The Five Most Talented People on the Internet

Babies who can sing the Beatles, men with nine-octave ranges -- simply put, the most talented people in the world are found on YouTube.

By Daniel Murphy

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There are a lot of insecure talented people on the Internet. It’s not like back in the ’90s, when attention-starved hams had to wait for their big break performing stupid human tricks on Letterman or be left to wallow in their isolation, performing at family parties and neighborhood fairs, spinning plates and toiling in their obscurity.

Now all you need is a webcam, a dream, and a wellspring of confidence disproportionate to your station in life. Don’t get me wrong -- there are plenty of reality TV shows and virtual competitions that will exploit your talents. But the best of the best remain the home-grown fare: adults not given enough attention as children and children given too much attention by adults.

Which isn’t to demean any of their achievements. And though some talents may be a little more useful than others, all inspire respect. Because juggling flaming axes may not get you a corner office or any modicum of “success” in the conventional sense of the word, but in some midsized cities it’ll probably get you laid. And that’s good enough.