All Roads Led to YouTube for “And They’re Jewish”

Hen Mazzig‘s digital weekly series “And They’re Jewish” takes audiences to the homes of Debra MessingMayim BialikEyal BookerEmmanuelle Chriqui and more as they share stories about their personal lives and careers. Mazzig explains why YouTube is the ideal platform for his project.
 

Why launch on YouTube?

I didn’t want this show locked behind a paywall, monthly subscription or buried in a feed. I wanted it out in the open. Accessible. Free. For everyone. YouTube lets us tell real stories in full, with no filters, no editing limits. That’s the whole point of “And They’re Jewish.”

These aren’t “Jewish” soundbites. These are full people. Full stories.

YouTube gave us the space to go deeper, to be proud, to be complicated, to be joyful, and to invite everyone in.

What methods did you use to leverage your digital audience in order to bring them to YouTube?

I never paid for followers on social media. I built a community in every platform. And that community wanted more.

We’ve had hundreds of millions of views across my social media platforms. People come for the quick hits, but they stay for the truth. So I gave them more than a reel. More than a tweet. I gave them a seat at the table.

Every clip, every teaser, every behind-the-scenes moment was a bridge. From Instagram. From X. From TikTok. All roads led to YouTube because that’s where the story lives.

When the teaser for Mayim Bialik’s episode hit 650,000 views on Instagram and drove over 30,000 views to YouTube, that 4.6% conversion rate told me something important: this isn’t passive scrolling, people are choosing to show up, stay, and connect. 
 
How involved were talent featured in the series with the overall production of their episode?

This wasn’t “me interviewing them.” This was us making something together. 

Every episode was built with the guest. What we cooked, what we did, what we spoke about— none of it was scripted. They brought their stories. I brought the space. I let them lead and I help guide them to what the viewers are interested in.

And they loved it. So many of them are already asking about season two. They’re not done and I’m not done either. This is just getting started.

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