How YouTube played in Wil Dasovich’s colorful life
FILIPINO- AMERICAN
Wil Dasovich is prominently known as a housemate in the reality television show “Pinoy Big Brother: Lucky 7” in
2016, but prior to that, he has endeared himself to Filipinos with his fluent Tagalog and quirky use of gay lingo in his video blogs, or commonly known as vlogs, shared in popular video- sharing website YouTube.
Despite big chances of making it to show business, he decided to continue on inspiring Filipinos around the world through his never- ending adventure from country to country as he experiences different cultures and lives. His videos are also well-known for his high energy, wild antics, fitness, food and motivational talks.
“After PBB, I’m back to my normal living. I’ve been doing YouTube even before [I got to] the show, at that time I already have a few thousand subscribers. Entering the PBB house was like a break from the YouTube world. I was in the house for three months and then after that, I went straight back to YouTube and pick up where I left off,” Dasovich said during the press conference of YouTube FanFest at the World Trade Center.
“A lot of people thought I wanted to be an artist but I never planned that. Before going inside, I said that the whole point for me was to show to television everything that goes on YouTube because at that time, vlogging was still not known for most of the people here in the Philippines. And so after PBB, I got a lot of my other housemates to do vlogging and they also became content creators. A year after that, vlogging become very mainstream and normal type of thing here. That was the point,
paramapansinyung vlogging community,” he explained.
Today, the 26-year- old continues to make videos about his daily life on his vlog “Wil’s World” where he was able to share his recent battle in fighting colon cancer. He refused to let his diagnosis last year slow him down, and chose to continue to daily record his treatment and recovery as a way to stay positive, encourage fellow cancer patients and keep his audience close.
Beside him throughout his entire cancer story and road to recovery is his buddy— now girlfriend— model and cosplayer Alodia Gosiengfiao whom he also met through YouTube and award shows.
“It was weird because he was the healthiest person I know—he exercises, he eats well. He is also the person who always convinces me to eat healthier because I love sweets. I don’t really exercise that much because I do a lot of things,” Gosiengfiao shared.
“Of course, things happen. I just give all my support because what’s also important was the amount of time I should spend with him. You work and come back langnaman After everything, after overcoming the challenge, that’s when we can go back to normal,” she further noted.
Indeed, Dasovich’s perseverance and positivity touched the hearts of audiences around the world, and because of this, his subscribers skyrocketed to one million in a few months—a milestone that he thought was a few years away.
And just in April, Dasovich was named Vlogger of the Year by the 10th Shorty Awards, an award- giving body for social media which honors “the best of social media by recognizing the influencers, brands, and organizations on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, Musically and more.”
“It’s surreal. Parangdiako makapaniwalahanggang
ngayonperomasayaako . I never thought I would win an international award in New York City along with the top creators. It was definitely crazy,” he enthused.
Finally, Dasovich added that he continues to seek medical advice amid his revelation of being cancer-free in February.
“It’s a continuous battle. It’s something you have to deal with throughout the years which is a misconception that a lot of people kind of forget. All of us have challenges in life but what is more important is how you react to the challenges you face. That will really define you, your character and how you go on and succeed,” he ended.