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'Dangdut', comedy & nostalgia rule YouTube in Indonesia in 2014
In demand: Among the videos finishing strongly on YouTubeâs local charts were (from top) Katy Perryâs âDark Horseâ, which was Indonesia YouTubeâs No
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In demand: Among the videos finishing strongly on YouTube's local charts were (from top) Katy Perry's 'Dark Horse', which was Indonesia YouTube's No. 1 music video in 2014; the parody Ganteng-Ganteng Sering Gila (Frequently crazy handsome boys), a riff on the bizarre local soap opera Ganteng-Ganteng Serigala (Handsome, but a Werewolf), finished ninth on the non-music charts; and Nicolas Saputra in LINE ' Ada Apa Dengan Cinta (AADC) 2014 (Mini Drama) finished second; while AgnezMo's 'Coke Bottle' Video finished in the No. 3 music slot.
Lunchtime is ending and the office workers are settling back into their desks. Some shuffle through stacks of documents, while others begin clicking on mice to rouse their computers from sleep.
And some workers visit YouTube for a last laugh before heading back to number-packed spreadsheets.
'Most of the time, I check out music videos, especially those that feature people doing covers of popular songs,' Putra, one of the workers, said as he tapped on his laptop.
'I find these kinds of videos by non-professional singers amusing because some are able to pull off very good covers, while others are simply being over-confident,' he added.
YouTube, which launched a co.id site in 2012, has indeed become a source of diversion for entertainment-hungry Indonesians. And rightly so. The top 10 YouTube videos in Indonesia are dominated by musical, humorous and sentimental pieces by content creators.
'Five of the top 10 videos in the non-music category are commercials or comedies,' Google spokesperson, Jason Tedjasukmana, said.
YouTube revealed that in this category, the first and second most popular videos were campaigns launched by Downy Indonesia and LINE Indonesia respectively.
Downy, a fabric-softener brand, shot a social experiment documenting how far husbands took notice of their wives. The video garnered roughly 6 million views.
Meanwhile, chat application LINE, played on the nostalgia of 1990s kids by launching the mini-drama, Ada Apa Dengan Cinta 2014. The drama follows up on now-adult Rangga and Cinta, star-crossed lovers forced to part in their youth.
'These two advertisements show that brands are getting more creative,' Jason pointed out.
As for comedic videos, Jason noted that niches have started to develop. YouTuber Bayu Skak's video, titled 'Jomblo Gamers', was the sixth most popular video of the year and stands out from the rest on the list because Bayu speaks in the Surabayan dialect.
'Bayu's skits are in Javanese, which appeals to a subset of the audience drawn to comedy,' Jason said, adding that this reflected the formation of niche content and audiences on YouTube.
'He [Bayu] found a niche, and the only way to find a niche is by trying to make a video,' he noted.
Catering to local tastes proved to be a success for musical artists too. Although Katy Perry's 'Dark Horse' is the most popular video in the music category, dangdut singer Cita Citata's piece, 'Sakitnya Tuh Disini', grabbed second spot, beating mega star Taylor Swift and local sensation Raisa.
'Dangdut is always king,' Jason pointed out.
He then predicted that next year, social campaign videos would gain even more prominence.
'In 2012, popular videos were mostly on music. Last year, it was music, comedy, and entertainment,' he said.
But this year, informative videos, especially those touching the subject of politics, have emerged given that this was the election year, he noted.
One of the most popular non-music videos of this year is titled 'Aiya' by Eka Setiawan. He edited and recomposed speeches by prominent politicians, including President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla, into a song on good leadership.
'People are getting more active on social issues,' he said.
'And politicians of today are good sports about being in videos and that shows the evolving maturity in political culture,' he noted.
