YouTube channels that can help boost your mood

Why is a slide about Ellen's YouTube channel accompanied by a photo of Kalen Allen? Because The Ellen DeGeneres Show has reach far beyond YouTube, and the daily talk show's YouTube channel—as well as DeGeneres' own ellentube platform—is carried by a buffet of other voices for viewers to enjoy.

Allen, who DeGeneres discovered online and hired, hilariously critiques foods and trends on OMKalen that all but guarantees at least three laugh-out-louds per episode. (Allen also still keeps up his individual channel). Actress Sarah Hyland, best known for her role on Modern Family, and Dr. Sherry Ross welcome A-listers for open conversations about women's health and sex on Lady Parts. Businesswoman and model Ashley Graham hosts Do It for the Graham , which is equal parts entertaining and educational regarding how to navigate social media. Parenting is made humorous on Kristen Bell's Momsplaining, and advice is dispensed freely on All Love with Tabitha Brown. There's a show for everybody to successfully procrastinate with on the menu.

Sean Evans struck gold in the form of chicken wings. Complex's First We Feast vertical is home to Evans' Hot Ones series. He playfully interviews your favorite celebrities, who struggle to give comprehensive answers as the wings get hotter and hotter. Milk shoots out of noses. Tears stream down faces. Sentences trail off in exchange for exclamations and expletives. Evans is an excellent interviewer and more often than not gets the best out of his guests, but the involuntary reactions to the hottest food in the world is what sets this series apart. You will binge-watch 10 episodes in a row without realizing it. 

Five best friends, who met while attending Texas A&M, attempt absurd stunts and tricks in the name of fun. Sold yet? Millions of people—54.8 million YouTube subscribers, to be exact—can vouch for Coby and Cory Cotton ("Twins"), Garrett Hilbert ("Purple Hoser"), Cody Jones ("Tall Guy") and Tyler Toney's ("Beard") ability to make you smile.

If you're a gamer, odds are very high you know more about PewDiePie than this slide will tell you. But for the unacquainted, Felix Kjellberg is a Swedish comedian who has more or less touched every corner of the earth by offering unparalleled video game commentary on YouTube. He was named to Time's 2016 list of 100 Most Influential People where Trey Parker, the co-creator of South Park, dubbed him the "pied piper of YouTube." As his channel has grown to 108 million subscribers, he has expanded his repertoire to include more evergreen vlogging. Whatever he uploads, the people are here for it.

This may feel out of place. Jimmy Butler's name usually belongs in NBA player rankings or articles about coffee and wine, but the Miami Heat superstar has reinvented himself yet again. In late 2018, he took his talents to YouTube. His personality truly shines, especially in his most-viewed videos in which he got a haircut for the first time post-NBA Bubble, learns to take penalty kicks from Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, and plays basketball in Senegal. 

Well, the title sort of gives away the point of watching it if you're feeling down, stressed, or stuck—or any time, really. This channel is the perfect place to go if you need to rejuvenate your mind or want to learn something new. At the very least, these videos will work to distract you with something more productive to think about.

David Dobrik began on now-defunct Vine, but his reach didn't suffer at all thanks to other social media platforms, including YouTube. Whether you want to see Justin Bieber surprise fans or various brands of complete nonsense, Dobrik is your guy.

Calling all sneakerheads! Joe La Puma hosts Sneaker Shopping on Complex's channel, and it is exactly as it sounds. La Puma hits up the highest scale sneaker stores (SoleStage, Take Flight, and more) to talk through supreme sneaker selections and personal style before each very famous and very rich guest purchases whatever he or she wants. Sneaker Shopping's Rolodex of past guests is too extensive to run through here, but it is worth mentioning that even Vice President Kamala Harris has fallen through. 

The iconic men's magazine has pivoted nicely to the digital age. Stars featured on the print pages stop by the YouTube channel to give fans more fodder, whether it's showcasing the 10 things they can't live without or going undercover on social media to answer questions in the comments. Post Malone even confirmed that he felt "snuffed" for not winning Sexiest Man of the Year and dispelled that "common misconception" that he smells bad.

Rudy Mancuso is an insanely talented comedian and musician. He often blends the two disciplines to transform life's mundanity into enthralling scripted videos—like in "Funny Musical Therapist," "Double Date" and "Circle of Love," for example. The Brazilian-Italian-American has curated characters—Senor Grinch, Lucas ("Terrible Vloggers"), Diego (Awkward Puppets), and more—but the real treat is when his beloved mother, Ma, makes an appearance ("Making My Mom Famous").

Smosh was created by Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox and has grown into an empire. Perhaps the most endearing quality of the YouTube channel is making comedy from a place of self-awareness ("Every YouTuber's Apology," "Every YouTube Couple Ever" or "Every Food Video Ever"). The spoofs are never-ending and just as funny every time. "Every Work From Home Ever" is especially poignant right now.

