Tag Archives: Canada

YouTube Reveals the Top Videos of 2020: Canadians watched to learn, game, and find joy

This year, we took gaming to a new level, practiced how to Toosie Slide, and found ways to laugh and learn in quarantine. As we finally close out the year, we’re taking a look back at what Canadians watched on YouTube with the Top Trending Canadian creators and videos lists.

In 2020, Canadians came to YouTube to stay informed, learn new skills, and find entertainment and sources of joy. And Canadian creators provided no shortage of options, with new ways to connect with their online communities. To keep us moving and staying active, MadFit made exercise at home easier with no-equipment workouts and routines for small spaces. The Hacksmith’s team used the power of STEM to make a plasma lightsaber. And Julie Nolke kept us laughing, as we imagined how we would explain the pandemic to our past selves.

Top Canadian Creators
  1. MadFit
  2. The Hacksmith
  3. Linus Tech Tips
  4. AzzyLand
  5. Disguised Toast

Top Breakout Canadian Creators
  1. MadFit
  2. Disguised Toast
  3. Julie Nolke
  4. Graser
  5. Heather Robertson

This year's #1 video shows how we learned new skills, like how to construct a ninja warrior course for squirrels. We laughed amidst uncertainty with a remix to Prime Minister Trudeau’s interesting choice of words at a COVID-19 briefing. And we were delighted by watching 10-year-old Roberta Battaglia compete in America’s Got Talent, bringing tears to the audience’s (and our!) eyes.

Canada’s Top Trending Videos
  1. Mark Rober, Building the Perfect Squirrel Proof Bird Feeder
  2. Dream, Minecraft Speedrunner VS 3 Hunters GRAND FINALE
  3. Anonymotif, Justin Trudeau Sings "Speaking Moistly"
  4. Netflix is a Joke, 8:46 - Dave Chappelle
  5. NikkieTutorials, I'm Coming Out.
  6. America’s Got Talent, Golden Buzzer: 10-Year-Old Roberta Battaglia Sings Lady Gaga's "Shallow" - America's Got Talent 2020
  7. MrBeast, $250,000 Influencer Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament
  8. JeffreeStar, We Broke Up.
  9. Dude Perfect, Quarantine Stereotypes
  10. Paris Hilton, The Real Story of Paris Hilton | This is Paris Official Documentary

In music, 2020 was the year of Justin Bieber and Drake, with both Canadian superstars releasing chart-topping hits. Collectively, they earned half of the 10 slots on the Top Music videos list.

Canada’s Top Music Videos
  1. Future, Life is Good ft. Drake
  2. Tekashi 6ix9ine, Gooba
  3. Justin Bieber, Yummy
  4. Eminem, Godzilla ft. Juice WRLD
  5. Sidhu Moose Wala, Old Skool
  6. Cardi B, WAP ft. Megan Thee Stallion
  7. Drake, Toosie Slide
  8. DaBaby, ROCKSTAR ft Roddy Ricch
  9. Justin Bieber, Intentions ft. Quavo
  10. Drake, Laugh Now, Cry Later

When it came to ads, we watched relatable content that addressed the challenges and opportunities of our new normal. No Frills sang about physical distancing in “A Cart Apart”, SkipTheDishes and Jon Hamm encouraged Canadians to support local restaurants, and Rick Mercer ranted about discovering the beauty of our country.

Canada’s Top Ads
  1. Kia Canada - All-New Kia Seltos | Subcompact SUV built for the real you
  2. CANADA Explore | Explorez - Rick Mercer's rant on travel in Canada | Explore Canada
  3. Apple Canada - Shot on iPhone 11 Pro — Hockey Tape — Apple
  4. No Frills - A Cart Apart – A No Frills Track
  5. Chromebook - Switch to Chromebook - Watch Netflix Offline
  6. IGA - IGA x Bleu Jeans Bleu - Oublie pas tes sacs (vidéoclip officiel)
  7. Air Canada - Air Canada: Ready for Takeoff
  8. IKEA Canada - IKEA Canada | Make the Most of Home | Episode 1 with Marcy Mussari
  9. Historica Canada - Heritage Minute: Liberation of the Netherlands
  10. SkipTheDishes - Jon Hamm Thanks Canadians

As the world changed in unimaginable ways, these creators, brands and artists helped make this year just a little brighter, sharing music, workout routines, and some great laughs. We can’t wait to see what they do in 2021.

