If you've spent any time on the internet, there's a good chance you've heard of David Dobrik. After being pushed into the spotlight, more was revealed about his life than anyone anticipated, including David.
A Life Without Cameras
Dobrik was born in Košice, Slovakia, on July 23rd, 1996, and immigrated to a suburb in Chicago with his family at age 6. Yes, for those of you wondering, he speaks Slovak and holds Slovak nationality.
David is the doting older brother to 3 siblings; Esther, Sarah, and Toby. Unlike the now-viral superstar, not much is known about his siblings and parents, as David explained on his Instagram, they prefer to stay behind the spotlight.
From Class to Court
The internet mogul began his comedic routines as the ultimate class clown. Luckily his teachers kept a good sense of humor throughout the years! David graduated in 2014 from Vernon Hills High School, in Vernon Hills, a northern suburb in Chicago, Illinois.
Being in the classroom wasn't exactly David's favorite activity. Sports, on the other hand, won over his heart completely. This led him to qualify for the 2014 Boys Tennis State Tournament, where, according to official Vernon Hills Tennis records, he won 3rd place in the doubles tournaments.
A Life-Changing Six Seconds
David's career behind the camera all started with a post to the former lip-syncing app. Dobrik uploaded his first Vine at the age of 17, and the reaction he received was larger than he could have ever anticipated. Viewers loved his pranks and comedy sketches so much that by 2014 he had gained 120K followers and hit 1.5M by 2015.
David was one of the lucky few who managed to make a career out of doing what he loved most. At the start of his Vine career, he told Forbes that he knew he had made it big, claiming that he earned "$1,500 to $2,000 a month." But Dobrik never could have imagined what happened next...
"I Just Remember How Scared We Were"
After graduating High School, David's parents gave him 2 options; Go to college, or move out. Confident in his ability to survive away from home, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career online. He was living the dream despite being faced with a few challenges, including the uncertainty of being able to afford his next meal.
“We were at the grocery store and buying peanut butter and bread, and other groceries and the total came to $25. I looked at my friend and said, ‘I don’t know if we can do this,’" remembered David. "It was just this moment of panic. I just remember how scared we were,” he admitted to Forbes.
No Breaks, Holidays, Or Vacations
In 2015, David made his debut on YouTube. To start, he created pranking, homemade kiss cam, and collaborative videos with fellow Viners. That same year he committed to posting 3 videos a week on his channel, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and has kept it up ever since.
Speaking about his strict schedule, Dobrik told Forbes that he "Doesn't allow himself to take breaks for holidays, birthdays, or vacations." After 5 years of working consistently, it took a pandemic to force the vlogger to break his own tradition. This may be his first vacation in years, but it seems like creativity is still flowing.
Birth of The Vlog Squad
As time went on, David teamed up with some of his best friends and fellow vloggers, Zane Hijazi, Jason Nash, Josh Peck, as well as several others to create The Vlog Squad. Although they all filmed for their own channels, David's remained the melding pot of organized chaos that kept the shenanigans coming.
Viewers knew The Vlog Squad best for its high-intensity, utterly hilarious, and often very chaotic videos. All featuring anything from flame throwers to surprising lucky friends with new cars. Celebrities like Kylie Jenner, Justin Bieber, Jennifer Lopez, and John Stamos have also made appearances on Dobrik's channel.
His Secret To Success
David's sudden rise to fame caught the attention of many, a whopping 15M loyal subscribers to be exact! This was only the beginning of the road for the aspiring vlogger, as David's channel continued to see massive success in the months and years following.
Dobrik shared one of his greatest content creating secrets with Forbes: "If people see that you’re passionate about what you’re creating, they’re going to enjoy it.” David loved using his deep-rooted passion to steer him to new ideas and collaborations. All while having the time of his life with his best friends.
A Secret Love
That wasn't the only secret Dobrik had. He found love in Hollywood when he met Liza Koshy in 2015. After several months of mustering up the courage to ask her out on a date, David finally made a move, and she said yes! The couple kept this secret until 6 months later when they announced their relationship on Instagram.
