What is DJ Vlad's Net Worth?
DJ Vlad is an Internet personality, journalist, director, and former DJ who has a net worth of $10 million. DJ Vlad is best known for his eponymous YouTube channel on which he hosts interviews with a variety of celebrities. He has amassed over 5.5 million subscribers since launching the channel in 2006. Elsewhere, DJ Vlad created the news website VladTV.com, directed episodes of the BET documentary series "American Gangster," and directed the documentary film "Ghostride the Whip."
Early Life and Education
DJ Vlad, whose real name is Vladislav Lyubovny, was born on June 28, 1973 in Kyiv, Soviet Ukraine to a Russian Jewish family. When he was five years of age, he moved with his family to the United States. There, they lived in Springfield, Massachusetts and then San Mateo, California. Lyubovny developed an interest in hip hop when the group N.W.A released its debut album in 1987. For his higher education, he attended the University of California, Berkeley, from which he received a Bachelor of Science degree.
YouTube Career
Lyubovny started out as a musician creating hip hop beats, but he eventually quit when he realized it wouldn't bring him success. After experimenting with a friend's equipment, he began deejaying, taking gigs at different clubs and releasing mixtapes. Lyubovny gained wider recognition in 2006 when he launched his YouTube channel, djvlad. On the channel, he hosts interviews with various celebrities, including singers and rappers; actors; athletes; comedians; businesspeople; models; authors; former criminals; and many more. Since creating the channel, he has accumulated over 5.5 million subscribers and over 5.3 billion total views.
Beyond YouTube, Lyubovny directed some episodes of the BET documentary series "American Gangster." Aired from late 2006 to early 2009, the series focused on infamous black gangsters from American history, such as Guy Fisher, Leroy Barnes, Larry Hoover, Felix Mitchell, and the Detroit Chambers Brothers. Lyubovny also directed the 2008 documentary film "Ghostride the Whip." Elsewhere, he created the news website VladTV.com. In other endeavors, Lyubovny voiced himself in an episode of the third season of the adult animated sitcom "The Boondocks" in 2010.
Rick Ross Assault and Lawsuit
At the 2008 Ozone Awards in Houston, Texas, Lyubovny was assaulted by the entourage of rapper and record executive Rick Ross after he had covered a story on Ross's former career as a corrections officer. In response, Lyubovny filed a $4 million lawsuit. In the spring of 2010, a New York Federal Jury awarded Lyubovny $300,000 after finding Ross liable for setting him up for the assault.