Youtuber Daniel Howell Comes Out

I can't believe he has 8.25 MILLION followers on Twitter. How does that happen?

'Bout time lol. He pull Phil out in this video too? (Haven't watch, very lazy.)

Yes finally....!

Oh wait, I don't care.

He's trending worldwide on Twitter. This is big.

I'm officially out of the loop because I've got no clue who this is.

How big is he in the YouTube world?

I have no idea who ANY of these apparent "influencers" are

[quote] I can't believe he has 8.25 MILLION followers on Twitter. How does that happen?

You buy them

Is he like an actor ?? I don't recognize him.

R5 He's one of the biggest Youtubers. He has many million subscribers and many million followers on Twitter. He is very popular among kids and twins. He does comedy videos.

He looks like that and he had to come out by announcing it?

Did he need to? It's like stating the obvious.

But I don't know her anyway.

R7 Trust me when I say Daniel doesn't need to buy followers. He is extremely popular.

tweens* not twins lol, sorry

I'll be honest, he almost looks trans in the thumbnail for that video in OP

He doesn't look 'straight' by any means. His coming out is as shocking as Clay Aiken's was.

R15 Many fans have suspected it for years. This isn't a surprise.

Who?

My god he is trending on Twitter . Something so big and I've never even heard of him.

R17 How old are you, like 80? I'm 32 and even I know who he is ffs! I'm not even his demographic.

The Youtube universe seems so infinite. There are always Youtubers with millions and millions of followers who I've never heard of.

r19 I'm younger than you and have no idea who he is.

I'm 28 and I don't know shit who he is. I don't have time trolling on Twitter and Youtube; DL is taking too much already.

He hasn't been relevant since 2014.

R21 Yeah, like I said his demographic is mostly kids and teens. I'm older than most of his fans. I've still heard of him though, but I guess it's because I watch Youtubers.

r21 same

He was never that famous to be known on his own. I knew him as Dan from "Dan and Phil" the obnoxious duo. They had the worst fans that used to call themselves "the phandom".

Did he say he's versatile?

YouTube stars are a much younger demographic than 20s/30s. Most of their fans are in the 11-15 range.

I'm 36 and also neither know of nor give a fuck about youtube influencers.

Is he dating Phil or are they just friends? I'm still confused.

36:11 is the best part... "I know I like dick." Well, that's all you needed to say. No need for a 45 minute long video! lol

He says he's gay at 38:35.

This might give some of his followers that extra inspiration and courage to come out as well, so that's nice.

If his followers idolize him as their influencer, their lives are fucked.

R32 Yet that's not stopping some Twitter idiots from saying he came out as bi. Fangirls remain delusional lmao.

Odd he didn't come out as fluid first. That seems to be all the rage these days.

What about the other one? I can't think of his name, but they do videos together.

R36 Well, he did first say he was "queer", only to reveal he's actually gay.

I'm not totally buying what Dan said about being angry that fans were trying to out him and Phil. I get that it was annoying for him going through that while being closeted, but I also think he profited from the speculation. All that speculation among fans kept them watching. Or maybe that's just me being cynical.

I’m 23 and have followed him since 2009 but kind of stopped watching a while ago. It was obvious that he and Phil had SOMETHING going on and there were a lot of tumblr blogs with great evidence (Dan and Phil, before they blew up, weren’t shy about it on social media)

And I agree with R39, I think the are they/aren’t they thing was a huge part of their success but over the past 2 years people got more annoyed about the cageyness and stopped caring.

He does mention that he and Phil were romantically involved but doesn’t say if they still are. I assume Phil will have his own video up in a month or so

[quote]I assume Phil will have his own video up in a month or so

So he basically just outed him / stole his thunder?

Towleroad picked up the story.

R41 I mean, from what I’ve seen if Phil he’s very lighthearted and kind of a “unicorn and rainbows” kind of guy. He let Dan get out of the heavy stuff and will probably make his more lighthearted and celebratory. I’m sure Dan and Phil talked about this before Dan made the video

r43 Oh, no doubt there's a business strategy behind it, to maximise the views.

