Brooke Brodack | |
|---|---|
 Brodack at 2008ROFLCon | |
| Born | Brooke Allison Brodack (1986-04-07)April 7, 1986 (age 39) Putnam, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Other names | Brooke Alley |
| Years active | 2005–2018 (New channel is active) |
| Known for | YouTube personality |
| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Genre | Vlog |
| Subscribers | 64 thousand (2014) |
| Views | ~50 million (2014) |
| Last updated: May 4, 2023[needs update] | |
Brooke Allison Brodack (born April 7, 1986), known online asBrookers, is one of the earliestYouTubers. Brodack, a receptionist fromHolden, Massachusetts, first began uploading short comedy skits toYouTube in September 2005. She was offered a contract fromNBC show hostCarson Daly in 2006, before YouTubers were able to monetize their videos in December 2007, but nothing came of it. Brodack briefly had themost-subscribed YouTube channel for a period of 43 days from July 3, 2006, to August 15, 2006, during which it became the first channel to reach 10,000 subscribers. It was the first time the most subscribed YouTube channel was officially held by a channel of a female individual.The New Yorker called her "the first real YouTube star," in a December 2006 article.[1]
Brodack moved in with fellow YouTuberiJustine, but afterwards deleted her channel and moved toVadodara,India. She relocated toLos Angeles in early 2017.[citation needed]
Brodack was born inPutnam, Connecticut. She has been making videos since she was nine years old.[2][3] Graduating fromWachusett Regional High School, she then attended college atWorcester State College,Quinsigamond Community College andMount Wachusett Community College, ultimatelydropping out of all three. Brodack worked from 2003 to 2006 as a receptionist and hostess at the 99 Restaurant[4] and she volunteered (2003–2005) for theNEADS program (Dogs for Deaf and Disabled Americans) inSterling, Massachusetts.[5]
Brodack lived inHolden, Massachusetts with her mother and younger sister, working as a receptionist.[4][6]
Brodack began posting her short comedic videos on her "Brookers"YouTube channel in September 2005. By June 2006, she was offered an 18-month development contract fromCarson Daly, the host of alate night show onNBC,[6] but nothing ever came of it.[7] From July 3 to August 17, 2006, her "Brookers" channel was themost-subscribed on YouTube. She was named a "Crossover Star" byThe Wall Street Journal on its New Media Power List on July 29, 2006.[8]
Brookers directed, edited and performed in her early videos, most of which were set at her family home inHolden, Massachusetts.The New Yorker has called her videos "defiantly madcap."[1] Her single-most popular video, "Crazed Numa Fan!!!!", alip-sync parody of an earlierInternet meme,Numa Numa Dance byGary Brolsma (itself a parody of "Dragostea din tei" byO-Zone),[9] was viewed on YouTube over 8.2 million[10] times. Her younger sister, Melissa "Missy" Brodack, performed alongside her in many videos, including "Crazed Numa Fan!!!!"[4]
Her video "Chips," aspoof suspense drama about eating potato chips, was called "brilliant" byEntertainment Weekly, which has listed it among the "great moments in YouTube history."[11]
From August 2006 to April 2007, she played a large role on a Daly-hosted, NBC-sponsored video contest website, It's Your Show TV[12] posting many videos there.[13] She appeared onThe Tyra Banks Show (December 6, 2006), as a judge for a student video competition. In February 2007, she appeared alongside other early YouTube stars in "The Sound of Your Voice," a viral music video forBarenaked Ladies.[14]
From May 2007 to March 2008, Brookers had her own web channel, brookebrodack.tv, which was offered through www.me.tv, a new service Daly helped to found. She participated in the 777 (July 7, 2007)YouTube gathering inNew York City. In November 2007, she released, "Ozzy's Magical Glasses n' Stuff," a viral video advertisement for a live auction ofOzzy Osbourne items on theAuction Network, for which she was paid "a solid five figures" by the Palisades Media Group.[15]
From mid-2013 to early 2017, she lived inVadodara,India, working on video workshop lectures in collaboration with Design Infinium.
As of February 2017, she relocated to Los Angeles.
On July 12, 2017,[16] Brodack deleted her YouTube account. She also deleted her Twitter and set her Instagram profile to private.
In mid-2018, she returned to YouTube on a new[17] self-titled channel. This channel also no longer exists.
On December 11, 2018, Brodack created a new YouTube channel under her real name. As of September 2025, the channel had 1,970 subscribers.[18]
| Honorary titles | ||
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| Preceded by | Most-subscribed YouTube channel July 3 – August 17, 2006 | Succeeded by |
