“I got bored in isolation so I moved to Birmingham – it’s one thing I really love about the city”

You don’t have to look far for negative headlines about the West Midlands – whether it’s knife crime, Birmingham Council’s financial crisis or families devastated by the cost of living crisis. But in the eyes of YouTube star Scola Dondo, who has made the Second City her home, there’s a lot to love about this part of the world.

The content creator moved from the South East to the heart of the city three-and-a-half years ago because she was “really bored” during lockdown. The 28-year-old personal trainer, who makes a living by posting fitness and lifestyle content, plans to “stick around for a while” after finding many positives.

Speaking about her YouTube success being shared as a poster campaign in Birmingham, she listed a number of things she loved about Brum, from the number of activities and its “energy” to the friendly people and “culture and diversity”.

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Scola, originally from Zimbabwe, said: “I moved here from West Sussex and am based in Birmingham city centre. That’s where I’ve mainly been since I moved.

“I grew up in a very small village, it was a time of isolation and I was very bored, I love nature and stuff, but I never lived in a city. I spent a lot of time in London and it was’ somewhere I wanted to live.

“I really liked Birmingham, or what I saw of it. The culture, the diversity, how accessible the city is, things like that really drew me here and I decided to randomly move here. It was a very good decision. .

“I love the culture, the diversity, how much there is to do here. There are so many different areas and (I love) the people as well. It’s much friendlier than other cities, there’s an energy here that I love. So, definitely it’s home for me now.

“I definitely consider it a place I would stay for a while.” Brummies will likely have seen Scola’s face on various streets around the city, including Coventry Road and Kings Heath High Street.

The posters, also on York Road and Dudley Road, are part of a campaign launched by YouTube itself to promote her success, including 244,000 subscribers and 21 million views. For Scola, her channel has been a passion and hobby since she was a teenager.

She started earning small amounts of money, enough for things like movie tickets, when she was a teenager, with her finances “growing as she did”. Now, she earns enough to “sustain” her lifestyle and makes a living through YouTube, despite it fluctuating from month to month.

Asked about her future plans on the video platform, she said: “It’s exciting that I have a core audience that will always be there for me and that feels amazing. I could talk about anything and it would be like we were friends. so they will enjoy it.

“I can talk about a TV show or makeup or fitness and it doesn’t really matter because they grew up with me. It (YouTube) gives you the opportunity to branch out.

“You see people making books, it gives you a way to branch out and tap into whatever passions you have or whatever niche you want to get into.”

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