For a deeper look at the way video trends shaped digital culture in 2020, check out the Culture & Trends site.

YouTube Reveals the Top Videos of 2020: Canadians watched to learn, game, and find joy

This year, we took gaming to a new level, practiced how to Toosie Slide, and found ways to laugh and learn in quarantine. As we finally close out the year, we’re taking a look back at what Canadians watched on YouTube with the Top Trending Canadian creators and videos lists.

In 2020, Canadians came to YouTube to stay informed, learn new skills, and find entertainment and sources of joy. And Canadian creators provided no shortage of options, with new ways to connect with their online communities. To keep us moving and staying active, MadFit made exercise at home easier with no-equipment workouts and routines for small spaces. The Hacksmith’s team used the power of STEM to make a plasma lightsaber. And Julie Nolke kept us laughing, as we imagined how we would explain the pandemic to our past selves.

Top Canadian Creators
  1. MadFit
  2. The Hacksmith
  3. Linus Tech Tips
  4. AzzyLand
  5. Disguised Toast

Top Breakout Canadian Creators
  1. MadFit
  2. Disguised Toast
  3. Julie Nolke
  4. Graser
  5. Heather Robertson

This year's #1 video shows how we learned new skills, like how to construct a ninja warrior course for squirrels. We laughed amidst uncertainty with a remix to Prime Minister Trudeau’s interesting choice of words at a COVID-19 briefing. And we were delighted by watching 10-year-old Roberta Battaglia compete in America’s Got Talent, bringing tears to the audience’s (and our!) eyes.

Canada’s Top Trending Videos
  1. Mark Rober, Building the Perfect Squirrel Proof Bird Feeder
  2. Dream, Minecraft Speedrunner VS 3 Hunters GRAND FINALE
  3. Anonymotif, Justin Trudeau Sings "Speaking Moistly"
  4. Netflix is a Joke, 8:46 - Dave Chappelle
  5. NikkieTutorials, I'm Coming Out.
  6. America’s Got Talent, Golden Buzzer: 10-Year-Old Roberta Battaglia Sings Lady Gaga's "Shallow" - America's Got Talent 2020
  7. MrBeast, $250,000 Influencer Rock, Paper, Scissors Tournament
  8. JeffreeStar, We Broke Up.
  9. Dude Perfect, Quarantine Stereotypes
  10. Paris Hilton, The Real Story of Paris Hilton | This is Paris Official Documentary

In music, 2020 was the year of Justin Bieber and Drake, with both Canadian superstars releasing chart-topping hits. Collectively, they earned half of the 10 slots on the Top Music videos list.

Canada’s Top Music Videos
  1. Future, Life is Good ft. Drake
  2. Tekashi 6ix9ine, Gooba
  3. Justin Bieber, Yummy
  4. Eminem, Godzilla ft. Juice WRLD
  5. Sidhu Moose Wala, Old Skool
  6. Cardi B, WAP ft. Megan Thee Stallion
  7. Drake, Toosie Slide
  8. DaBaby, ROCKSTAR ft Roddy Ricch
  9. Justin Bieber, Intentions ft. Quavo
  10. Drake, Laugh Now, Cry Later

When it came to ads, we watched relatable content that addressed the challenges and opportunities of our new normal. No Frills sang about physical distancing in “A Cart Apart”, SkipTheDishes and Jon Hamm encouraged Canadians to support local restaurants, and Rick Mercer ranted about discovering the beauty of our country.

