Joseph Michael Graceffa Jr. (; born May 16, 1991) is an American YouTuber, vlogger, actor, author, and producer. He runs four active

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

channels, all named after him. His main channel is dedicated to vlogging, while the second features video gaming content. The third is for daily vlogs, and the fourth is a react channel. His channels have a combined total of more than 2.9 billion views. He was a contestant on the 22nd and 24th seasons of ''

The Amazing Race ''The Amazing Race'' is an adventure reality game show franchise in which teams of two people race around the world in competition with other teams. The ''Race'' is split into legs, with teams tasked to deduce clues, navigate themselves in fore ...

'', and has appeared in a handful of

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

s as well as creating and hosting ''

Escape the Night ''Escape the Night'' is an American reality television series created, hosted, produced, and owned by Joey Graceffa that was first broadcast on June 22, 2016, on YouTube Premium. The series follows fantasy plots based on horror and murder my ...

'', an unscripted, unrehearsed

web series A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single in ...

, distributed by

via its paid-subscription service YouTube Premium. He appears in all four of the seasons with several other YouTubers, including

Liza Koshy Elizabeth Shaila "Liza" Koshy (born March 31, 1996), is an American media personality and actress. Her main YouTube channel has amassed more than 17 million subscribers, and her two channels have a combined total of over 3 billion views. She ha ...

Shane Dawson Shane Lee Yaw (born July 19, 1988), better known as Shane Dawson, is an American YouTuber, actor, fimmaker, writer, and musician. One of the first people to rise to fame on YouTube, he began making videos in 2008 at the age of 19 and garnered ...

Colleen Ballinger Colleen Mae Ballinger (born November 21, 1986) is an American comedian, YouTuber, actress, singer and writer. She is best known for her Internet character Miranda Sings, posting videos of the character on YouTube, performing her one-woman come ...

, and

Rosanna Pansino Rosanna Pansino is an American YouTuber, actress, author and singer. Pansino is one of the highest-paid content-creators on YouTube, and was listed first on ''Forbes'' ''Top Influencers: Food'' list in 2017. Pansino has hosted the internet ser ...

Early life and education

Graceffa was born in

Marlborough, Massachusetts Marlborough is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 41,793 at the 2020 census. Marlborough became a prosperous industrial town in the 19th century and made the transition to high technology industry in the ...

, the son of Debbie O'Connor and Joe Graceffa. He has two siblings, an older sister named Nicole and a younger half brother named Jett who has

autism The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

, through his mom and his stepfather, Bob. Graceffa endured hardships with his mother when she resorted to

alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...

to cope with troubles in her life. These started when Graceffa was around 12 years old. According to his book '' In Real Life'', he graduated from

Marlborough High School Marlborough High School is a secondary school in Zimbabwe which is located in a Harare suburb called Marlborough. Marlborough is to the north of Harare City Centre and lies between the roads leading to Chinhoyi and Bindura from Harare. Marlborou ...

in 2009. He had originally applied to

Emerson College Emerson College is a private college with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts. It also maintains campuses in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California and Well, Limburg, Netherlands ( Kasteel Well). Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a ...

but was rejected. Graceffa enrolled at

Fitchburg State College Fitchburg State University (Fitchburg State) is a public university in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. It has 3,421 undergraduate and 1,238 graduate/continuing education students, for a total student body enrollment of 4,659. The university offers und ...

intending to major in film, but left after one year.

Career

2007–13: YouTube and ''The Amazing Race''

In 2007, at age 16, Graceffa began uploading videos to the YouTube channel ''WinterSpringPro'', with his high school friend Brittany Joyal. In 2009, he started posting videos on his own channel, called, Joey Graceffa. In 2013, he joined the

StyleHaul StyleHaul was a marketing services, media, and technology company which gained recognition as an early pioneer of branded content and native advertising on digital platforms. The company was founded in 2011 by Stephanie Horbaczewski and operated a ...

