2013–2016: Vine and YouTube beginnings In 2013, Dobrik uploaded his first video onto
Vine. He collaborated on Vines with other popular Viners such as
Liza Koshy,
Gabbie Hanna,
Jason Nash, and Zane & Heath. In August 2016, Dobrik created his second channel,
David Dobrik Too, where he posts blooper reels, challenge videos, and his more direct sponsorship deals.
2017–2022: YouTube career Dobrik posts videos which consist of pranks, inside jokes, cute animals, former Vine and YouTube stars, real celebrities and various comedy bit characters, which he previously posted three days a week and are currently posted two days a week. In December 2018, Dobrik was given a
Diamond Play Button by YouTube in recognition of his YouTube channel surpassing 10 million subscribers. Dobrik was also named one of the "10 Social Media Personalities Making the Most Noise" for 2018 by
Paper magazine. In July 2019, Dobrik was featured by
W among others for being part of a trend of creating a separate
Instagram account dedicated to their photos taken with the use of films or disposable cameras. In August 2019, Dobrik was featured by
Variety magazine in their annual "Power of Young Hollywood" list. In the same month, Dobrik co-hosted the
2019 Teen Choice Awards with
Lucy Hale, himself receiving the award for Choice Male Web Star. In October 2019, Dobrik was ranked the most popular media personality among teenagers based on a survey by the
Piper Jaffray & Co. In November 2019,
People magazine named Dobrik Sexiest Heartthrob of 2019, over runner-ups including
Harry Styles and
Shawn Mendes. That same month, Dobrik was one of the presenters at the
American Music Awards of 2019, and was also a guest judge in the first episode of the ninth season of
Chopped Junior. Dobrik also appeared on
The Tonight Show with
Jimmy Fallon as his late-night television debut, discussing about his inspiration for his viral videos and successful YouTube channel as well as his first interaction with
Justin Bieber. Dobrik's appearance on the show alongside
Martin Short and
Yola was credited for the show being ranked as the #1 most-social late-night series of the week, amassing 2.2 million Interactions across Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, up +582% according to Nielsen Social Content Ratings. The show was tied for first place for the late-night ratings week of 20 January through 24 in the key demographic of adults aged 18 to 49, as well as adults aged 18 to 34, and won the week outright versus its competition in all key adult-female demographics according to Nielsen Media Research. The show also ranked first across all entertainment brands in total and new views for the week with five videos featuring Dobrik totaling more than 15 million views. In April 2020, Dobrik was ranked, for the second time in a row, the most popular media personality among teenagers based on a survey by the Piper Jaffray & Co. In August 2020, Dobrik became one of the first 19 recipients of
TikTok's $1 billion Creator Fund due to "his ability to show what it means to be your authentic self, bring joy and inspiration to people and creatively connect with an audience," according to
Vanessa Pappas, general manager of TikTok US. Dobrik became the host of a reality competition television show on the
Discovery Channel called
Dodgeball Thunderdome with Erin Lim and
Andrew Hawkins as his co-hosts. Dobrik officially joined
Twitch to launch his own streaming channel. His initial live stream peaked at 47,233 concurrent viewers according to the analytics tool SullyGnome, and his channel gained 201 thousand followers total. In September 2021, Dobrik signed with streaming platform
Discovery+ for a travel series called
Discovering David Dobrik which began streaming in November 2021. Just three of the ten episodes initially planned for the first season were aired, and the show’s second season was later canceled.
Vlog Squad sexual assault allegations In February 2021, Seth Francois, a former Vlog Squad member, accused Dobrik of
sexual assault after being deceived into kissing
Jason Nash while blindfolded. Being the only black member of the Vlog Squad, Francois stated he also felt "pressured to participate in bits that [came] off culturally insensitive." Former Vlog Squad member Nik Keswani accused Dobrik of bullying and described their friend group as "kind of like a cult," negatively affecting his mental health to which he officially quit his association with them in 2018. On March 16, 2021,
Kat Tenbarge at
Business Insider reported that during the filming of a 2018 vlog about
group sex, a woman was allegedly raped during filming by then-Vlog Squad member Dom Zeglaitis while drunk and unable to consent. On the same day, Dobrik released a short video on his
Views Podcast channel titled "Let's talk", in which he addressed some of the recent controversies related to him, specifically in regards to former members of the Vlog Squad. He did not specifically address the allegations against Zeglaitis from earlier that day. After the allegations, Dobrik lost numerous sponsors and fans, and also stepped down from his position at
Dispo. On March 26, 2021, it was reported that YouTube had temporarily demonetized Dobrik's and Zeglaitis's channels over the incident, citing violations of its creator responsibility policy. After a three-month hiatus, Dobrik began posting again to his YouTube channel in July 2021.
Dobrik injuring Jeff Wittek lawsuit In April 2021, Vlog Squad member
Jeff Wittek released a documentary on his YouTube channel titled ''Don't Try This at Home''. The documentary explained the circumstances of an accident that happened in June 2020, when Wittek broke his skull and face, requiring major surgery. The incident occurred during a video shoot for Dobrik's comeback vlog when the Vlog Squad went
wakeboarding in a shallow lake while being pulled by Dobrik using an
excavator. Wittek's documentary included video showing fellow Vlog Squad member Corinna Kopf swinging from the line but starting to lose balance and nearly falling, prompting her to ask to be released. Dobrik did not immediately do so, causing her to accuse him of "taking things too far". When it was Wittek's turn, Dobrik swung him higher than anyone before him and then suddenly stopped. The momentum of Wittek continuing to swing around caused him to crash into the excavator and fall into the shallow lake while still attached to the line. Wittek has since filed a lawsuit in $10 million worth of damages to Dobrik, regarding "general negligence and intentional tort".
Vlogging career In a July 2019 profile,
The Verge wrote of Dobrik's vlog: "Think of it like
Friends, but for vloggers. Essentially, Dobrik created the first sitcom-vlog. There are musical transitions, a returning cast of characters that drive the story forward, and Dobrik's laughter acts as a laugh track for viewers. We know when to laugh because Dobrik does, and it all has to do with his friends' antics." Generally, people considered part of the Vlog Squad include
Jason Nash, Natalie Mariduena,
Josh Peck, Zane Hijazi, Heath Hussar, Mariah Amato, Scotty Sire, Ilya Fedorovich, Nick Antonyan and his siblings Vardan and Suzy, Matt King, Toddy Smith, Corinna Kopf, Joe Vulpis, Carly Incontro and Erin Gilfoy. Speaking at the
2019 Streamy Awards, Dobrik said of winning the Ensemble Cast prize with the Vlog Squad, "Ensemble is like, my favorite one to win... [The nominations are] insane, and I can't say this enough—it's all because of these guys," he added. "I have a group of like, 15, 20, 30 friends, and they help me day in and day out with all the videos." == Other ventures ==