Who the Christ is he?

At 35, I feel old and disconnected from modern life.

^Come sit over here, hon. Modern life is rubbish.

And to think R23 Phil is 32 and they both act and behave like teens in those videos to monetize their sexuality to their tweeny fanbase. Thanks, I hate it.

45 minutes?

Really? I thought he was already out

I had time, so I went ahead and watched it. It was well made, heartfelt and relatable. Worth the watch if you know who he is.

I've never heard of him before. But one look at his videos is enought for me. Why was that guy actually ever IN the closed? Come on - you must be blind to ever think he might be straight.... he pings to high heaven.

Never heard of this guy, but I'm reminded of when Joey Graceffa and Shane Dawson both made big shows of coming out, surprising no one above the age of 18.

In the video he says that he didn't come out to his family until THIS month, which is pretty shocking considering he's been publicly living with the same guy for something like eight years?

R54 LivIng together AND traveling together! From what I’ve read Dan has gone with Phil to visit his family (and I think he’s been on several family vacations with them as well) but Phil has never traveled to meet Dan’s. But it sounds like they have 2 completely different family dynamics. I’m guessing from the email responses the family probably had an idea

R33, I don't see this quickly aging fuggo narcissist with flat dull "humor" videos encouraging kids to come out, except as an attempt to also be famous for nothing worth noticing.

It's astounding he has 1,000 followers, let alone millions.

Has no one yet inquired about sizemeat verificatia?

R57 I’m sure that’ll be the topic of the next video

R56 Serious question: why are you so mad?

[quote]I know I like dick

You in danger girl! The lunatics call that transphobic nowadays!

I don't know who this guy is, but he barely posts on his YouTube channel, so I'm given no reason to watch 45 minutes of a guy come out. The fuck?

Phil definitely posts more than Dan does. Dan seems like a perfectionist but he and Phil also worked on their gaming channel (which they haven’t updated in 5 months)

I think they are probably going to either rebrand or maybe do a solo thing. But for those of you out of YT loop (aka probably many of you over 30) the “are they/aren’t they” with Dan and Phil was a huge YouTube mystery back in the day. Shane Dawson even had the Psychic Twins do a prediction about it. For what it’s worth, Shane didn’t think they were gay because they didn’t dress like it (whatever that means)

[quote]Phil is 32 and they both act and behave like teens in those videos to monetize their sexuality to their tweeny fanbase.

Isn't that the main issue with most (super famous) YouTubers? You're stuck in that one schtick that put you on the radar in the first place.

R62 that’s because Shane is a self hating fag who still has to deal with his own sexuality. Bi my ass, he just had low self esteem so anyone (female or male) who gave him the time of day ‘attracted’ him.

R60 don’t worry, he already clarified that he isn’t an ‘evil cis white exclusionary gay’ by saying he doesn’t ‘care’ what’s between your legs. He isn’t attracted to genitals, just ‘people’.

He doesn’t actually come out as gay, it’s a bit of a click bait. He just says he is ‘gay’ to take back and own the negative word he was called his whole life. He basically doesn’t want a label or he sees himself as bi/pan

Whet to the YouTuber whose gay sex videos came out? Bareback stairwell sex etc.

What's this guy's name again? The bottom...

I think he did come out as gay, not bi or pan. Notice the title, “Basically I’m Gay”, which after watching the video seems like he chose it to confirm it then and there so there would be no speciation. There was the girlfriend who he didn’t truly connect with because he realized he was only sexually attracted to men. Then he says he used the word queer because he had such a negative experience with the word growing up, and then a few minutes later admits that he is gay. He even used the word gay to his family in his coming out email

I've heard of him because i somewhat payed attention to youtube but i don't think he's as relevant as he was 5 or 6 years ago so maybe this is why he's doing it now.

R64 What the fuck are you talking about? He's gay.

Branden Scholtze r66. Is he escorting?

r64 Well, I hope you're wrong. "Hearts not parts" is a bisexual message to try to shame and convert homosexuals (and I don't want to hear ANY of you queens denying this, it is TRUE regardless of whether you have personally witnessed it). Being attracted to dick is not a hate crime, it's the CAUSE of hate crimes.

