- 6/24/2025
From disastrous scandals to career-ending controversies, these content creators learned the hard way that fame comes with consequences. Join us as we explore the most shocking moments when YouTube stars sabotaged their own success through poor decisions, offensive content, and public meltdowns.
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00:00My friends, family, and fans that have to watch another one of these videos because you shouldn't have to, and this is really, really embarrassing.
00:08Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at the most popular YouTubers whose online empires came crashing down as a result of their own actions.
00:18I'm embarrassed of myself.
00:20Ravonna.
00:22Yovonna Mendoza, popularly known as Ravonna, built a name for herself online as a raw vegan influencer.
00:30Your body will love it, and it's the best gift that you can give yourself.
00:35Her YouTube channel attracted hundreds of thousands of subscribers through her vegan diet recipes and detox kits.
00:42Mmm.
00:44Mmm.
00:45Wow.
00:46It's so good, and it's super warming, too.
00:49Just love it, and it's perfect for this time of year.
00:53Nonetheless, in 2019, she appeared in another vlogger's video while having a plate of fish in front of her.
01:00This clip ignited a social media storm, with many fans labeling her as dishonest and spamming her comment sections with fish emojis.
01:08In response, Ravonna released an apology video in which she clarified that she was forced to change her diet due to medical reasons.
01:16I'm really, really sorry about the way that the news were communicated to you, how you had to find out.
01:24This apology, however, did little to quell the outrage.
01:28David Dobrik.
01:29David Dobrik initially rose to fame on Vine, but later found success on YouTube, amassing millions of subscribers.
01:36Oh my god!
01:37Oh my god!
01:38Oh my god!
01:39Oh my god!
01:40Oh my god!
01:41Oh my god!
01:42Oh my god!
01:43His content typically revolved around daily vlogs where he and his team, known as the Vlog Squad, executed various stunts and pranks.
01:51And Natalie has a lot of clowns.
01:54In 2021, Dobrik faced controversy following a series of sexual assault allegations.
02:00First, Seth Francois, a former Vlog Squad member, accused Dobrik of coercing him into kissing another member against his consent.
02:08Then, an anonymous woman claimed that Dom Zagletis, another Vlog Squad member, had sexually assaulted her while filming a vlog in 2018.
02:16These allegations led to the loss of multiple sponsorship deals and a temporary demonetization of Dobrik's YouTube channel.
02:23I'm so sorry, and I've really let not only you down, but a lot of people down, a lot of people that watch me.
02:30Jeffrey Starr.
02:31Very scary.
02:32Those are dark thoughts.
02:33Bringing back traumatic experiences, honestly.
02:34Yes, I know.
02:35We're having a little bit of PTSD right now.
02:37Following a brief and unsuccessful foray into music, Jeffrey Starr ventured into the world of makeup, where he eventually found success.
02:45So, I just started promoting myself, and people started recognizing me for my image, so that's how it goes.
02:52Starr began promoting his makeup brand on YouTube, often collaborating with fellow YouTuber Shane Dawson.
02:58Really bad. I'll show you before and after later.
03:00In 2020, Starr's fame took a hit due to the infamous scandal involving beauty creators Toddy Westbrook and James Charles.
03:07Initially supporting Westbrook, Starr was later accused of manipulating her and fueling the entire situation alongside Dawson.
03:15He also faced allegations of racist behavior and sexual assault, reportedly paying hush money to his accusers.
03:22As a result, Starr lost numerous followers and business deals.
03:26I'm embarrassed of myself. I'm embarrassed for my family that they have to see things online.
03:32And I'm sad that Nathan and my friends have to go online and deal with this as well because of my actions.
03:40In 2020, he moved to Casper, Wyoming and put up his L.A. mansion for sale.
03:45Arab Andy. YouTube pranks can range from fun and harmless to potentially crossing the line into criminal territory, like in the case of Jamal Haraz.
03:54Also known on YouTube as Arab Andy, Haraz gained notoriety in 2018 for live streaming a fake bomb incident at the University of Washington in Seattle.
04:05Haraz walked into a classroom and played a message on a speaker falsely claiming that a bomb had been successfully activated and was set to detonate.
04:13Panic quickly ensued, causing the occupants of the room to run out in panic.
04:18While Haraz made fun of the situation.
04:21He was later arrested by police and charged with making a bomb threat.
04:26Laura Lee.
04:27After allegations of racism surfaced about Jeffree Star, a picture emerged showing a group of YouTubers apparently mocking Star.
04:34Among them was makeup artist Laura Lee.
04:37This photo prompted Star's fans to investigate Lee's social media history, where they unearthed multiple offensive tweets that included fat shaming and the use of racial slurs.
04:47But perhaps the most egregious was a tweet that made light of police brutality against black people, which was posted a few months after the tragic shooting of Trayvon Martin.
