It feels so so random to watch Rowan talk sensibly.

@dovice9131

Ай бұрын

I know right. When I see behind the scenes rowen I get thrown aback a bit 😂. Much love to Rowen.

@bigleeneth

Ай бұрын

Random is perhaps the worst choice of word you could have used. Surreal is the word you were looking for.

@kajekage9410

Ай бұрын

​@@bigleeneth, do you feel better?

@dgray7537

Ай бұрын

Yeah I've never seen him act before

@akamatthews

Ай бұрын

To be honest Rowan is a very clever and aware person the characters he plays are fun or outlets not reflections of who he is. These three have a very health sensible relationship both personal and business

Three straight dudes doing a decent, professional, podcast is actually more rare than they seem aware of. Don't dismiss that fellas.

@AarPlays

Ай бұрын

True, most of them are red pilled incelcasts

@Watashi_wa_robottodesu

Ай бұрын

Why does it matter if they're straight? It's really not rare for a BIG channel to have success in something like this

@CozyAshenWand_

Ай бұрын

It doesn't matter but I think this was in reference to them joking a lot about "three straight white dudes making a podcast, so original" not anything more than that

@Mooshimoca

Ай бұрын

@@Watashi_wa_robottodesu Just makes it rarer, statistically speaking one of them is likely to not be straight as people who lean the other way make up about 33% of males now. Especially when were talking about the entertainment industry. Chances are that when you do get 3 straight dudes together, there's going to be a lot of inappropriate jokes thrown around and is usually a political podcast.

@homeaway5418

Ай бұрын

You have a twisted mind.

I watch Epic NPC man supercuts everynight to stop myself doomscrolling before bed

@darksideofthesun7157

Ай бұрын

I feel that.

@Daemonik

Ай бұрын

Much better for your brain, for sure 👍

@t-line3788

Ай бұрын

Me too. Or the Bored series

Every time I hear stuff like this, about social media, all I can do is is think: "How blessed am I to have had a childhood without all that." Not that my insecurities are any less, but they are not being broadcasted, or heightened, either. The second part why I am happy about it, is that I genuinly feel like I had the opportunity to be able to entertain myself without a mobile when I am outdoors. Like waiting in line at a register, waiting for a bus/train/metro/etc. I do not whip out my mobile to keep myself buys, entertain myself, I just stand there and wait, just me and my thoughts, just me and my eyes looking around at people, trees, birds, stuff, anything. Also, I learned as I got older (I am 53 now) that social media is a wonderfull tool to connect with people all around the world and make friends that way. That is what I use it for, and I do not feel that anxiety anymore that Alan was talking about when I hear a -ding- that there is a message in. It can wait. Is that beacuse I grew up without it? Is that because I am older? Or is that because I WANT to be relaxed and stressfree. I have to say the latter, because there was a time that that anxiety was there for sure, that I responded within 0.2 seconds on everything that came in. Activly changing the way I look at social media made me a lot happier. Jealousy, I felt it, and I hated it. I do not want jealousy, or hate, in my life. So now, after a lot of hard work on myself, I can say: "I love that, I am happy for you/them." Seeiing the sun shine in another persons eyes, what a wonderfull feeling is that! I am sticking to it as much as I can, because I want to. Having friends and family around that want the same also helps a lot. Me, a saint? Fuck no, just very aware of my brain trapping me into stupid stuff and madly trying to steer clear of it. Keep taking about stuff like this VLDL, it helps! Thanks!

@flibbet9410

Ай бұрын

❤

The smartphones are the problem. As humans we are prone to dopomine addiction and social media givesus that hit. It was better when we didn't have our phones on us at all times. We were free when you had to sign onto a computer to partake in social media.

@robertsnitchler3016

Ай бұрын

I have to agree. I have noticed a drastic change in my own productivity with and without a Smartphone.

@kajekage9410

Ай бұрын

​@@robertsnitchler3016Most jobs require you to be on a pc.