My favorite quote from the ill-starred US "Queer as Folk" said by then twink justin:

[quote] I like dick. I wanna get fucked by dick, I wanna suck dick. I like sucking dick, and I'm good at it too.

R70 He says that he once did label himself as bisexual, but he now clearly says he's gay. His whole shpeal about bisexuals are valid and it's not just a stopover to gayville, then he says he did to that. Aka he's GAY.

R71 I mean, he spends 5 minutes talking about the only reason why he chose bisexuality as a label at the time is because his self hatred made him think it meant “half normal”. Watch from 10:55

Basically, who cares?

I also came out as bisexual first, so many gay guys did. We all know that game.

r75 I also tried that for about a minute.

ME: guys, I'm..... bisexual.

OTHERS: (In judgmental tone) Realllllly? Don't you mean GAY?!!

ME: ...yes.

R73 well you watch from the late 30’s to the end of the video. He says he is queer/ doesn’t really like a label and is ‘hearts not parts’ (he doesn’t use the phrase...but that’s the gist)

Why are you so obsessed with it R77:

R77 You’re right, but then after he admits to wanting to be called Queer because he grew up associating the word “gay” to something negative, and then five minutes later he says: “I am gay.”

I think he was coming to terms with the label (gay) in real time in the video

“But to come full circle, I know that today, deep in my heart... the word “gay” scares me. Because that’s how I’ve been conditioned my whole life. So you know what? Fuck the literal definition, and the scientific definition, and what everyone thinks. I finally have to confront and accept this... I’m gay.”

r80 Wow, who here hasn't had that exact internal discussion? I know I have, probably we all have. Makes me empathize with him and reminds me that coming out is never an easy process, no matter what we tell ourselves after the fact.

R59, you're interpreting smug disdain for anger. Typical.

"...who here hasn't had that exact internal discussion?" Yes, R81, but are you self-absorbed enough to perform it on YouTube? I hope not.

R82 I watched it all for some reason. He makes it pretty clear that the reason why he's finally doing it is because it could possibly help someone else. I didn't know him before this thread but he seems like a genuine guy with a big following - if it helps someone else come out, why are we complaining?

R80; this proving my point. He doesn’t see himself as the ‘literal definition and scientific definition’ of gay (homosexual). He is just claiming the word which was a slur to him as a child. He is most assuredly a gay leaning bisexual no doubt. But bisexual none the less. Some responding. Just pointing out is you watch the whole thing through he makes it clear that he isn’t 100% gay. That’s also what confuses him over the years. ‘Bi’ may not fit as the best label that he wants to use, fine can’t do anything about it. But that doesn’t change the fact he technically is.

He has always been not straight but hadn’t put any label on what he was. Now he has. If you watch the video he has now labelled himself as gay. He has basically outed Phil now too but obviously with his consent. The video is heartfelt and humorous in equal measure. Honestly it is worth watching and not like his other videos.

R84 Sorry, but no. He clearly says that he's gay but that he used to identify as bisexual, but that he doesn't anymore. He titled the video gay, he came out to his family as gay and the whole video built up to that moment when he says he's gay. He is basically going through all the phases in one video, that he used to identify as bisexual, he is terrified of the word gay, he prefers using the word queer but he's owning it and he is GAY.

OMG who is he and why does it matter? so he's saying he's bi — that's a common thing guys day when... Whatever.

Slightly off topic but I'm wondering if he will integrate his gay life in his videos now that he's out. Maybe this is part of a rebranding. His young fans are growing up and are into other things now, so reinventing himself is probably a good idea. Maybe he can now cater to the gay community and make more "grown up" videos.

R88 I thought the same, and he may just want to live life publically without the sexuality speculation. Dan is 28 and Phil is 32. They’ve been together for 10 years and might be looking towards marriage, starting a family and want to normalize it and get it out there on their own terms

R56/r82 No, honey. You [italic]were[/italic] mad. Weirdly so.

