If you’re from the UK, or a fan of Grime music, then you might well be aware of Jamal Edwards; founder and owner of YouTube channel SBTV. At the young age of 15, Jamal started his broadcasting company on YouTube after he received a video camera as a Christmas present, from his mum. Jamal has always been a creative individual and decided to make videos of Grime artists around his area, showcasing their talent. He did this as a result of noticing that there weren’t many grime videos on the internet. He identified a niche and a problem, and decided to do something about it.
“When people ask me what an entrepreneur is, my answer is someone who wants to make a difference to other people’s lives. Jamal is a walking definition of the word.” – Richard Branson
His videos have attracted millions of views, whilst his subscribers have reached hundreds of thousands. SBTV continues to grow as a business and continues to make a fortune, with Jamal Edwards being worth approximately £8 million! When Jamal started uploading his videos to YouTube, he had no idea about the potential they had to make money; he simply did it to make his content more accessible for those that were interested in seeing it.
Most of the revenue he makes from YouTube is through advertising. Being a YouTube partner, you can qualify for their advertising scheme and take a percentage of their revenues; this is pretty common now. However, when Jamal started, it was very difficult to get accepted, especially if you were unknown. Jamal persisted to become a partner by sending countless emails to YouTube until they eventually agreed.
Jamal was working as a part-time employee in the clothing store Topman when he started his venture with SBTV. As his channel got bigger, his income from YouTube got bigger too. Despite his mum’s doubts about how sustainable the source of income was , Jamal carried on working hard. He was finally able to surpass his salary at Topman, and then left his job for good.
Although Jamal started by just filming local acts, he knew he had to diversify as more and more people started doing grime videos. One way he sought to do this was by including interviews and having bigger artists. The first major artist he had on his channel was singer Kelly Rowland. We find that many people struggle with reaching out to the right people, and to be honest, Jamal was no different. He sent her manager countless emails and eventually resorted to waiting outside of her Mayfair hotel until he was given a 10-minute slot. He had no special equipment such as fancy cameras or lights, just a flip-camera and a notebook. Adding this feature to his portfolio gave him more confidence to approach other big artists.
“Don’t be scared and don’t let any obstacle come in your way.” – Jamal Edwards
Jamal has gone on to become one of Britain’s most successful young entrepreneurs, the face of Google Chrome, and his book was a number 1 best-seller in its first week. He is also now very good friends with Virgin owner Richard Branson, who regards him highly as a young businessman. He has also gone on tour with musicians Dr. Dre and Rihanna, while being invited to meet Microsoft mogul and one of the world’s richest men, Bill Gates, in Seattle. Further to that, SBTV helped launch the career of acoustic artist Ed Sheeran. Not to mention that the channel featured superstars such as Jessie J, Rita Ora and Emily Sandé, before they became singing sensations! All this and yet he is still only 24!
“So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.” – Christopher Reeve
Although we don’t know Jamal personally, we’ve followed his story since the beginning. It’s very evident that Jamal has experienced great success by pursuing his passion. He never let his resources or circumstances hold him back from his vision. His continued persistence, consistency and hard work, filled with passion, has led him to places that not your average youngster gets to travel to. If Jamal can go from your regular council estate teenager to self-made multimillionaire, why can’t you?!
Author: Vex King
I am the founder and owner of the Bon Vita lifestyle brand. I could give myself a title and call myself a lifestyle entrepreneur, personal mentor, writer, designer, innovator, CEO, or anything else I see as fitting. However no title can define me as an individual. I’m just an optimist, a visionary, a philanthropist and jack of many trades. I’m using my positive influence to redefine the creative industries using Good Vibes Only #GVO so that people can fulfil their dreams, purposefully, and enjoy The Good Life #TGL. My daily words of intent are to make people… Think, look & feel GOOD!
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