Canada’s Top Ads
  1. Kia Canada - All-New Kia Seltos | Subcompact SUV built for the real you
  2. CANADA Explore | Explorez - Rick Mercer's rant on travel in Canada | Explore Canada
  3. Apple Canada - Shot on iPhone 11 Pro — Hockey Tape — Apple
  4. No Frills - A Cart Apart – A No Frills Track
  5. Chromebook - Switch to Chromebook - Watch Netflix Offline
  6. IGA - IGA x Bleu Jeans Bleu - Oublie pas tes sacs (vidéoclip officiel)
  7. Air Canada - Air Canada: Ready for Takeoff
  8. IKEA Canada - IKEA Canada | Make the Most of Home | Episode 1 with Marcy Mussari
  9. Historica Canada - Heritage Minute: Liberation of the Netherlands
  10. SkipTheDishes - Jon Hamm Thanks Canadians

As the world changed in unimaginable ways, these creators, brands and artists helped make this year just a little brighter, sharing music, workout routines, and some great laughs. We can’t wait to see what they do in 2021.

For a deeper look at the way video trends shaped digital culture in 2020, check out the Culture & Trends site.

Federal Elections 2019: Helping Canadians Make Informed Decisions

Canada’s 43rd election has been called and the team at Google is busy building products and programs to protect the democratic process, to help campaigns manage their digital presences, and to help Canadians engage in their democracy.


Getting Voters the Information they Need
In anticipation of heading to the polls, we know people need useful and reliable information to navigate the election. Google supports the priorities outlined in the government's Declaration on Electoral Integrity, and is committed to providing information and services that meet these principles.

In 2019, we’re focused on directing Canadians to authoritative resources as they prepare to participate in the election. We're specifically working with Elections Canada to ensure the information we provide is timely and accurate ahead of election day.

Protecting Election Information Online
We’ve built free products to help campaigns keep information safe and to ensure that voters have accurate information when they need it.

With an emphasis on safeguarding campaigns from digital attacks, we’ve hosted several training sessions with policy makers, candidates, campaign teams, and journalists. These trainings focused on our Advanced Protection Program and Project Shield.

To help prevent the spread of misinformation surrounding elections, we continuously make product quality improvements and support newsrooms around the world with training and tools to better verify digital stories. Learn more on how Google fights misinformation.

Connecting Voters to Candidate Information
We provide ways for users to find reliable information about candidates, including information from candidates themselves.

In Search, features called “knowledge panels” help people quickly find an overview of facts and information about things, places, and people-- including political candidates. Information in knowledge panels comes from a variety of sources, including authorities with candidate information. Candidates can also claim their knowledge panels and suggest factual changes once they have been verified. More here. 

YouTube can help campaigns to connect with voters, strengthen their online presences, control their stories, and engage with audiences wherever they are, with videos that can easily be embedded across all media platforms and on official websites. With YouTube Live, campaigns can now broadcast townhalls and speeches live to their audiences with the push of a button. More here.

Working with Newsrooms
Google and YouTube work closely with Canadian news organizations to support high-quality journalism. In 2019, the Google News Lab team conducted several in-person trainings in Canadian newsrooms to ensure journalists were aware of Google tools that might aid in their reporting and storytelling.

With the constant flow of election coverage, we know it’s critical for news organizations to stay up-to-date on the topics that matter. Tools like Google Trends, which allows exploration of frequent searches and questions relating to the elections, and a dedicated Google Trends Canadian Federal Election 2019 page, make it easier for these organizations to stay current.

Google Ads Policy
To comply with new legislation, Google's advertising policies prohibit running Election Ads and Issue Ads during the regulated periods. Read more here.

Amplifying our Voice with Partners
Through various non-partisan partnerships, we’re continuing to provide relevant information to enable participation in the 2019 Federal Elections. Learn more about our partnerships below:

We’ve partnered with Elections Canada to source and promote authoritative voter information. Elections Canada is also leveraging “Posts on Google” to communicate directly with voters from Search by sharing videos, infographics and images about the 2019 election. These published posts are available on the Elections Canada knowledge panel.

Apathy is Boring is a non-partisan, charitable organization that supports and educates youth to be active and contributing citizens in Canada’s democracy. In partnership with Ryerson’s University’s Democratic Engagement Exchange, Apathy is Boring has gathered a coalition of organizations to promote citizen engagement, with a pledge to collectively engage 1 million new voters in the 2019 federal election. Google shares Apathy is Boring’s mission of democratic engagement and will be supporting the Canadian Vote Coalition and other non-partisan civic literacy activities leading up to the 2019 Canadian Federal Election.