@robertsnitchler3016

Ай бұрын

@kajekage9410 I have never worked a desk job. The only time I need to use a pc is to submit a timecard or write invoices

@belt-fed-justice8089

Ай бұрын

I deleted fb off my phone so I can only use my computer at home. And then I have to login which all feels like so much work. I haven't used FB in a week and I'm a lot happier because I have time to do my hobbies.

@SemiMono

Ай бұрын

Our phones need to be tools, not prisons.

I remember when logging into Facebook felt like I was picking up a Newspaper, checking how all my family was doing, then set it back down. Then Facebook FORCED an update on me and everyone else, one that I had already been resisting cause I'd tried it and it was awful, that instead of me seeing things chronologically, I would see them based off of "popularity" which is their way of saying "What we choose" and now we know it to be the Algorithm. Facebook went from a nice thing to open, check up on people, and log back off of, but because greed is like an unchecked cancer, Facebook Facebooked and now it is loathsome.

@RideOnTimePH

Ай бұрын

It shows you posts that you are not even following and doesn't show posts from your friends.

Rowan is spot on with how it's affecting the younger generations. Children are already super susceptible to anxiety and depression and I've seen it skyrocket

@jmbond6728

Ай бұрын

As a teacher I’ve also seen compassion plummet. It used to be if something happened (like someone tripping, dropping everything they’re carrying, etc.) at least a few kids would offer help. Now everyone’s first instinct is to pull out their phones and try to get the best angle for their social media accounts. Several years ago a kid slipped going up the stairs, hit his head- which started bleeding, and the teachers and nurse struggled for a few minutes to get to him because of all the students surrounding him taking videos. Poor kid is crying, covered in blood, really scared/ freaking out because head wounds bleed a lot, and everywhere he looked there were phones in his face and people yelling for him to look at them so they could get footage of him all bloody. Thankfully he wasn’t seriously hurt but if it had been a life and death situation, I honestly don’t know what would have happened.

ICQ? That's a blast from the past. That's how I met the wife in 2000. Met online, chatted on the phone then took a 9 hour bus drive to Cardiff from North Wales (how can a 200 mile trip take 9 hours??). Not on the same day, I should add. AFAIK it's still a thing. Last time I looked it up it seemed to be used more in Eastern Europe these days.

@pyttpytts2690

Ай бұрын

Ohh ohhh

I certainly feel like VLDL's focus has always been on entertaining people on social media vs getting famous on social media. But then I see all the shorts from old content and the compilation videos and I think "Oh no, even they have to play the algorithm game to be sustainable" and it makes me sad. Not in a "why you do this" kind of way, but in a "the social media giants really are eventually going to destroy everything we love" kind of way. Anyway, glad you continued the convo on the downsides of social media. Wish you had touched a little bit on Twitter and the dangers of the political side of social media (even though that's a very slippery slope) and I hope we do get an update on Rowan's progress toward controlling his scroll addiction.

CAM 1 and CAM 2 are grey from 20 minute mark.

@Awesomebotics

Ай бұрын

Looks like the gamma was lowered or the white balance was off

@ralphkingery3630

Ай бұрын

Looks like it went dark mode. ;)

@davidfateunbound

Ай бұрын

Editor forgot to apply the LUT to those clips and what you're seeing is the "as shot" S-Log or D-Log flat as shot film

@----Jay----

Ай бұрын

Feels like low battery mode kicked in for two devices.

@kialandijaeger3039

Ай бұрын

I thought my screen was dying when that happened...

I used to struggle with social media-induced jealousy for years. It seemed like everyone in the world was having a blast and I was the only one having a shit time. It took years of self reflection and studying people around me to understand that everyone struggles too, they just don't all post about it all the time. When I stopped comparing myself to everyone and started just enjoying what I had, I was able to break out of the negative cycle. Now I just use social media to look at funny memes and videos once in a while and then move on. I love that you guys are talking about this stuff and making videos that explore human emotion and people's struggles, even when it's just tied into the comedy. You guys show the world that you're just like everyone else and connecting with your fanbase on a personal level rarely seen. That's why I keep coming back and clicking on all the new content you put out there. Keep up the amazing work! 🤘

@beardedlonewolf7695

Ай бұрын

Social media is 99% fake and 1% real, people need (especially young women) to understand that, it's easy to hide your real life and problems from 15-second videos.

