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I have done my best to come up with a list of questions or concerns that you might have while/after watching the video titled "2 Years On YouTube and I'm Still Myspaceing It". Here It Is.
Why did you upload it on December 25th when your 2 Year Anniversary on YouTube is on November 19th?
I was originally going to upload it on November 19th, 2012 but I felt sick during that week. Of course, it wasn't serious to the point that I wouldn't be able to upload it. The thing is, is that if this video were to get viral (fingers crossed), I don't want to be feeling sick while its happening. I wanted to upload it before 2012 was over, so I had 3 dates in mind. December 19th (an exact month after), December 25th (Chirstmas) or December 31st (New Years Eve). Dec. 19 wasn't a special enough day and December 31st is too close to 2013, so Chirstmas day was an obvious choice.
What I Hope To Get Out Of This Video
Well other than earning fame for myself from the amount of views that this vid hopefully gets, the thing I hope to get out of this video the most is, that I want every single eye that watches it to make themselves active on Myspace.com and see Myspace in a more postive way. Not just because of the launch of "New Myspace" (commercials and all), but as the name brand that it is. I don't want you to think of the word Myspace and instantly become a negative critic. I'm just an everyday Myspacer wanting other people to become proud Myspacers as well.
What's A Zuckerberg Zombie?
A Zuckerberg Zombie is someone who I define as being brainwashed into feeling a sense of achievement for joining Billionaire Mark's creation (Facebook) after stating the fact that you abandoned Myspace for it.
Examples: A Zuckerberg Zombie would say: "Myspace is dead and Facebook is where the party is at"
or
"If you're gonna upload pictures/post a status/do that, here on Facebook, then leave and go back to Myspace!"
I believe (figuratively, not literally of course) that Facebook's massive popularity and marketing, has put you in a trance and programmed your brain to make you think that way. Sorry Mark, but my willpower is stronger than that. :)
Have I really never been on Facebook?
Well I didn't mention it in the video... but I actually have used an account on Facebook between January 2011 - July 2011. I synced it with my Myspace for iPhone application and the majority of my status messages came from there, so all my friends would know that I was "Still Myspaceing It". I only uploaded a maximum of 4 pictures because I didn't want make myself too active on it. The whole reason I joined was to interact with my High School friends online in the months leading to Graduation and then I abandoned my Facebook account shortly after that.
My feelings on Myspace's different looks throughout the years and how I was able to adjust to them.
I joined Myspace in May of 2007 (sometime on the week of May 20th). Before that, I didn't think much of Myspace while having a Bebo account in the early part of 2007. Once I joined Myspace, I was so in love with it, that I forgot all about Bebo (kinda like how people on Facebook now react to Myspace). In 2008, Myspace had an additional, optional user homepage to view your Stream and other stuff. Later on, they forced us all to use that homepage and I accepted it in a short time because of its quick navigation features. Then in 2010, Myspace went through a major change. Its color scheme went from Blue and White to Black and White and implemented another user homepage. I adjusted to it because it had more of a focus on the status message which is one of my most used features of Myspace. Another new Homepage was presented in 2011 which focused a bit more on music. I have made it crystal clear throughout the past few years that I am not on Myspace exclusively for music interests but mostly for person to person interaction with people I know. That (Classic Myspace) user homepage is no longer around today and I am totally upset with that unannounced and unwanted decision. And of course, if you've made an account on the New Myspace, it is yours to judge all you want (hopefully its good and constructive judgment). The major gripe I have with the presentation of Myspace overall, is the Black and White color scheme not only on its logo but the entire website. I prefer the Blue and White from years back, but if it goes back to the Blue and White color scheme, It'll probably get a bunch of "MYSPACE IS SOOOO COPYING OFF OF FACEBOOK BY USING ITS COLORS!!!" But I honestly don't freakin care. Myspace (in its popular years) represented Blue and White, and those are the colors I wished Myspace still used today.
Looking a bit intimidated in front of the camera
If I looked nervous on camera, I apologize because I'm not used to vlogging. Having to read off a hand writen script on my iPod Touch, getting every sentence remembered in my mind, looking straight at the camera, making sure the camera looks straightened, making sure I'm not out of frame, etc. I just wanted to get the best shots I could with the time I had and I feel satisfied for the most part after watching the finished product. I wouldn't call it perfect but just good enough for me.
Spelling the word Myspace as MySpace
I just want to note that my biggest pet peeve of all time is seeing the word Myspace spelled as MySpace. Look guys, I spelled it correctly 50 times down below. Can you all spell it correctly just once? Please spell the word Myspace with ONE Capitol Letter (the letter M not S) or you should get an all expenses paid trip back to Elementary School and get taught Grammar for 10 months straight!
Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace
Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace
Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace
Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace
Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace Myspace
Getting Annoyed when a TV promotion promotes their Facebook account or being told to log into a website with your Facebook credentials.
Another Pet Peeve of mine is hearing or seeing the words "Like Us/Like Me/Find Us/Connect With Us, etc. "on Facebook". I want to be a living, breathing example to people and show the world that Facebook is neither a necessity nor an essential to the human race. If you're not on Myspace, I hope that's your choice and not something you were influenced to think. But For The Love Of All Things Right, PLEASE do not be under the assumption that you HAVE to be on Facebook to interact with anything that is anything. Just. Say. No. I'm a Myspace guy and if you or your brand/company isn't on Myspace, you're gonna have a real hard time trying to appeal to me. No matter how interesting you want to seem to be.