To educate school-aged Canadians on fact-based journalism, we worked with the Canadian Journalism Foundation (CJF) to launch a national news literacy program, News Wise. With a $1 million dollar grant from Google.org and a partnership between CJF and CIVIX (Student Vote), NewsWise was piloted with Ontario teachers participating in Student Vote Ontario 2018. NewsWise will continue to evolve and rollout new resources leading up to the 2019 Federal Elections.

Like others, we’re committed to supporting the upcoming election. With the race ramping up, our aim is to keep Canada’s democratic processes secure and to provide Canadians access to the authoritative electoral information that they need to engage in their democracy.

It’s time to start sketching, Canada. Doodle 4 Google is back!

Today’s guest post is brought to you by Canadian YouTube stars Mitch and Greg of AsapSCIENCE 
Submissions are now open for Doodle 4 Google!
If you’ve watched our videos, you already know how much we love science... and art! Whenever we visit the Google homepage, we’re always tickled to find a doodle, which combines the best of both. Google doodles are fun illustrations of the Google logo that celebrate holidays, anniversaries, and the lives of famous artists, pioneers, and scientists -- everything from the discovery of water on Mars to Canadian inventor Sandford Fleming’s 190th birthday.

Now with Doodle 4 Google, kids have the chance to see their artwork on the Google homepage for the whole country to enjoy. Doodle 4 Google is a nationwide competition, inviting students from kindergarten to Grade 12 to redesign the Google logo.*

As Canada blows out a whole lot of candles this year for its 150th birthday, what better way to celebrate than by imagining what the next 150 years will look like? That’s why Google is asking students to submit doodles based on the theme: “What I see for Canada’s future is…”.

Creating the top doodle comes with major perks: not only will their artwork adorn the Google.ca homepage for a day, but the winner will receive a $10,000 university scholarship, a $10,000 technology grant for his/her school, and a paid trip to the final Doodle 4 Google event in June. For more details, check out g.co/d4gcanada.

To help judge this year’s competition, the Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science, En Masse co-founder Jason Botkin, president of the National Inuit Youth Council Maatalii Okalik, and Google Doodler Sophie Diao, will join us as your panel of esteemed doodle judges.

When we come up with themes for our videos, we look to cool things in science and tech for inspiration. If you know a young artist that may need a little nudge to get their creative juices flowing, we’ve worked with Google to create classroom activities that will help parents, teachers and students brainstorm, design and submit their doodles.

Participating is easier than ever. This year, students can submit a doodle made from almost any medium….including code! Ladies Learning Code created an online tutorial offering inspiration and a step-by-step guide to coding a Google doodle. Check it out here.

In Toronto in April? All throughout the month of April, parents and kids can visit the Art Gallery of Ontario to get inspired and create a doodle during Family Sundays.

Teachers and parents can download entry forms on the Doodle 4 Google site. Doodles can be uploaded digitally to Google’s site or mailed directly. Submissions are due on May 2nd. There’s no limit to the number of doodles from any one school or family... Just remember, only one doodle per student.

Let’s get our doodle on, Canada!

*Entrants need a parent or legal guardian’s permission (and signature on the entry form) in order to participate. Residents of Quebec must be at least thirteen years of age. Please see full terms and eligibility requirements here: doodles.google.ca/d4g/rules.html

#YouTubeRewind – how 2016 played out on YouTube

A Beyonce cameo that brought the house down. Canada’s biggest YouTube star and the Sexiest Man Alive. Drake and Rihanna turning a local Toronto restaurant into a dance party. Tips for Americans on how to move to Canada. And an out of control fire that dominated news headlines.


These were just some of the videos that brought Canadians to YouTube in 2016 to laugh, to share, to learn and to remember.


Top Trending Videos in Canada
TV’s YouTube Moment
The number of hours people spent catching up on late night clips nearly doubled in the last year alone. There’s no doubt that TV moments have taken on a life of their own through YouTube. In 2016, late night show channels had over 550M watch hours and over 8.5 BILLION views, as traditional television recognized the power and influence of the YouTube audience and embraced creating content for YouTube.