R89 Are they together though? It sounded like he either had a crush on Phil that wasn't reciprocated, or that they did date once upon a time but that they're not anymore. He called him a best friend and soulmate, but he never once called him his boyfriend (I get it though, if he did he would have outed him, but still).

Well, let’s see. That’s what he says about meeting Phil: “Obviously we were more than friends, but it was more than just romantic. This was someone who genuinely liked me. I trusted them and for the first time since I was a tiny child, I actually felt safe and the relationship that we formed at that point was something that I needed in my life. We are real best friends, companions through life like actual soulmates.”

Then he says “I bet you want to know more about his but I’m someone who wants to keep the details of my life private. And so is Phil”.

Then he briefly talked about them working together and becoming a duo and that people digging into his private life during that period was scary because “what I and Phil had was ours”.

So they definitely dated but not sure if they still are. Maybe he didn’t want to be more specific because he indeed outed Phil as it is (btw Phil joked about making his own sexuality video while congratulating Dan on twitter). But he also invites “cute mutuals” to slide into his DMs so maybe they’re no longer a couple but just best friends who live together.

R92 Yeah, that's what I gathered from the video, that they used to date but not anymore.

WAIT...he was in the closet? O-KAY

"I'm 32 and even I know who he is ffs! I'm not even his demographic."

Is that something you really want to reveal to strangers?

R84 You're wrong.

[Quote]What a great day to be gay

r96 Well, that'll shut him up.

It's strange how casually he nows admits that him and Phil were indeed a couple, considering what desperate lengths they went to before to conceal the fact (google "Dan & Phil Valentine's Day video").

Who?

YouTube fans are ten years old. No one here cares about this.

R99 We are on part 17 of the Gay Youtubers thread here on DL, so I beg to differ.

R99 'Well I don't care about this, therefore no one else does' - Does this describe you well enough? Oh, what a world we would live in if we only started threads about your interests...

Dan sounds like he has some issues with his dad. No wonder, because his dad sounds borderline homophobic. I'm sure that didn't help his confusion over his sexuality. It probably just made matters worse, especially with his internalized homophobia.

Yawn.

Jeremy Coebyn tweeted about it.

Corbyn*

Dan's reply

Mr. Howell comes out?

If they are together, I wonder if we will get some low key confirmation at some point. I don’t think they’ll do a big “We’re Together!” video which was refreshing. The cute mutualities comments, at least to me, didn’t necessarily strike me as that’s just Dan’s sense of humor. But I like that they refuse to broadcast the intimate details of their relationship like most YouTubers.

I'm sure a sex tape will leak eventually

r109 Well if it's anything like the stairwell sex tape at r66 I AM THERE!

Did Phil come out too?

[Quote]Me: When I make a video about my sexuality at some point it’ll be pretty low-key y’know. Dan: Hold my pride flag- *45 minute masterpiece later*

R111 Yes, it was a low key coming out for Phil as well but it didn’t get much traction outside of the fangirls.

R112 That's because he didn't really say what he is or explain it. He made it into a joke, which is fine, but that's probably why people outside of the fangirls didn't take it seriously.

He really had a lot of very important things to say about self acceptance, depression, suicide, it gets better, etc etc that will surely help thousands of struggling young people out there, and people who are shitting on it really need to check themselves.

R114 They probably didn't watch it and just decided to bitch because the title of the thread says "youtuber"

R114 I don't know if you're talking about me or someone else, but I was commenting on Phil's coming out, not Dan's. Phil made it into a joke, it wasn't really an official coming out like Dan's.

I think it was technically Phil’s official coming out, although I do think he will have his own video explaining how he defines himself. Phil’s videos are less serious than Dan’s so I think this was probably how he wanted. Dan let’s everyone know they were in fact in a relationship when then first met, calls him his soulmate and companion but reminds the audience he wants to keep that part of his life private. So we for sure know Phil is not 100% heterosexual.

Ugh... the bi troll is back on the gay youtubers thread now claiming Dan is bi, despite the fact that he himself has said that he's GAY, not bi.