04:56Lee attempted to salvage the situation with a video apology, though many perceived it to be insincere.
05:02Consequently, many of her sponsors severed ties with her, and she lost hundreds of thousands of subscribers within days.
05:09I'm only here to say that I'm so sorry.
05:11I hope one day that you guys can save me for the woman that I am.
05:21Anthony Fantano.
05:22Popular music critic Anthony Fantano operates the YouTube channel The Needle Drop, where he reviews music from a wide range of genres.
05:31To earn extra cash, Fantano also ran another YouTube channel called That Is The Plan, uploading meme reviews and other non-music content.
05:41In 2017, an article by The Fader alleged that Fantano had posted racist memes and associated with the alt-right movement on his second channel.
05:51Following the release of the article, Fantano saw several of his scheduled US tour dates cancelled.
05:56He ultimately deleted the That Is The Plan account, and posted a video response on his main channel, labeling the Fader article a quote, hit job.
06:04Keep in mind, the whole narrative of this article is that I'm up here, pulling the strings, trying to figure out ways to get the alt-right to watch me. Ha ha ha ha ha.
06:14The following year, Fader deleted the piece from their site after reportedly reaching a settlement with Fantano.
06:19Did you give this hit piece a read? If you did, what did you think of it?
06:22Shane Dawson. Once regarded as the king of YouTube, Shane Dawson experienced arguably one of the greatest downfalls ever witnessed on the platform.
06:30Dawson began his YouTube career in 2008, and eventually attracted a legion of fans with his highly popular docuseries.
06:37I shouldn't be doing series with a possible sociopath, but I also want to do shit on my channel that I find interesting.
06:45However, things took a turn for the worse in the summer of 2020, when a series of old videos resurfaced, showing Dawson performing in blackface and using racial slurs.
06:55He also faced backlash for making inappropriate comments about minors and his own cat.
07:00Like, this isn't normal, right? Like, there's something wrong.
07:03The repercussions were swift and severe. Dawson lost over a million subscribers, his books were taken off the shelves at Target, and all three of his channels were indefinitely demonetized by YouTube.
07:13Sam Pepper. English YouTuber Sam Pepper launched his channel in 2010, uploading mostly prank videos, two of which significantly impacted his career.
07:38The first, titled Fake Hand Ass Pinch Prank, featured Pepper inappropriately touching random unsuspecting women, prompting heavy backlash.
07:53He initially defended it as a social experiment, but eventually took it down.
07:57Things went worse with the second video, which saw Pepper tricking a man into believing that his best friend had been shot and killed.
08:07This left many viewers horrified, and ultimately prompted an apology from Pepper in which he confessed that the video was staged.
08:14Since then, Pepper has largely transitioned to TikTok, where he creates less controversial content, leaving his YouTube days behind.
08:40Nikita Dragon. With over 3 million subscribers on YouTube, Nikita Dragon is one of the most popular beauty creators on the platform.
08:47But her reputation has been marred by a series of controversies dating back to 2017.
08:58The YouTuber first faced criticism for black fishing after appearing in a Jeffree Star cosmetics campaign with noticeably darker skin.
09:06Two years later, she was called out for cultural appropriation when she was photographed wearing box braids.
09:11The backlash against her intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic, when she attended not one but two house parties that flooded public health guidelines without even wearing a mask.
09:21As a result, her presence on social media has waned, and she has been largely inactive on YouTube since 2021.
09:28I love that you know that. Very much so.
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09:44James Charles
09:47This is a conversation that I know a lot of people are uncomfortable with, and it's something that I should have been far more careful with.
09:58YouTuber and makeup artist James Charles joined the platform in 2015 and swiftly rose to fame.
10:05Within a year, he was named CoverGirl's first male ambassador.
10:08His rise continued steadily over the next few years until 2019, when he got involved in a public feud with fellow beauty influencer Tati Westbrook.
10:17Westbrook questioned Charles' loyalty and accused him of inappropriate behavior with a heterosexual man.
10:23Forgive my emotions. This is really difficult stuff.
10:28As a result, Charles reportedly lost 1 million subscribers in a single day.
10:32While he briefly regained public support, more controversy soon followed, including allegations that he sent inappropriate messages to underage fans.
10:40This marked the tipping point for many.
10:42The incidents led to a loss of business deals and a temporary demonetization of Charles' YouTube channel.
10:48And this is really, really embarrassing.
10:51What did you make of these YouTube falls from Grace? Let us know in the comments below.
10:55And that mistake doesn't make them a terrible human. It just makes them a human.
11:09What do I know?
11:10Did you enjoy this video? Check out these other clips from WatchMojo.
11:14And be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos.
11:18See you next time.
11:19See you next time.
11:20Bye.
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