Phenomenon of D Billions: How Kyrgyz artists make millions of dollars on YouTube

Source: dbillions.com, photo editor: Aruzhan Makhsotova

D Billions from Kyrgyzstan is perhaps the most well-known cultural product the country has produced in recent years. Kursiv LifeStyle has decided to explore how a group of artists from Kyrgyzstan found themselves earning hundreds of thousands of dollars per month.

D Billions is a band and YouTube channel offering educational content for children, boasting more than 30.6 million subscribers. Wearing colorful wigs and one-piece outfits, the artists teach children the alphabet, words and movements in a way that delights small kids. The team consists of four people: Baktybek Ismanaliyev (Chicky), Anakul uulu Asylbek (Cha-Cha), Zhanyshbek Zhenishbekov (Boom-Boom) and Darina Vekua (Lya-Lya). The group was founded by Ernist Umetaliev, the owner and producer of Ekarecords.

D Billions released their first video, «Left, Right,» in the summer of 2019. The video, featuring a simple song in English with a catchy melody, has amassed over 90 million views.

Since then, the group has published 1,081 videos totaling more than 39.4 billion views. In September 2021, D Billions received a Diamond Creator Award from YouTube. In terms of subscribers, D Billions ranks 35th in the top 100 of YouTube, surpassing even BLACKPINK, a K-pop band, and Taylor Swift. As their popularity grew, the artists started producing content in at least ten languages, including Spanish, Russian, Kyrgyz and Arabic. One of their most popular videos, «Yummy Fruits & Vegetables,» has been viewed over 3.1 billion times.

According to some estimates, D Billions earned about $3.4 million in the first seven months of the year, making at least $400,000 per month.

In May 2023, local authorities recognized D Billions as the main cultural export product of Kyrgyzstan, awarding them an honorary certificate for their «special contribution to the country’s development.»

Source: Photo by the press service of the Kyrgyz cabinet

Source: Photo by the press service of the Kyrgyz cabinet The secret of D Billions lies not only in its simple and colorful content for children but also in its popularity among adult viewers on YouTube. Starting with just ten people, their crew now consists of 70 specialists. In early 2023, Umetaliev revealed that D Billions produces roughly 300 videos per month.