YouTube celebrated its 20th birthday by confirming that pop culture continues to be defined by its creators, especially in Canada, where a diverse mix of trending topics, new voices, and unexpected musical breakouts took center stage in 2025. The shift was evident in gaming, where many of the year’s most-talked-about titles were user-generated experiences within Roblox, such as Grow a Garden and Steal a Brainrot. Speaking of “brainrot,” the term used to describe a mix of online media and memes exploded culturally as creators invented an entire Italian Brainrot universe featuring AI-generated characters. Even established phenomena like Squid Game and KPop Demon Hunters evolved into larger cultural moments thanks to creators expanding their worlds online through skits, challenge recreations, and fancams that treated the girl group HUNTR/X as if it were a real K-pop sensation.
This year also highlighted the growth of the creator economy and the diversity of Canadian voices. Creators to Watch included SleepyCrafter, who aligned with massive trending topics to grow their channel to three million subscribers in one year, and Blue Jays Today, which became a real-time hub for a passionate Canadian sports community during the World Series. The list also featured TheCrochetCrowd, who turned a hobby into a highly engaged member community, and Morgann Book, who launched her successful Off The Shelf video podcast. Meanwhile, the power of fan engagement helped propel the catchy Rosé and Bruno Mars track “APT.” to become the fastest K-pop music video to reach one billion views on YouTube, finally unseating the long-reigning champ, “Gangnam Style.”
Trending Topics (Canada)
- Squid Game
- User-Generated Roblox Experiences: Grow a Garden, Dandy’s World, Forsaken, Steal a Brainrot
- KPop Demon Hunters
- Brainrot
- Tariff
- Labubu
- Mark Carney
- Katseye
- Nintendo Switch 2
- Blue Lock
Canadian Creators to Watch
- SleepyCrafter
- Mia Plays & Kouman
- Morgannbook
- Blue Jays Today
- TheCrochetCrowd
Quebec Creators to Watch
- La Famille Ventura
- Shahin
- Gurky
- Aly Brassard
Top Songs
- Rosé, Bruno Mars – “APT.”
- Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars – “Die With A Smile”
- HUNTR/X (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – Golden
- Saja Boys (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – Soda Pop
- Alex Warren – Ordinary
- HUNTR/X (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – How It’s Done
- Saja Boys (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – Your Idol
- Chappell Roan – Pink Pony Club
- Gigi Perez – Sailor Song
- The Weeknd, Playboi Carti – Timeless
Top Songs on Shorts
- ATLXS – Passo Bem Solto (Slowed)
- Connie Francis – Pretty Little Baby
- Joyful – Chess
- Black Eyed Peas – Rock That Body
- yung kai – blue
- Forrest Frank – YOUR WAY’S BETTER
- Doechii – Anxiety
- Moliy, Skillibeng, Shenseea, Silent Addy – Shake It To The Max (Fly) (Remix)
- Saja Boys (KPop Demon Hunters Cast) – Soda Pop
- Billie Eilish – Ocean Eyes