Presenter Ali: Earning millions on YouTube did not stop my struggles with unhappiness
By Steve Ireri, September 18, 2025Content creator and Forex trader, Presenter Ali, has opened up about the emotional struggles he faced despite achieving significant financial success on YouTube.
Speaking during an interview with a local radio station on Thursday, September 18, 2025, Ali revealed that by 2021, he was making substantial income from the platform, earning as much as half a million shillings in a month.
At the time, he described his life as one he had always dreamt of, living with independence and pursuing his creative ambitions. However, he noted that success on YouTube is unpredictable, comparing it to a rollercoaster with both good and bad days.
“I was making very good money on YouTube, and I was very consistent. I was living the life I might have dreamed of at that age. At that time, around 2021, I could make even half a million shillings in a month. YouTube is like a rollercoaster; you will have good days and bad days. The point is, I thought the money I was getting was going to make me really happy,” he narrated.
Despite his earnings, Ali admitted that the money did not bring the happiness he expected.
He explained that, having come from a background where financial security was uncertain, he initially believed that wealth would solve all problems.
Yet, even as he saw his channel grow, culminating in reaching 100,000 subscribers, a milestone that was once considered a huge achievement, he fell into depression.
“Coming from a situation where maybe you had lost a job, you usually think money will solve everything, but it doesn’t. The funny thing is, I was making money, sometimes close to a million shillings, and the day I hit 100,000 subscribers on YouTube, I really fell into depression. Back then, reaching 100k subscribers was a huge milestone. Nowadays, you can even open a channel today and hit 100k because people are very online and many are now watching YouTube,” he said.
Hectic life
Ali described the pressures behind the scenes, revealing that he handled all aspects of content creation himself, from shooting and editing to uploading videos.
He recounted waking up some mornings so physically drained that his back would not support him, forcing him to roll out of bed before starting work.
“I thought I was going to be happy, but no. At some point, even though I worked so hard to get to 100k subscribers, doing everything myself, shooting, editing, uploading, I would wake up and my back would not even allow me to get up. I had to roll off the bed first before I could stand up,” he shared.