Casey Neistat, a well-known figure on YouTube who is often credited with popularizing the daily vlogging trend, recently appeared on the Flagrant podcast to express his views on the current state of the creative space. He argued that the pursuit of monetization has become so dominant that it is taking precedence over creativity.According to Casey, who has produced thousands of vlogs, analytics such as views and revenue have never been his main focus. Instead, he has prioritized creativity in his content. In fact, he disclosed that he no longer monetizes his YouTube videos.Jay Alto@theJayAltoOn behalf of YouTube, please make this video @Casey26614On behalf of YouTube, please make this video @Casey https://t.co/TitRsHeRRZ"YouTube makes me sad" - Casey Neistat's latest projectDuring his appearance on the latest episode of Flagrant, Casey Neistat announced that he has a new video in the works about YouTube culture, which he has titled "YouTube makes me sad." In addition, he proceeded to say:"I'd like to think that the driving desire to be on YouTube for aspiring creators is that they want an outlet for creative expression, they want to make art, they want to make interesting things, they want to tell stories. That's my sole driving force. I never look at metrics. That's why i don't monetize my channels."(Timestamp: 00:22:06) He continued:"Now it depends on so far in the other direction where it's just about like, monetizations...and I think that's what YouTube culture has become. And it's a bummer."He also remarked that around six to seven years ago, during the peak vlogging era, creativity was more valued than it is now. he said:"I'd like to think that back in the vlog days, six, seven years ago, it was much more about creativity."Here's what the fans saidFans took to the replies section to express appreciation for Casey Neistat's comments. As a veteran of the YouTube community, his words held significant weight.Several individuals have also criticized that YouTube has become a massive corporation where influencer culture relies more on drama than creativity. Here are some of the notable reactions:Connor@Constillate@theJayAlto @Casey It is interesting to hear from such a legend in the space. I agree, back 7-8 yrs ago there wasn't as much focus on metrics for newer creators.There's a growing imbalance between wanting to create content vs wanting content to perform; discussing the middle ground would be 11@theJayAlto @Casey It is interesting to hear from such a legend in the space. I agree, back 7-8 yrs ago there wasn't as much focus on metrics for newer creators.There's a growing imbalance between wanting to create content vs wanting content to perform; discussing the middle ground would be 👌Paul Desbaillets@pauldesbaillets@theJayAlto @Casey Could we have a little of both? Prioritizing Creative VIBES 1st and foremost.@theJayAlto @Casey Could we have a little of both? Prioritizing Creative VIBES 1st and foremost.Darren Allatt@DarrenAllatt@theJayAlto @Casey It’s all about $$$ hence why it swung so far@theJayAlto @Casey It’s all about $$$ hence why it swung so farAdamAsta 🇲🇦@AdamAstaoui@theJayAlto @Casey exactlyyy love that he addressed this issue , but i currently i started seeing creators starting to go back to creating content out of love and creating an actually good video , hope he does a full vid about this1@theJayAlto @Casey exactlyyy love that he addressed this issue , but i currently i started seeing creators starting to go back to creating content out of love and creating an actually good video , hope he does a full vid about thisJurnee@SkyJurnee@theJayAlto @Casey I needed to hear this. I felt guilty for my wanting to do YouTube by focusing on my passion because so many creators around me are focused on money. Made me feel like focusing on creativity is doing YouTube the wrong way.1@theJayAlto @Casey I needed to hear this. I felt guilty for my wanting to do YouTube by focusing on my passion because so many creators around me are focused on money. Made me feel like focusing on creativity is doing YouTube the wrong way.Ryker - YouTube Strategy 📈@Ryker_Strategy@theJayAlto @Casey It's true, there's a lot of movement towards that direction..1@theJayAlto @Casey It's true, there's a lot of movement towards that direction..Pete Z@PeteZog@theJayAlto @Casey EXACTLYYYY this is so accurate7@theJayAlto @Casey EXACTLYYYY this is so accurateJP Scott@yrmwt2@theJayAlto @Casey This has been the corporate world for the past several decades, flowing down into the smallest of details of our existence. This is one reason corporations get into trouble, focusing on the metrics. If one lives their passion, the rest will fall into place. @theJayAlto @Casey This has been the corporate world for the past several decades, flowing down into the smallest of details of our existence. This is one reason corporations get into trouble, focusing on the metrics. If one lives their passion, the rest will fall into place. ❤️Andrew Carlton@andocarlton@theJayAlto @Casey Reminds me of the good ol days of early YouTube with smosh, Harry Potter puppets (forgot the name), Ryan higa etc. it was all just people having a laugh. Then a lot of them got bought out by a big company and needed to monetise. It all turned into drama/influencer culture w ads1@theJayAlto @Casey Reminds me of the good ol days of early YouTube with smosh, Harry Potter puppets (forgot the name), Ryan higa etc. it was all just people having a laugh. Then a lot of them got bought out by a big company and needed to monetise. It all turned into drama/influencer culture w adsCasey currently boasts over 12.5 million subscribers on his main YouTube channel. Although he no longer uploads on a daily basis, he is still active on the platform, and many of his videos highlight the multiple sides of New York.