YouTube network. Graceffa posts regular vlogs on his channel. As of April 2022, he has gained over 9.4 million subscribers and more than 2.1 billion total views on his main YouTube channel alone. On a second YouTube channel focusing on his gaming, he has more than 2.6 million subscribers and over 620 million views, for a total of over 2.6 billion views. He also has more than 3.9 million Twitter followers and more than 5.5 million Instagram followers. In 2013, Graceffa and fellow YouTube personality

Meghan Camarena Meghan Camarena (born July 17, 1987), known by her online pseudonym Strawburry17, is an American YouTube personality, television host, actress and comic book writer. She has worked on a number of videos, web series, and films, gaining popularit ...

were contestants on ''

The Amazing Race 22 ''The Amazing Race 22'' is the twenty-second season of the American reality television show ''The Amazing Race''. It featured eleven teams of two competing in a race around the world. The season premiered on CBS on February 17, 2013, and the two ...

''. The two made it to the tenth leg before being eliminated. Graceffa told an interviewer that "There were a lot of bad times but it was definitely good overall. It was an amazing experience, and I'd love to do it again." The two later teamed up again to compete in '' The Amazing Race: All-Stars''.

2013–2015: Films, ''In Real Life'' and other projects

In late 2013 and early 2014, Graceffa starred in his own web series titled ''Storytellers''. The project was funded by Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns that Graceffa ran himself. They raised over $140,000 and $30,000, respectively, though reports continue into 2018 that some of the project backers have not received their perks or rewards for backing the project. In 2014, Graceffa starred in his own short film titled ''Eon''. The same year Graceffa also starred in ''Ethereal'' alongside

Joey Pollari Joey Pollari (born April 9, 1994) is an American actor who became well known for his role as Eric Tanner on ABC's second season of '' American Crime'', and in 2018, appeared in the film ''Love, Simon'', as Lyle, one of Simon's potential boyfriend ...

. Throughout 2012 to 2014, Graceffa was in various BlackBoxTV short films. He was also a part of the Fine Brothers online series '' MyMusic'' throughout 2013 and 2014. Graceffa was nominated for two awards at the

2014 Teen Choice Awards The 2014 Teen Choice Awards ceremony was held on August 10, 2014 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California. The event was originally scheduled to take place at the UCLA Pauley Pavilion, which was flooded by a broken water pipe on July 29, ...

. He won "Best Male Actor in a Dramatic Web Series" at the 2014

Streamy Awards The YouTube Streamy Awards, also known as the Streamy Awards or Streamys, are presented annually by Dick Clark Productions and Tubefilter to recognize excellence in online video, including directing, acting, producing, and writing. The forma ...

for his portrayal of Hunter Crowley in ''Storytellers''. Graceffa was named by

Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.

as one of "10 YouTube Stars Your Kids Love". In March 2015, Graceffa starred in an episode of the CONtv reality television project ''Fight of the Living Dead'', created by fellow YouTube personality

Justine Ezarik Justine Ezarik ( ; born March 20, 1984) is an American YouTuber. She is best known as iJustine, with over one billion views on her YouTube channel. She gained attention as a lifecaster who communicated directly with her millions of viewers on ...

. On May 16, 2015, Graceffa released a song with an accompanying music video titled "Don't Wait". It is an unconventional fantasy fairytale story featuring goblins, a witch, and a prince.Pittman, Taylor
"YouTube Star Joey Graceffa Comes Out As Gay In Magical Music Video"
''The Huffington Post'', May 18, 2015 The video ends with Graceffa, dressed as a prince, kissing his male co-star, Daniel Preda. By October 2016, it had received more than 24 million views. Graceffa confirmed on YouTube on May 18, 2015, that he is gay. Graceffa stated that the reason he waited so long to come out online was because "there was a lot of hesitation to come out online because of growing up in my town: It wasn't acceptable to be gay; it was looked down upon." He also went on to state that after coming out, "I definitely feel more open and free with who I am, and I think that's inspired a lot of other people to also do the same and have come out to their friends and family." On May 19, 2015, Graceffa released a memoir titled '' In Real Life: My Journey to a Pixelated World'', published by Keywords Press. In the book, he discusses being bullied and feeling lonely in school, his mother's alcoholism, his younger brother's autism, the beginnings of his YouTube career and his road to self-acceptance, among other topics. His book was a ''New York Times'' Best Seller on the "celebrities" list in July 2015 and the cover was updated to acknowledge this achievement.