VLDL: breaking new ground on podcasting world firsts every single day

Is social media ruining us? "Yes" - Rowan *shade away*

Also to Adam's point about social media leading to other things/heightening it... The refrain used to be "MySpace ruins lives" because so many people had access to so many people and infidelity or scams happened. I know a bunch of us were fairly reckless in meeting people online and certain things wouldn't have happened if it wasn't that easy to pluck the apple from the tree.

Hearing Rowan talk without yelling or getting naked feels unreal.

Social media is designed to heighten anxiety and anger, it's specifically designed for these effects as both those things (outrage and distress) can be manipulated for profit

0:40 “we are on episode 15” (sees its 16) lolol

@Cosmicfury100

Ай бұрын

Whoopsie!

@kiwicamop4317

Ай бұрын

ah good I'm not crazy...

Rowen talking about throwing his phone away while doom scrolling, I felt that in my soul.

This has become the most relevant podcast to me. I really appreciate you guys doing this. You are talking about things that actually matter to me and you all seem very genuine.

Great job getting Ellie a mic! I'm glad you took that feedback.

I'm glad these have been coming out in video format. I'm just going to wait for the videos now.

Great chat, guys. Here's me feeling extremely old...my first social media was at 13 when after serious begging, I got a CB radio for my birthday. It completely opened up my life! And I met my hubby on there too.

This was awesome. Hahaha, can't believe Bodger's addictive personality is loosely based on Rowan. 😄 Also, really glad that Ellie can be there to chime in every now and then!

ICQ was the start for me too. It always bothers me that people just a few years younger than me are like 'whats that'. Looking at you Alan.

Ive been with you guys since the star wars debate era in bored series...im really happy for you guys for this channel to grow for what it is today. Cheers mate from Malaysia🇲🇾

I've just binged your podcasts and I am only left with one question: Has a podcast on youtube ever reached Episode 17?

I need more podcasts 😢😢

I love all the swearing...feels like a genuine New Zealand convo 😂 up the wahs 🤙🏻

Im really enjoying these podcasts im glad they branched out more with their channel and joined the podcast world, on top of everything else (obvi) much love from soflo guys ❤

Great video and interesting topic, for what it's worth, I found out about you guys many years ago due to Facebook. Think it was the video of Rowan playing as an NPC guard "Someone's prowling round 'ere" and finding it hilarious, then I starting seeing a few more videos again via facebook and headed over to youtube to sub, been watching you ever since.

defos agree with this, the way people usually use social media is not healthy at all. i only use it to communicate with specific people personally, but i feel like all these problems are accentuated because of how saturated the market is, even makes you doubt real genuine interactions which is crazy. finding your happy median in all of it i guess is key, atleast it was for me, choose some people you want to follow or keep up with and stick to them.

@AeneasGemini

Ай бұрын

social media is designed to heighten anxiety and enflame arguments, it's specifically designed for these effects as both those things (anger and distress) can be manipulated for profit

Hey rowen, you should do a podcast

@Bosse_C

Ай бұрын

thats a good idea actually

@thatdrummerdude3848

Ай бұрын

I’d watch it

The digital and physical art streams are the only way I interact with Twitch. Many of my friends are art streamers and its mostly a way for them to try to make art full time versus being famous. At least with my friends its out of a desire to be a fulltime content creator regardless of medium. Great discussion! Also an important topic.

@SemiMono

Ай бұрын

I think that's wrapped up in the fame. It's not bad to want to make art full time, but it requires a degree of fame, and fame is a nasty thing because it's necessarily very exclusive. When everyone is trying to become famous (even if it's not the fame directly they seek, but the sustainable income), most will end up in a bad spot for a while until they quit. That pursuit is often not a healthy one. But, if they just wanna stream some art, and you like seeing some art, that's cool. Hopefully they find a good relationship with it.

