| HN Mirror

Sadly this is more about Youtube views and has become a huge bummer for me. I started listening to some of these early videos around 9 or 10 years ago and they weren't referred to as ASMR videos at first but rather I'd search for "whisper videos", "soft spoken relaxation videos", and stuff like that.

These typically didn't even show the person who was speaking as you typically listened on headphones while laying down to relax. I found it soothing and they probably triggered some instinctive reaction to non-sexual intimacy and care.

Over the years it's become harder to find videos that soothe and relax me in this way because the "scene" that has developed around ASMR seems to focus on all sorts of weird sounds like tapping on stuff, loud crinkling, rubber gloves, and the absolute worst (for me)...touching the damn mic!

If I'm trying to relax with some soothing, soft voice talking me through some relaxation scenario or just something to zone out on while I fall asleep, the last thing I want to hear is some loud, unexpected sound or brushing on the mic. As someone who has done quite a bit of video and audio production, if someone bumps or touches the mic it's not a good thing and it just kicks me out of whatever relaxing, tingly zone I may have been sinking into.

I understand that a lot of people dig the foley art and sound effects but it seems like now (on youtube at least) it's 95% crinkly, crackly, brushy, tappy, chewing (ugghhh) sounds made right up into a mic by some pretty girl in front of a ring light and a DIY chromakey backdrop. None of this is relaxing or soothing to me and it certainly doesn't trigger any ASMR tingles in me...

...but I'm sure it helps boost those view counts and grab viewer attention when that sexy thumbnail shows up in the Youtube listing.