Their romance rocked the internet. Back in 2017, David gushed that dating Liza was his "Biggest and proudest accomplishment." He continued, "I am in love with all that you do and all that you create. Thanks for being my partner and best friend." Sadly, this love wouldn't last forever, but we'll get more into that later.
A Match Made In Viral Heaven
If you used Vine, you might know of the hilarious Liza Koshy. The American actress is also a comedian and television host. Like David, she started on Vine in 2013 before creating her YouTube channel. Dobrik and Koshy have similar stories, as Liza also moved to Los Angeles in 2015 to pursue her career.
In 2017, Koshy became "The fastest YouTube personality to reach 10 million subscribers," according to The Hollywood Reporter. Three years later, her main channel gained over 17M subscribers and more than 2 billion views. It's no wonder the pair felt like a perfect match!
The Reason They Broke Up
The lovebirds kept their relationship in the spotlight for years while posting countless videos together. When David and Liza posted a video in 2018 titled We Broke Up explaining their mutual agreement to end it, many fans were shocked. In the video, Koshy explained that she needed time and space to focus on self-love.
“We did nothing to each other to cause a breakup. We have a lot of growth and development and learning and loving to do,” Dobrik assured fans. "The only thing that's different is we're not boyfriend and girlfriend anymore." David seemed hopeful, ending the video by saying, “You never know what could happen, but just not now.”
Going Viral
When Vine shut down in 2016 (RIP), Dobrik switched over full-time to YouTube, creating another channel, "David Dobrik Too," where content featuring The Vlog Squad was posted. This secondary channel complemented the original, "David Dobrik," home to his vlogs.
"David Dobrik Too", currently sitting pretty at 8.26M subscribers, is full of bloopers, deleted scenes, challenges, and reactions to old videos. Between his two channels, David has over 20M subscribers. We'll say that again... over...20...MILLION!
Views on Views
As if 2 YouTube channels weren't enough for the internet sensation, in 2017, David partnered with Vlog Squad member Jason Nash to launch a podcast called Views. The podcast took listeners behind the scenes of their vlogs and featured the wild antics between the friends.
Views aimed to show listeners what living the "YouTube life" was really like. Dropping new episodes every Monday, the pair spent hours "Confessing their most intimate thoughts, discussing pop-culture, and dissecting their own contentious relationship."
Mama He Made It!
Dobrik fanatics may know this already: David broadened the spotlight for himself, even more, when he starred as a voice actor in the animated film Angry Birds Movie 2 in 2018 and hosted the Teen Choice Awards in 2019 alongside Pretty Little Liars star Lucy Hale.
Dobrik was also named a judge on Nickelodeon's singing show, America's Most Musical Family, and won the Favorite Social Star category at Nickelodeon's 2019 Kid's Choice Awards. This was a huge win for David. He was visibly thrilled to take home the bright orange blimp, but what meant even more to Dobrik was who gave it to him.
Famous Friends
A best friend and member of The Vlog Squad is Nickelodeon's Drake and Josh star, Josh Peck. Dobrik had always considered Josh a role model, which he reiterated in his 2019 Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Awards acceptance speech when Josh presented David with the Favorite Social Star Award. This was "The best feeling," said David.
The friends are so close that Josh and wife Paige O'Brien's baby boy, Max, made his internet debut on David's channel in a 2019 video titled, WELCOMING A NEW MEMBER OF THE FAMILY!! The clip featured Dobrik carefully holding baby Max. With all this love and support, he gained confidence in the adventures that came next.
Pranks Took Him To The Top Five
It's no surprise to die-hard Dobrik fans that the prankster gets away with many antics. From filling swimming pools with "1,400 pounds of dry ice" and turning his assistant's bedroom into a beach party, to convincing his friends they've won the lottery, he has made quite the splash.
Because of all of this and more, YouTube recently revealed that David is the 5th most-watched YouTuber on the platform. He was also named Generation Z's favorite social media personality in a financial analyst survey by Piper Jaffray. Not bad for a 24-year-old!
The Big Purchase
David went from scraping together $25 for groceries to owning a $9.5M home in the San Fernando Valley's Sherman Oaks neighborhood. His 7,800sq foot mansion features 6 bedrooms, 7 bathrooms, and a glass balcony spanning the back of the house. Is your jaw on the floor yet?