My overall dislike for Facebook
I don't hate Facebook because of a Privacy Policy or because the people who use it get really annoying. I've just got a strong dislike for the entire brand in general because of the unfortunate fact that it overtook Myspace in popularity. I get aggravated when everything that I would enjoy watching, listening, doing or interacting with, always leads to being associated with it. I'm just a Myspace user who wants to get more out of his Myspace account than just "the world's largest digital music library", constant over-promotion of independent music artists and graphic designers, and some Entertainment News here and there. I want promotions from well known big name brands, I want activities to keep me interested every day, I want businesses and brands to liven up Myspace with their endorsements and exclusive features and so on, and so on.
Not wanting people to LOOK at Myspace and automatically assume you can't get your Social Networking Fix because its "too musical"
Myspace will always be a Social Network to me. In 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012, it was a Social Network and in 2013 and the years forward, it will always be MY Social Network (even on the New Myspace). I get that the Vanderhooks want to integrate Music and Music promotion as much as possible, and I've got absolutely no problem with that (I understand that people need a place to showcase their stuff). But everyday I use Myspace, my first thought of it will always be that its a Social Network and so does millions of others. I will always find a way to interact with my friends and family and all the people I care about the most on the New Myspace website, and that's what's I will generally be doing. Myspace has Entertainment news, its got Music, its got Designers, but it will always be My General Social Network. Remember what I said in the video above:
"If I can get around a website that wants to be the opposite of what I see it as, then why can't you?"
The T-Shirt I Wore
You can't purchase it now, but this is where I bought mine. - http://teespring.com/bmwlifemorals
BMW = Boy Meets World
"Life's Tough Get A Helmet" - a quote first said by Eric Matthews.
Teespring is a website where you can campaign your brand on a T-Shirt and if a certain number of people reserve it, it will get printed and shipped to your house. The T-Shirt is not an officially licensed piece of Boy Meets World merchandise, but its fan-made so that's why I think its acceptable. Why did I wear it? I just wanted to wear a T-Shirt that made a statement even though it had absolutely nothing to do with Myspace. Boy Meets World is a re-running sitcom that's still popular with fans nowadays and I want Myspace to be a leader in internet popularity as well. Contact @BMW_LifeMorals on Twitter and ask for some more t-shirts. (preferably a graphic t-shirt with Eric Matthews on it since he's my favorite character).
Making this production was like cramming for a final exam in College... for 4 months.
I nearly did everything the last minute. This was a four-month process. August was "Brainstorming Month", September was "Write A Script Month", October was "Start Recording The Video Month" and November was "Edit and Upload The Video Month (even though I uploaded it on December 25th). Although, my computer had issues rendering (saving) the video. The video was in full 1080p HD quality yet my old computer could barely load a 480p video on YouTube. I basically had to start all over again during the third month, by lowering the video quality setting on my camera to 720p and re-recording every single video clip. So this was a long and stressful process but I'm glad it all worked out in the end.
Was It Scripted?
If by scripted you mean I wrote out and read everything I said because I suck at memorizing dialogue and not scripted as in this being a completely fake video, then yes it was scripted. If you didn't notice already, I was reading off of a script since I don't really have the mind tendency to just look at a camera and talk without reading off of something. I wrote the entire script on my laptop and e-mailed it to myself, then opened my e-mail client on my iPod Touch and copy and pasted it to the notepad. I read it off of there while filming. You might be able to tell that I added a few ad-libs to the video.
The picture in the background
Its a picture of me from pre-school, lets move past that already.
Watching The Video One Last Time Before Uploading It
It was a bit nervewrecking for me to watch this video before uploading it online. Like I said previously, I was a bit intimidated in front of the camera, but I was more intimidated while I was editing the video and looking back at the minor flaws and occurances in it that hopefully will not be focused on more than the message I'm trying to spread. I really enjoy being a "behind the camera guy" over being in front because then I would have no reason to feel nervous. But at the end of the day, I've posted 5 other videos on YouTube that featured me talking in front of a camera, and I'm currently not nervous of what people might think after seeing those vids. So it'll take some time, but I'll get over this one as well.
Final Thoughts
Enjoy that video, be entertained, feel responsible, laugh, cry, get emotionally charged, tell someone you know and make this thing viral. Not just the video but this blog as well. All I've got to say is that I'm not planning a sequel to this video unless it becomes really, really necessary. I have absolutely no idea what my 3 Year Anniversary video will feature. That all depends on how the year 2013 treats me. In 2011, I got an exclusive video response from Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, on a question I sent him. So my 1 year anniversary was focused on that. 2012 had nothing to offer me, so I decided to talk about my love of Myspace and disdain for Facebook which is a subject I've wanted to bring up for some years now. If things go my way this year (2013), then Tuesday November 19th, 2013 will feature more of a year in review type of video. And if not, then I'll talk about some random topic for some random amount of minutes. I just need to find the right one and get everything straightened out to prepare it.
Merry Christmas to everyone on Planet Earth celebrating it, Happy 2 Years of being on YouTube and on Twitter to myself (joined Twitter on November 19th, 2010), and I'll always be hoping that 2013 or any year after that, will be the year Mr. FreshleMania becomes a household name among the billions.
- Ray "Mr. FreshleMania" Maldonado
p.s. if you have any additional questions, then log in to your (New) Myspace Account and "don't be afraid to post a comment on my profile" (that's a classic myspace saying).
and yes, there were a few moments in the video where my lips needed some moisturizing, but lets blame the cold weather conditions on that one.
