As an aspiring mandolin player, I’ve spent years looking up YouTube videos to learn various bluegrass licks, frequently landing on lessons from a guy who goes by Banjo Ben.
In the early days of the pandemic, as we were all searching for ways to stay productive and sane while stuck at home, I found myself strumming with greater frequency and coming across Banjo Ben more often. I soon decided that, after roughly two decades of directionless noodling, I was finally going to learn to play this instrument.
I stopped freeloading and hopped over to Banjo Ben’s website, where $25 a month would give me access to hundreds of lessons, from basic songs and scales to advanced picking techniques. Banjo Ben is now a fixture on my daily pandemic schedule.
These stories are everywhere. The year of working from home while homeschooling our kids has led many of us to adopt entirely new habits, relying on our devices and internet connections in ways we hadn’t in the past.
In addition to Clark, there’s Sarah Kusch, a personal trainer in Los Angeles, who I learned about from my wife and whose videos have replaced my gym membership. And after trying and failing to get into meditation on many occasions, I tested out Waking Up from Sam Harris and never turned back.
Lately I’ve been curious about the people behind these apps. How were their lives altered, personally and financially, by the pandemic? And what do they expect as society reopens and life returns to some sense of normalcy?
So I reached out, and they all agreed to be interviewed.
