Over the last four years, Vine served as a major platform for talented music artists, comedians, inspirational speakers and social justice activists, just to name a few. There's no question that many of the biggest Vine stars will be affected by the video app's discontinuation, which was officially announced by Twitter on Thursday in a blog post on Medium. Many online personalities jump-started their personal brands and even their careers on Vine, and ended up moving on to write books or even develop their own companies inspired by their Vine videos.
I have always admired people who use Vine as their social media platform, because producing videos that are entertaining and creative is likely a lot more difficult when you only have six seconds to do it. Over the years, I discovered quite a few Viners and would watch their videos nonstop (and then rewatch them, because repeating the same six seconds felt soothing... is that just me?).
So, now that the app is being discontinued, what will become of our favorite Vine stars? Truth be told, a lot of people who were once incredibly active on Vine have expanded their content to other social media sites like YouTube. But still, that's in addition to posting their regular Vine videos (albeit less often). It looks like they'll have to completely migrate over to other platforms and establish a new home base.
Here are just a few Vine stars whose accounts will be majorly affected by the mobile app's discotnuation:
1. Alx James
It's hard not to love a rant, and Alx James has given us so many good ones, most of which mainly take place in a car. In his six-second videos, James always takes ownership of his thoughts and personality, and that's awesome. To keep up with James even after Vine shuts down, subscribe to his YouTube channel.
2. Meagan Cignoli
While Meagan may be the partner of her own creative agency, Visual Country, today, she first started kicking butt by doing brand partnerships on Vine. Her final video on Vine, posted just a few hours after Vine's discontinuation was announced, sent out a heartfelt thank you to her followers.
3. KingBach
One of the most popular Viners of all time, KingBach (real name Andrew Bachelor) has amassed 16.2 million followers on Vine since he first began shooting videos in 2013. He's one of several people who have used the platform as a stage for comedy.
4. BatDad
Who doesn't love the Atlanta-based BatDad? If you ask me, Blake Wilson has, hands down, one of the coolest alter egos on the internet. The good news is, he posts videos (just like his Vine ones, except longer than six seconds) on YouTube, so he's not really going away forever.
5. Thomas Sanders
Thomas Sanders is one of the few major Vine stars left who still posts videos almost every day. His videos incorporate everyday situations that anyone can relate to, and Thomas himself is the clever, goofy brother you probably wish that you had. Head over to his YouTube channel to check out some of his compilations of previous Vine videos.
6. Leslie Wai
This video by UK music producer Leslie Wai will always make me laugh my boots off. When news of Vine's shutdown reached Wai, he made a nearly six-minute video on YouTube talking about what Vine means to him and how it helped get him to where he is now. Cue the tears.
7. Brandon Bowen
Brandon Bowen is self-proclaimed as the "world's cutest filmmaker," and it's hard not to agree if you've been a fan of his Vine videos. He's slightly younger than a lot of Vine stars out there, and it's been an adventure to watch his Vine grow over the past couple of years. Sigh...it's been real.
Thanks for the memories, Vine.
Images: Clem Onojeghuo/Unsplash
