CaptainSparklez: Meet the Man Behind YouTube's Minecraft Music Videos

Jordan Maron is a 26-year-old pop star forged in the digital fires of the 21st century. He's impeccably groomed. He's totally ripped. He drives a half-a-million dollar vehicle (a Ford GT) and lives in an infinity pool-equipped mansion in the Hollywood Hills. In other words, he's the standard social media influencer, magnified. Except you probably haven't heard of him. Don't laugh, but he colloquially goes by the name CaptainSparklez (yes, with a z).

CaptainSparklez rocketed to fame thanks to a video game called Minecraft—and the YouTube videos he makes based on it. (He's not alone. Daniel Middleton, another stratospherically famous Minecraft YouTuber, raked in $16.5 million last year alone, and currently has a New York Times bestseller, a sold-out world tour, and more followers than every late-night host on TV.) Maron, however, has differentiated himself from the standard tips-and-tricks video game videos by tacking to a novel format: He makes music videos.

And they've taken the Internet by storm.

For instance: CaptainSparklez has more views on YouTube than chart-topping pop stars The Chainsmokers, Demi Lovato, Eminem, Katy Perry, Imagine Dragons, Maroon 5, Selena Gomez, and Sia—combined. And just last year, he collaborated with EDM maestros Seven Lions, Illenium, and Said the Sky, along with consummate electronica vocalist HALIENE, to produce the song, "Rush Over Me," an equal parts rousing, somber, shivers-inducing ballad that shakes the soul. (The accompanying video tells the story of a dog who sacrifices himself to save his master from all-but-certain doom. To call it emotionally manipulative wouldn't be unfair—or incorrect.)

Other than that, CaptainSparklez's typical musical fare tends toward poppy and tonally upbeat—all major keys and bright synths, typically set to heart-pumping BPMs. It's the type of music that'll give you an instant energy boost. CaptainSparklez also dabbles in derivative work—generally parodic pop covers, wherein he takes an existing song and overlays it with new, Minecraft-themed vocals (and sets the whole thing to a non-derivative Minecraft-themed video, of course). Despite whatever madness exists in Maron's artistic method, it works: All told, he's garnered nearly 3.2 billion views.

Still, Maron doesn't tour. He doesn't have a Spotify presence. And he certainly doesn't have a big four record deal. He's the spitting image of how a musician can become world-famous these days without following any of the established tracks for artists from decades past. (He still follows the tried-and-true merch method, however. You can buy everything from t-shirts and hoodies to iPhone cases and coffee mugs on his branded store.)

The only way Maron puts CaptainSparklez into the world is through YouTube. But seeing as, since starting out in July 2010, he's produced hundreds of videos, stepping into the CaptainSparklez oeuvre can be daunting. So, if you're interested in getting your toes—or rather, your ears—wet, here's the place to start. Below, we've gathered his greatest hits; consider this the setlist for his tour—that is, if he ever schedules one.