When it comes to run-of-the-mill millennial vlogging, Addison Rae is at the top. The 20-year-old owns the second-most followed account on TikTok, and that following translates to 4.6 million subscribers on YouTube. If you want a break from your life, get lost in Addison's for a little while. After all, she did go skateboarding with Tony Hawk.

Since the beginning of time, sports have consistently and successfully served as a distraction. When you're watching a game, nothing else matters. Bleacher Report's YouTube channel offers the same sports-related distractions in between game days. Aside from a bevy of highlights, Master Tesfatsion hosts Untold Stories, where former NFL stars reveal secrets from their playing days while shooting pool and Gridiron Heights puts a slightly less raunchy South Park-esque spin on the NFL's latest happenings. 

Nine-year-old Ryan Kaji is 28 million subscribers-worth of adorable. His channel is clean and pure fun ("Pancake Art Challenge Ryan vs. Mommy!") as well as educational for kids everywhere ("How Tornadoes are Formed and More Natural Disasters").

Roman Dinkel first captured the hearts of millions when his mother, Whitney Dinkel, posted a video of her then-two-year-old's first steps in August 2018. "Look, Maggie!" Roman, who was born with spina bifida, adorably said to his dog. "I'm walking, Maggie!" Since then, Whitney has continued to vlog the family of five's daily life, and Roman's commentary is priceless.

It's uncertain what comedian Sarah Cooper will do without Donald Trump serving as a president, but there is plenty of material for you to catch up on and enjoy. Cooper shot to mainstream fame when she began spoofing Trump's COVID-19 press briefings on TikTok, beginning with "How to medical" and ending with "How to drugs." Her lip-syncing is uncanny. The full library is available on YouTube. After that, keep the laughs flowing with her Netflix special Everything's Fine. 

Created and voiced by Joe Sabia, Vogue's "73 Questions" series is the best rapid-fire questionnaire out there. Sabia is welcomed into the home of guests such as Alicia Keys, Taylor Swift, Zac Efron, Kim Kardashian and so many more, where he kindly asks them 73 questions. The result is an authentic glimpse into your favorites' psyches because they don't have time to think up stock answers.

What began as the TED Conference in 1984—and again in 1990, when it caught fire—is now perhaps the most viral online lecture series going. TED Talks were first made available online in 2006. Now, 18.7 million people subscribe to the primary TED YouTube channel plus 29.1 million subscribed to TEDx Talks for steady access into the world's most brilliant minds. The likes of Bill Clinton Bono ("The good news on poverty"), Cameron Russell ("Looks aren't everything. Believe me, I'm a model"), Kid Cudi ("Hi, I'm Scott"), Maisie Williams ("Don't strive to be famous, strive to be talented"), Monica Lewinsky ("The price of shame") and Stephen Hawking ("Questioning the universe") are just a few of the significant public figures to grace the stage over the years.

BuzzFeed Video is basically the smorgasbord of pop culture. The main attraction, though, is—or at least certainly should be—celebrities playing with puppies while answering fan questions out of a fishbowl.

Laugh Out Loud Network (LOL Network) was founded by actor, stand-up comedian, and producer Kevin Hart. According to the official website, the production company has reached 100 million people in 81 countries. On YouTube, Hart's "Cold as Balls" interview series, where he is joined in an ice bath by a celebrity du jour for a funny and insightful conversation, is a must-watch. 

Jubilee's Twitter bio reads, "On a mission to spark a movement of empathy for human good." The media company's YouTube channel recently hit six million subscribers in the process. Their videos utilize interactive activities ("Odd Man Out," "Spectrum," "Middle Ground," "5 Guys vs. 5 Girls" and "Versus 1") as entertaining forums for open discussions that challenge biases. 

All of Netflix's funniest offerings in bite-sized form, to put it simply. 

Link Neal and Rhett McLaughlin launched Good Mythical Morning in January 2012, and the series has amassed 16.8 million subscribers since. The comedic duo produces taste tests ("100 Years oof Donuts Taste Test"), experiments ("Is Instagram Spying On Us?"), top-five lists ("Top 5 Unexpected Discoveries of 2020"), and other creative games ("Can We Find The Name Brand?").

Liza Koshy is another former Vine star who has translated her success to YouTube. The 24-year-old parlayed her internet success into bigger roles, including Tyler Perry's Boo! A Madea Halloween in 2016 and Netflix's Work It last year. Koshy has maximized everything YouTube has to offer with YouTube Originals series "Liza On Demand" as well as partnering with Michelle Obama and the Girls Opportunity Alliance on the #CreatorsForChange campaign. Her channel is a constant source of quirky bits ("A NEW CHARACTER UNLOCKED"), dancing ("BARELY WORKING"), and charismatic vlogging ("LIZA KOSHY FANGIRLING OVER CELEBRITIES FOR 30 MINUTES STRAIGHT").