Social media is this generations tower of babel.. we have never been so connected yet so far apart

Closest thing I have to social media is a youtube addiction to podcasts while I work / walk the dog etc. Fortunately none of them have ever gotten above 16 episodes so that helps keep it in check. But in reality I just see it as a more specialised version on listening to the radio.

LOL we would go out and do tricks on our bike, half hoping to break a bone and get a "cool" cast, but also terrified that if we did and told our parents how it happened, we'd be grounded forever LOL

I couldn't sleep last night so thank you for the podcast to listen to. 🙏

I can still do a perfect impression of the "Uh-oh" alert from ICQ.

MSN also had chatrooms, there was a list of user created rooms that you could join. My now husband met my Mum (then me) in one such room.

There is a major difference in the content your channel makes and the brainlets on tik tok that make get ready with me videos. I love listening to podcasts while working or working out. I wish you spent more time talking about the young generations being so addicted to social media who think that is how you need to make money for themselves. My sons do not have social media. I will limit that until I possibly can. But they still get stuck in, I need to make social media videos to be famous and make money. They do not see the struggle and mental anguish social media influencers go through. The constant need for likes and engagement. Great episode.

I'm really amused by the way the light changes halfway through this video so it looks like Adam has a spotlight shining on him while Rowan and Alan have atmospheric mood lighting.

I will never have known VLDL without scrolling on social media :)

It’s so hard to not see this entire thing as a skit, I didn’t realise how close you all seem to your characters when talking

Are the other episodes of the podcast going to be available on youtube at some point? Seeing your guys faces while you talk really helps me understand things better.

I'm quite screen addicted but not social media. I don't really feel jealousy either I just want my life to be better than it is right now. Not that I'm unhappy with my life but I see room for improvement. My biggest screen use is KZread though, funny videos, your podcast, lore from my favorite video games and discovering new metal music

great content, thank you guys

I kept thinking of Forest Gump when you guys kept saying Gen-A.

@richardmarple2695

Ай бұрын

I was going to make this statement if you didn't haha

Best Podcast ever, ❤..Just an observation, is it normal for the Camera angle facing Rowan and Alan to be kinda dark and low focus sensation? I thought my screen had the brightness lowered😂

Love having the phone in the pocket while moving the lawn. Keep up the work love the podcast ❤😊❤

I am straight and white, but my Trans female friend loves you guys as well. Comedy knows no bounds!

I'd love a podcast about Baldurs Gate 3, the first two games are THE games of my childhood and doing the first playthrough of BG3 right now after MONTHS of resisting and avoiding spoilers I feel myself invested in the story and character relations like I haven't been in years. It's truly amazing.

I watched this twice and i just now realized that the editor forgot to colorgrade the clips of Rowan and Allan

im glad i quit facebook years ago only use the messenger app to speak to a few friends only thing i use now is youtube which has also unfortunatly become a time sink

I identify with all 3 guys it seems. I feel I am mostly moderate like Alan and have kids, but have that background and good memory that Adam does, but then sometimes am the smartarse like Rowan. Plus I'm a model :D Nah, but seriously, I am so glad I found VLDL.

I remember spending so much time reading comments on videos. Nowadays I don't do much at all. Especially since I watch on xbox more than anything else

Social Media is destroying society as a whole because it is creating billions of individuals who are now over-focused on themselves and are ambivalent toward society as a whole. I joined MySpace in around 2007. I then switched to Facebook when my daughter invited me, and that was so much better because I was able to re-connect with many old friends. These days, I rarely look at Facebook but I always have Messenger open as that is my text format for daily conversations with about a half-dozen friends. - I have a Instagram account but haven't looked at it in weeks. - Discord and Twitch accounts (the last one is brand new) to watch specific content providers who work there primarily.

I saw a clip recently where Dr. Phil says, “Kids stopped living their lives and started Watching people live their lives.”