2016–present: ''Escape the Night'', books, and other endeavors

On February 14, 2016, Graceffa announced that he has been in a relationship with Daniel Preda since July 2014 in a video titled "OUR LOVE STORY!". On June 21, 2016, Graceffa announced in his YouTube video, titled "I HAVE A SURPRISE!", that he's starting a

crystal A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macro ...

-based jewelry line called "Crystal Wolf". On June 7, 2017, Crystal Wolf Co released their ''Summer Solstice Collection'' with new jewelry and including the ''Crystal'' ''

nail polish Nail polish (also known as nail varnish or nail enamel) is a lacquer that can be applied to the human fingernail or toenails to decorate and protect the nail plates. The formula has been revised repeatedly to enhance its decorative properties ...

'' for the overall ''Summer Collection''. On June 22, 2016, Graceffa started, starred, and uploaded the first episode of a YouTube Premium mini-web series called ''

'' with other YouTubers like

, Eva Gutowski, Glozell Green, Oli White,

Timothy DeLaGhetto Tim Chantarangsu (born March 6, 1986), formerly known as Timothy DeLaGhetto (and previously Traphik), is an American internet and television personality. He is best known from the improv comedy show ''Wild 'N Out'' where he was a cast member bet ...

Andrea Brooks Andrea K. Brooks (born March 3, 1989) is a Canadian actress and model best known for portraying Faith Carter on the Hallmark series '' When Calls the Heart'' and Eve Teschmacher in The CW series ''Supergirl''. Early life Born in Brantford, O ...

Matthew Haag Matthew Haag (born August 3, 1992), better known as Nadeshot (formerly stylized as NaDeSHoT), is an American former professional ''Call of Duty'' player, and current founder, co-owner and CEO of 100 Thieves. As a professional Call of Duty player ...

, Sierra Furtado, and one Viner/YouTuber, Lele Pons. The first episode has over 24,000,000 views. On June 22, 2017, Graceffa started, starred, and uploaded the first episode his YouTube Premium web series ''

'''s season 2. The season stars himself and includes

, Alex Wassabi, Lauren Riihimaki,

DeStorm Power DeStorm Power ( ) is an American Internet personality who began his career on the social media platform YouTube. Life and career The fourth of eight siblings, Power was born in Arlington County, Virginia and raised in Baltimore, Maryland by h ...

, Gabbie Hanna, Jesse Wellens,

Andrea Russett Andrea Rose Russett (born June 27, 1995) is an Internet personality active on Snapchat, Instagram, and YouTube. In 2020 Russett released her first music, making her a published singer-songwriter. Early life Russett was born in Fort Wayne, In ...

, Tyler Oakley, and Tana Mongeau. On June 21, 2018, Graceffa released the first episode of the third series of Escape The Night, starring Graceffa,

Nikita Dragun Nikita Nguyen (born January 31, 1996) known professionally as Nikita Dragun, is a YouTuber, make-up artist, and model. Early life Nikita Nguyen was born in Belgium and attended high school in Virginia, United States. She is of Vietnamese and Mex ...

, Teala Dunn, Safiya Nygaard,

Manny MUA Manuel Gutierrez Jr. (born April 4, 1991), known professionally as Manny MUA, is a make-up artist, YouTuber, entrepreneur, and beauty blogger. He is the first male brand ambassador for the make-up brand Maybelline. He is the founder and owner of ...