If that wasn't enough, his Los Angeles mansion also features a walk-in, temperature-controlled wine closet, movie theater, gym, gourmet kitchen, and a master suite with mesmerizing skyline views of the valley. The property includes a full outdoor kitchen with a BBQ center, lounge area, and a pool with an inset spa.
Hot House, Hotter Wheels
The young millionaire upholds a strong sponsorship with SeatGeek, who has given him the keys to 18 luxury cars to be gifted to David's friends and family. So far, he has gifted 3 matching cars to his childhood besties, replaced his friend Erin's car after it got stolen, and even surprised his Dad with his ultimate dream car.
After running into a random fan at Target, Dobrik gave him the biggest shock of all by helping him prepare for a school dance with a haircut, new suit, and even gifted him a brand new Mustang after convincing him it was only rented! As an aside, David owns a multitude of cars himself, including a Tesla and a Ferrari.
Best Friend Turned Live-In Assistant
Fast cars aren't the only treasures living in David's house. Longtime best friend and Vernon Hills High School classmate, Natalie Mariduena, lives with David as his full-time live-in assistant. Mariduena has been at David's side since 2017 and has now become an Executive Assistant for his YouTube channel.
23-Year-old Natalie is reportedly single in 2020 amid circulating rumors of dating Dobrik. According to Biographyday, David "Refused to take the rumors true by saying they are not dating and proclaimed to be BBFs." These childhood friends remain roommies and keep their focus on producing new content.
CLICKBAIT
Natalie not only helps David with everything home-and-Executive-Assistant-related, but she also models for David's merchandise line, CLICKBAIT. The Fanjoy-sponsored company sells men's and women's clothing, hats, phone cases, mugs, posters, and school supplies worldwide.
CLICKBAIT has 9 clothing collections with prices ranging from $22 to $50. David recently released 2 new lines; The Rainbow Collection, featuring a hoodie, crewneck, sweatpants, t-shirts, and phone cases. The 2nd being the Sherpa Collection, featuring two colors of sherpa hoodies, crewnecks, and sweatpants. And this isn't all!
Just Like David
The entrepreneur launched David's Disposable, a photo-taking and editing app of his own, on Christmas Day in 2019. The inspiration came from his secondary Instagram account, where he posts photos taken with a disposable camera. This gives Dobrik's photos that ~retro~ feel and allows fans to snap pics in true David fashion.
David gives his fans what they want, from videos to vlogs, to his iconic photography secrets. Dobrik explained on Instagram, “Just open the app, take your photos, and wait for them to develop [...] I’m bringing my iconic disposable camera to your phone, so you can easily take high-quality film photos just like me!”
A Net Worth of $15M
David doesn't necessarily hide his wealth; After all, would you act any different with this kind of bank account? Every YouTube video, Instagram post, app download, and podcast episode reaches millions of people daily. CLICKBAIT sells a variety of clothing and accessory items constantly.
All in all, as one of the most popular and highest-paid YouTubers in the world at the age of 24, David already has an estimated net worth of about $15M according to Celebrity Net Worth. With big dreams of becoming the next Late Night Talk Show host, he's not planning on slowing down anytime soon.
A $500 Pink Pony
Aside from a couple of sizeable purchases throughout the years, David claims to be fairly frugal with his earnings. After gifting himself a Tesla in his early 20's, Dobrik invested $1M into the luxury car company. This came about 2 years before his biggest purchase to date, the 9.5M Sherman Oaks mansion he currently resides in.
Other larger purchases include buying extravagant props for videos, such as $10,000 worth of dry ice, a $500 pink pony, or attending the 2016 Rio Olympics with ex-girlfriend Liza. David is transparent about pretty much everything in his life, making his fans feel as though they know him personally. However, this wasn't always a good thing...
"I Don't Wanna Have To Move, but This Is Terrifying"
Because David is so open about his life in videos, many fans come to his house on any given day. On Instagram, he shared a video saying, 'Stop coming here, please, I don't wanna have to move, but this is terrifying.' In an interview with Business Insider, Dobrik shared that he is "Genuinely starting to become scared."