Hypothetical idea...🤔 The reason food commercials work is because it tricks your subconscious into thinking it's right in front of you. Perhaps social media does the same thing...🤨

“…are we the baddies?” “Nope.” “Good to know.”

@Alan I don't use social media and quit Overwatch 2 at the beginning of this year, because it became unbearably toxic. I mained Support and after I quit, the main tank of our team gifted me Baldur's Gate 3 for all the support and whenever I have to relax now, I play BG 3 as well! Did you know that, if you play a druid (one of the best classes, objectively!!), you can wildshape into a cat and your teammates can throw you to distant places, that you can loot and explore then. I mean, you can use "fly" later in game, but in the beginning, it gives you a bit of loot. How I love to discover new stuff in every run! Like how you get proficiency in music if you play Alfira's Song on her lute with her! Love it! I wish there was a decent lfg in BG3, but I guess that would make it toxic as well. I'd LOVE to meet friendly, funny people to play with (you know ... Gale-friendly-funny ... maybe a tad bit dark humour as well, I don't judge as long as the root is nice). My former main tank doesn't play BG 3 :Y

Ever since smartphones came out Millennials and Gen Z started seeing a massive uptick in depression and suicide because they're watching other people live lives rather than they experience their own.

Bebo also had the 'other half' thing where you get one of your top friends to be featured as your other half. and then get removed and be devastated.

Aol messenger and Yahoo chat was my first ASL. 😂

The biggest issue for me on social media is the toxic stuff. All those really stupid people selling their opinion on things they know absolutely jackshit about for the truth. The hate I feel for those people is poisoning me.

Good stuff as always

@user-yd4ph9qr1y

Ай бұрын

Fr

Facebook got really big for soldiers during the afghan Iraq war. I was like ally and said I would never use it but when I got deployed it was a great to write messages and see pics of what family and friends were doing.

I always say '5 more clips and I'm done' 2 hours ago

That was very interesting, I found myself wanting to join in at several points in the conversation. Oh, and in the interest of identifying your audience, I'm 54, female, and I very much enjoy your content. Edit: I agree with Ellie, you guys are entertainers in the best sense of the word.

Lol i caught myself flicking through the comments when they talked about swiping for dopamine

the bottom line in all of this is, simply...money. The damage done to humans is just a side product.

Oh this is cool. Keep the podcasts going !!!

Not me 😂 I’ve been booted from all social media multiple times except this one and Rumble 😂😂😂

I was the defacto friend who designed and coded those custom myspace profiles for my buddies. Those were the days! Definitely glad Facebook doesn't have it though. I miss when Facebook was just millennials and younger. It's so junky now.

It is definitely ruining us. Not everyone. Some ppl were ruined even back when “social media” just meant some *IRC* and/or *Forum* page conversing. It was limited to more on “computing enthusiasts” though, and many of those fellas probably even realised where the effects such “casual information sharing” is leading to. And now we have the “non computing enthusiasts” (as in *dumbasses* ) included in who took whatever they could easily get and takes everything for granted. The only thing that is to be taken “for granted” is that everyone has access to the vast knowledge of the internet and thus don’t have proper reason to ever be stupid. And ppl still are.

@SyntheticFuture

Ай бұрын

If you have a network that only contains reasonable smart and pretty objective people (aka nerds/geeks) things usually stay fairly civilized. That's what the old internet was. A bunch of nerds nerding out over the tech sharing ideas and creating new things. The whole thing went to shut when big companies went "we need to market this and ship it to as many people as possible!". But that's just my 2 cents.

@deejayxcrypt

Ай бұрын

@@SyntheticFuture Absolutely agree with you on this.

@RolandHesz

Ай бұрын

​@@SyntheticFutureThinking back to 2001, geeks and nerds were drama central, already doxing people and having insane flamewars and very toxic communities based around "my favourite tech is better than yours". We always had stupid people.

@RolandHesz

Ай бұрын

​@@SyntheticFutureBut I 100% agree with that corporations getting hold of it was a problem. All the "Long tail" and "Wisdom of the crowd" dreams died at that point.