The people dragging him probably think it’s just a long ass coming out rambling of a self-absorbed YouTuber but it’s actually a very well made and well written video, imo. Witty, well structured, nice lighting, touching illustrations. His other videos are kindergarten entertainment but this one is actually good. Could do without the “no one is straight” bit though.

Shawn Mendes it's your turn!

Dan with his rainbow birthday cake.

Fellow YouTubers tweeting Dan and praising him on his coming out. Click on the pic to see all the tweets.

What a relief he must feel. He’s come a long way from his “I’m straight!” rants on tumblr :)

R11@ no one is straight and genitals don’t matter. I don’t understand why these types of things are said so flippantly these days. Straight guys don’t like sucking dick and gay men don’t like munching on pussy. Genitals are only inconsequential to bisexuals; and not even to all of them....

R123 Reminds me of another YouTuber, Connor Franta.

WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?! The delusional fangirls on Guru Gossip think Dan came out as queer? Despite literally saying "I'm gay" and tweeting "what a great day to be gay". OK THEN. *massive eye roll*

[Quote]I just hope Eugene isn't pulling a Dan Howell here and using "gay" as a catch all term for LGBT. I kinda annoyed me on Dan's video to title it "Basically I'm gay" but then be like "I like everyone" forty minutes into his video. (I'm bi before anyone jumps on me.)

[Quote]I agree about Dan's video, it rubbed me the wrong way to go from I'm gay to basically I'm queer.

[Quote]Titling your video with "I'm Gay" might not be click bait exactly, but it does pack quite the punch. You go to Dan's video, thinking he'll come out as gay. He goes on for fifty minutes only to come out as queer. (which I have issues in it's self but that belongs in Dan's thread but also everyone in Dan's thread loves Dan so i can't lmao.)

This photo really aged well

I wonder if he and Phil are still together or not. That part was confusing.

Paint says it all at 1:15.

R129 It was pretty much left unsaid but I don't think he would ask "cute mutuals" to slide into his DMs if they were still together. They don't seem like the open relationship type.

Phil always has a love sick puppy look when he stares longingly at Dan but Phil is fugly, Dan is passable after a few drinks, so that won't be happening.

He's like Columbus, he told us something millions of other people already knew

YouTube is dumb.

R130 a bit rich seeing as that twink waited for a million years to come out himself and was very much ‘I don’t like labels’ and then was like I’m bi and now he is a basic thirsty gay on twitter......

R131 Yeah, I think they dated in the past but broke up and are just bffs now. But then he said he wanted to leave that part of his life with Phil private, so that could indicate they are still more than friends. The mutuals sliding into his dms thing could have been a joke.

R132 Yeah, I find Dan cute (I'm into the pretty boy type), but not Phil. That's why I hope they've broken up and Dan is single.

R137 hoe is dan a ‘pretty boy’? Average and kind of cute I guess, but in no way a pretty boy. I think Phil looks better now without the ugly emo swoop.

R130 Well he's not wrong...

[Quote]i am back from the dead so here is some new skeleton inspired merch to celebrate - ft. graphite illustration vest / distressed shirt / pin badges / earrings 💀

I think the cute mutuals thing was a joke. Didn’t they just move into a new place together?

That's a good point. Could be they're just living together though. Idk why but I got the feeling they broke up. Dan used past tense while talking about their relationships. He said they were more than just friends, they were best friends, soulmates. Best friends/soulmates usually don't have romantic conotations. Following Dan's trace of thought I gather they were "more than just friends" at one point, they broke up but has since remained best friends/soulmates. Dan was really thirsty throughout the whole video, said he liked dick and was versatile. I doubt he would have been so graphic if he didn't want dick. I mean, what's the point if he already has a boyfriend? (Unless they have a an open relationship...) And then he said mutuals should slide into his dms. It could have been a joke, but maybe not. Then again, he did say he would like to keep that part of his life (wiith Phil) private. Why say that unless they're together? Maybe they're not together and he just said that so the creepy Phans would stop creeping in on his life idk. Again, he didn't really say he was with Phil, but he didn't say he wasn't either. I personally hope he's not. I think Dan is cute and could do so much better than Phil.