David later reiterated his message on Twitter, saying: "Hello guys I love everyone that supports me and shows me love. Truly. BUT PLEASE STOP COMING TO MY F****** HOUSE." In his podcast Views, he later noted that assistant Natalie is particularly scared of strangers knowing where they live.
David Hurt Fans' Feelings
Fans felt David could do no wrong until he ruffled feathers in 2016. Dobrik got called out for offensive comments in a questionable video with then-girlfriend Liza. In the video, the pair spoke in Asian accents while trying Japanese candy. "It's not racist, that's like the sounds I hear when they talk," said David.
Liza finally broke the ice days later with a lengthy apology on Twitter, saying that she never had any intention to be offensive. "What might have been intended as 'playful' was actually to some, incredibly painful, and for that, I am so sorry." She regrettably realized that her "innocent" jokes were "tainted with implicit bias."
Owning His Mistakes
It wasn't until an old Vine resurfaced in 2020 of David using a derogatory word, that he publicly spoke up about the mistakes made. Claiming not to have realized the full extent of his influence, he publicly apologized, saying he would "Continue his channel with a new mindset."
He understood that he had a duty to be a better role model in the future, “I’m ashamed and I’m embarrassed about some of the things that I did in Vines [...] I genuinely feel awful about it. I’m going to do better actively [...] I’m sorry. I did not ever mean to make anybody feel out of place," he said on Views.
Making Changes
In addressing the topic with Nash on Views, Dobrik reflected, "I think for a while I was just kind of like, I'm the goofball. But I think there are parts of this where I need to be more serious because I want to be a good role model for the people watching." David admitted that it was time for a big change.
"I want them [fans] to have a positive experience when they interact with anything I produce [...] And with that being said, I feel like on a handful of occasions I just missed the mark on that, and that really bums me out [...] There are people who are seriously looking up to me for things more than just something goofy."
An 'Adpocalypse' Cost David Most Of His Earnings
In a 2019 video interview with Men's Health, Dobrik explained that the number of advertisers who pulled their sponsorships from YouTube and "Using copyrighted songs in videos that are a little more 'inappropriate' than [others] on the platform" caused his earnings to drastically drop from $275,000 to a mere $2,000 per month.
Despite getting 200M views on videos each month, 3 times what they used to receive, David was "Actually making less money a month on YouTube than [he] was when [he] was waiting tables at a retirement home [...] Which is pretty crazy." But to Dobrik, it's more important that his videos are true to his image than anything else.
Lessons Learned
David acknowledged that YouTube isn't sustainable forever. In the same interview with Men's Health, David opened up about expenses, sharing that the most important things he had learned from working with brands are, "Instead of taking the money [...] give it to the person that needs it more than [you] do."
Dobrik expressed to Men's Health, "It feels so crazy" that this is his job, that it's "Literally the best job in the world." David's slogan, when it comes to financing, is to "Always give back," he continued, "Once you have money, you're gonna want to give back, and it's the best, best feeling." And David isn't stopping here.
From Web Browser To Your TV Screen
Beginning August 19th, David started hosting the new Discovery Channel competition show, Dodgeball Thunderdome. In it, contestants face each other in various challenges that require strength, strategy, and brainpower, but "The winners won't always be people who finish first, and losers won't always be the ones who finish last."
According to The Hollywood Reporter, David, along with cohosts Andrew Hawkins and Erin Lim, "Put contestants to the test with different kinds of challenges to win a $25K cash prize." Contestants range from "Professional athletes to people who have never played a sport before." We'll be here while David keeps himself busy on TV.
So, What's Next For David?
The future is looking bright for the internet sensation. While David fills his time with vlogs, pranks, TV shows, and more, we'll stand by waiting to update you on his next groundbreaking idea. As long as he continues to engage fans with his large platform, we're sure his fanbase and wallet will continue to grow.
All in all, we know this to be true: David loves the path he is on and he's not planning to slow down. “One of the things I still sometimes realize is how absolutely, crazy lucky I am [...] I have the best job in the world, so I can’t complain.” His advice to anyone who stumbles across any of his platforms? “Just go do you.”