@MK-xd5wg

Ай бұрын

​@@SyntheticFuture 2 cents well spent. I completely agree with you. Greed ruins many things. I always think of Wal-Mart in this instance. The creator of Wal-Mart would buy up the stock of poor neighborhoods items they were barely able to afford like a $1 dress, and go to richer neighborhoods and sell it it for $10.

Social media is ruining a lot, i have no social media for 2 years now and i cant tell u how happy i am.. i have more time for hobby's and i am less negative about people. Its great you really should try it Just delete everything at once so u dont hesitate

I feel so smug listening to this. No smart phone. No social media... ...no friends. Your world is so different. Skit idea - that insufferable friend without a smartphone

@Viva La Dirt League ICQ was my jam back in the day. For anyone wondering, ICQ stands for "I Seek You".

imho the main problem with social media apps is not the "social" part nor the "media" part. the problem is the corporate designed algorythms that prefer engagement with hate more then personal interests. if any algorythm would show the user exactly what he wants to see, eg as tiktop or short, the overall screen time with this type of content would drop for these corporations. I believe most sane people would prefer to choose to watch what they realy like and not some random shit. the random factor of the swipe is the real thing what is addicting. and what is bad for us.

"Wanna cyber?" 😂😂😂😂

Orkut! For us Brazilians everything started with Orkut, a few years before facebook. And Orkut was acctually awesome!

You all are not social media entertainers. You are entertainers who happen to be on social media. Important distinction. I got rid of all my social media (aside from KZread) and I don't regret it at all.

You all should do a skit in the Epic Npc universe where you all switch places like brit becomes greg Etc

This is so original. 😂

Will we ever see guest appearances from your co-stars?

@mondrup92

Ай бұрын

There’s been an episode recorded with Ben and the latest audio episode was with Ellie 😄

From about 24:15 minutes the lighting goes dark when facing Rowan and Alan, but light when facing Adam..

It's been 2 weeks. Where is episode 17???

@kemzal

Ай бұрын

I guess they couldn't beat the record.

At first, you couldnt join. You had to have a college ID. then you had to be invited.

The closest I get to social media is KZread. I don't have Instagram, Facebook, X, truth social, TikTok or any other ones you can think of.

Adam mentioned that he works out. Do an episode on your workout routines and other actions taken for physical health.

“Might be”. Bro it is definitely ruining us

I would say the original internet forums were the birth of social media.

Might be ruining us? You mean “already has and we are too far gone to be saved?”

i like this chat, so as a pc user who spends a lot of time at a computer i dont use my phone a lot mainly for phone calls and text's im not on tiktok im not on snapchat or instagram im sort of glad im not attached to my phone or id never get anything done.

To Greg's point of dragging your kids into your desire for social media fame... it is a bit reminiscent of Munchausen's by proxy -- typically it would be a parent or caregiver claiming (or creating a situation in which) the other person has a physical or mental illness, solely for the caregiver to get attention. I'd be interested to see how the DSM is revised for this exploitation on social media in coming decades.

If KZread is social media, I have one social media account. If KZread isn't social media, then I have no social media accounts. To include Reddit (Shout Out to Bored Ep II).

What happened to the camera at around 24:28 ? Like the lights went out lol

@windcallerctk

Ай бұрын

I thought the same thing, and then it was like: Adam in the spotlight all the time? Distracted me for a while, had to rewind to listen to the content again. LoL

@caydennormanton9682

Ай бұрын

@@windcallerctk haha me too

You guys are so brave. As a straight white guy I finally feel represented.

What might be actually ruining us is having fun short videos and podcasts in the same channel. The thing here is that I am here for the entertainment, not some blokes talking about stuff for 55 minutes.

I only ever had Facebook, and I only used it for memes honestly. I never did any of the other ones, I just didn't feel like I needed it. About 2015 I entirely deleted Facebook and I just have discord and a reddit(just for memes)

Missed myspace and bebo bur started on icq which transirioned to msn over time. Mostly started as gaming friends on counter strike etc. Also was always on mIRC .