project". Tubefilter. Archived from the original on September 20, 2015. Retrieved September 20, 2015. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  25. ^ "Win a Coffee Date in L.A. with Connor Franta". Retrieved January 12, 2016.
  26. ^ "YouTube star Connor Franta's strange rise on the Billboard Top 200". DailyDot. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  27. ^ Brouwer, Bree (March 3, 2015). "Connor Franta Debuts Second Compilation Album 'Common Culture'". TubeFilter. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved July 25, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  28. ^ Price, Lydia (July 24, 2015). "VidCon 2015: Connor Franta Releases New Compilation Album Through His Own Label". People. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved July 25, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  29. ^ Spangler, Todd (July 16, 2015). "YouTube Star Connor Franta Launches Music Label (Exclusive)". Variety. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved July 25, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  30. ^ Baladad, Portia. "Connor Franta Launches His New Coffee Line, Common Coffee Culture". AndPop. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
  31. ^ "Connor Franta Debuts His Own Line Of Locally-Roasted Coffee". tubefilter. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  32. ^ Brown, Nick (February 6, 2015). "YouTube Star and LA Coffee Club Collaborate for Common Culture Coffee Line". Daily Coffee News. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved July 25, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  33. ^ Carleen (June 17, 2015). "Connor Franta Launches Limited Edition Clothing Line". PopWrapped. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
  34. ^ "Connor Franta Shop | Common Culture Store". Common Culture Store. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
  35. ^ a b "Connor Franta Announces His Latest Secret: 'I Wrote a Book!'". People.com. March 10, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2015.
  36. ^ Connor Franta brings book tour to UK, clickplaymagazine.co.uk; accessed June 6, 2015.
  37. ^ "ANDPOP | Connor Franta Wrote A Book And Told No One About It — Until Now". Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  38. ^ Richwine, Lisa (September 2, 2015). "Young and quirky YouTube stars lift traditional book publishers". Reuters. Archived from the original on September 13, 2015. Retrieved September 13, 2015. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
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