r135 The ukulele guy? I skimmed through the videos on that channel but didn't see anything. Isn't there another ukulele guy named Thomas or something (he was in that video) who did the I'm straight/no labels/bi then finally gay?

r135 I found the tweet where he "joked" about hating both genders equally which kinda lame (his whole schtick seems to be that of an irony bro) but OMG the woke backlash in the replies for the temerity of implying that there are ONLY two genders is hilarious! Accusations of erasure, various phobias, and the evils of binaries were peppered in between endless accolades and profession of love for his bravery! Perfect encapsulation of the idiocy of online woke culture...

But what about the most important questions: Who's had him? Is he a top or a bottom? How big is his dick? Is he uncut?

It’s too obvious he’s gay. He’s practically presenting hole in most of his posts.

R145 Yeah, it didn't come as a shock to most people. I'm more shocked he actually came out though. I never thought he would. Then again, he came out when his career was dead. Typical. This would have been big if he came out like 6 or 7 years ago when he was at the top.

Just saw his latest Instagram story. It's nice to see that he can finally be open, though it didn't come as a shock to most people. I also appreciate that he can make jokes about his sexuality now. It just shows how far he's come.

I don't think Dan and Phil are together anymore. I think they were at one point, then broke up but are now bffs. Does anyone else agree?

Dan's last video... almost a year ago. Will he get back to making videos now that he's out?

His fanbase was preteen girls, he wasn't going to cut them off.

He's a bottom, right? He looks like one.

R58 LOL! No, but seriously, I hope he makes more gay themed videos from now on.

I want Dan and Phil Games to come back! I love Dan and Phil’s Dorothy/Rose-esque banter

R142 no, he had a public girlfriend of a couple or more years. He was very defensive about his sexuality. He and that dodie annoying singer/youtuber girl also played up their thing together for the fan girls and shippers and even when it became very obvious he wasn’t straight he made many references to basically being bi and how he would never be gay etc.

May seem odd for how open he is now, but that’s not at all how he used to be and I very much remember.

So for anyone who follow Shane Dawson: do you think he came out as bi out of respect for his girlfriend at the time, Lisa? If he was bi, why did they have to break up because of that specifically? That means he can like men and women

R155 Yeah, at the time it was obvious he came out as bi out of respect for Lisa. Then again, I have always thought he was a gay leaning bisexual. That's if he's even bi tbh. Still not convinced he isn't entirely gay. Speaking of Shane, does anyone else think it's weird he hasn't tweeted about Dan's coming out? Seems like he's the only YouTuber not doing it. I doubt it's because he's American and they live in their bubble, because Joey and Tyler both tweeted him, as did Troye and Connor. So yeah, Shane staying silent is really weird.

7:42 It all makes sense now 😂

Dan's explorer page basically outs him... so many shirtless men 😂 Dan just says he's into fitness... sure Jan. Then he says he's into men's style and Phil is like "style" 😂😂

R156 D and P and Shane don’t get along. On his podcast, he used to make comments about Dan’s body shape and why Dan shouldn’t wear certain pants because they are built similairlly and would discuss whether Dan and Phil were gay or not (they even had the Psychic Twins on and asked them about it. His straight female cohost said they couldn’t possibly be gay because they don’t dress like it

R159 Yikes. I already knew Shane was trash but he really doesn't have any business talking shit about someone else's body lol

R160 Ikr. He has body dysmorphia, he shouldn't be talking about someone else's body. Besides, he looks like a potato, lol. Dan at least is slim and tall.

I love the fact that Dan is so open about his sexuality now that he can joke about it.

[Quote]so i was locked out of my account for a week which was either a mistake by twitter or direct intervention from the universe to make me get a life - either way it was homophobia

Once more he is calling himself GAY, not bi, G A Y. That's to all the naysayers here.

[Quote]as a fresh gay i’m looking forward to pride as a party and celebration where i can be myself without fear

as an angry gay i’m looking forward to pride being an actually inclusive political protest so our shit world can get better

it can be both and that's pretty rad

Phil’s Gay!