, Roi Wassabi (Guava Juice),

, JC Caylen, Matthew Patrick, and

. On July 11, 2019, Graceffa released the first episode of the fourth season of Escape The Night, starring Graceffa,

, Alex Wassabi,

, Tana Mongeau,

, Gabbie Hanna, Bretman Rock,

, Matthew Patrick, and

. On October 4, 2016, Graceffa, along with co-author Laura L. Sullivan, released a

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

novel titled '' Children of Eden'', published by Keywords Press. The book follows a Second child named Rowen, who is marked with death due to Eden's population control and recklessly escapes for an adventure after sixteen years of hiding. His book was a

New York Times Best Seller ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

on the "Young Adult Hardcover" list in the week of October 23, 2016. The book has received positive reactions from readers on Goodreads and Amazon, with four and five star reviews predominating. Critics have not been universally positive, although Rachel Hyland of ''Geek Speak Magazine'' wrote, "Graceffa knows a ''lot'' about YA dystopian conventions, and they are all present and accounted for here. This is by no means a bad thing — an enjoyable romp through this genre doesn't necessarily require too much divergence (no pun intended) from the established norms — but it is worth noting that most everything in his Eden has pretty much happened before, in one way or another. Still, it is fun to see just how those ever-trusty elements are put together, and there is a nice twist on the almost essential love triangle that is actually pretty awesome." On January 6, 2017, Graceffa announced that he would be playing an extra in the full-length feature film, '' The Space Between Us''. The movie originally released in the United States on February 3, 2017, follows a teenage boy (

Asa Butterfield Asa Bopp Farr Butterfield (; born Asa Maxwell Thornton Farr Butterfield on 1 April 1997) is an English actor. He has received nominations for three British Independent Film Awards, two Critics' Choice Awards, two Saturn Awards, and three Young ...

), born on

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...

, who travels to

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's sur ...

. After uniting with his long-distant friend (

Britt Robertson Brittany Leanna Robertson (born April 18, 1990) is an American actress. She is known for her lead role in '' The First Time'' (2012), and has appeared in the films ''Tomorrowland'' (2015), '' The Space Between Us'' (2017), ''A Dog's Purpose'' ...

), the duo soon form a new relationship with each other. On May 16, 2017, Graceffa announced in his YouTube video, titled "MOST INSANE BIRTHDAY SURPRISE EVER!" the sequel to his

novel ''Children of Eden''. The sequel, entitled, '' Elites of Eden'', follows an Elite and a lilac-haired girl – Yarrow and Lark. When these two girls discover the thread that binds them together, the collision of memories means that their lives may change drastically – and that Eden may never be the same. Rowan - captured by the government, her fate is uncertain. In a YouTube video uploaded on May 16, 2018, Graceffa's 27th birthday, he announced the release of the final book in his "Children of Eden" series, ''Rebels of Eden''. It went on sale on October 2, 2018. In a YouTube video uploaded to Graceffa's main channel on July 12, 2020, Graceffa and Preda announced that they had split after six years of dating.

Filmography

Film

Television

Web

Discography

Extended plays

* ''Panem's Best'' (2012) * ''Good Songs'' (2014) * ''Cheese Is Creamy'' (2015) * ''Kingdom'' (2019)

Singles

Bibliography

* '' In Real Life: My Journey to a Pixelated World'' (2015) * '' Children of Eden'' (2016) * '' Elites of Eden'' (2017) * '' Rebels of Eden'' (2018)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Graceffa, Joey Living people 1991 births 21st-century American male actors 21st-century American singers American male film actors American male television actors American YouTubers Fitchburg State University alumni Gaming YouTubers American gay actors American gay musicians Internet memes Let's Players American LGBT singers LGBT people from California LGBT YouTubers Maker Studios people Male actors from Massachusetts Male actors from California People from Marlborough, Massachusetts People from Los Angeles Polaris channels Streamy Award winners The Amazing Race (American TV series) contestants 21st-century American male singers 20th-century LGBT people 21st-century LGBT people YouTube channels launched in 2007 American gay writers LGBT people from Massachusetts