Canadian Content
Canada’s biggest YouTube star also had a tremendous year in 2016 - Superwoman Lilly Singh hit 10M subscribers, wrote her first book and collaborated with her friend Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson on a few videos to help him launch his YouTube channel.


Rounding out the list were a few notable Canadian news moments, including a report by Global News reporter Reid Fiest who captured the enormous scale of the fire in Fort McMurray as cars streamed out of the city. And who could forget President Obama’s attempt to pronounce Mississauga during the State Dinner he hosted for Prime Minister Trudeau?


Top Trending Music Videos

Rihanna and Drake took over Toronto this year, performing at OVO Fest and making headlines with a rumoured midnight dinner a Ripley’s Aquarium. But, it was when the couple dropped in on Toronto’s The Real Jerk to film the video for Work that a top trending YouTube sensation was born.


Globally, Calvin Harris’ video for This is What You Came For reached 1 BILLION views in just 167 days, making it Calvin Harris’ biggest YouTube video to-date. It was also Rihanna’s second guest performance to cross 1 billion views. (The first was with Eminem on Love the Way You Life which hit 1.2B views).


Canadian artists had a strong year on YouTube - in addition to Drake, both The Weeknd and Shawn Mendes were among the most-watched artists on YouTube. And Edmonton’s Ruth B burst onto the scene with Lost Boy, which she released for the first time on YouTube. In just a few months, her video has reached nearly 39M views around the world.



Top Trailers

Before Canadians go to the movies, they head to YouTube to check out trailers - and this year, we saw a number of highly anticipated trailers for blockbuster franchises. Chief among them was Suicide Squad, the darkly comedic action movie featuring the antiheroes from the DC Comics universe. Filmed in Toronto, Suicide Squad not only delivered the most-watched trailer, but also the most-searched Halloween costume on Google - Harley Quinn.


Female-led stories also dominated, with appearances from the new Star Wars film Rogue One, the all-female cast of the remake of Ghostbusters, the not-yet-released Wonder Woman movie and the Blake Lively thriller The Shallows.

  1. GHOSTBUSTERS - Official Trailer (HD) by SonyPicturesEntertainment
  2. WONDER WOMAN Comic-Con Trailer by WarnerBrosPictures
  3. THE SHALLOWS - Official Trailer #2 (HD) by SonyPicturesEntertainment


2016 Ads Leaderboard

Ads used to be background noise or something you might fast forward. Since YouTube launched skippable ads six years ago, ads have become content that Canadians are choosing to watch. This year’s top trending ads demonstrate that brands are now creating content that’s meant to entertain.


2016 Canadian Year-end YouTube Ads Leaderboard:

Honourable Mention - SickKids VS: Undeniable by SickKids


Canada’s Magical Moments on YouTube

In addition to the top trending videos, trailers and music videos, there were a few magical moments for Canada on YouTube in 2016.


We set a new Canadian record this summer, as Canadians both at home and around the world flocked to YouTube to watch CBC’s livestream of the Tragically Hip’s final concert in Kingston. Viewers from 188 different countries tuned in to watch the concert and post-concert show, bringing home the incredible global reach of YouTube.


We also turned to YouTube to remember Leonard Cohen. Following the announcement of the poet and songwriter’s death on November 10th, the video for his performance of Hallelujah was the most-watched video on YouTube that day. Hallelujah is actually THE most frequently covered song from before 2010 on YouTube, with 8.7K covers. Jeff Buckley’s cover of the iconic song remains the most popular cover on YouTube, with 84 million views.


The first US presidential debate also broke records on YouTube, with nearly 2 million concurrent views around the world - 14X more live viewership than the debates in 2012. Canada was the top country outside of the US that turned into the debate on YouTube.


2016 was also an incredible year for Canadian Creators. We saw 199 channels reach the 100k subscriber mark, 42 hit the 1M subscriber mark, and Canada’s biggest YouTube star, Lilly Singh, hit the 10M subscriber mark.


So take some time, relax, rewind and revisit your favourites from the past year!


Posted by Nicole Bell, communications manager, YouTube Canada