It all began 11 years ago with a post titled "Shortest Video on YouTube" — featuring a cat who turned his head and froze in mid-meow while a beat of music played and ended sharply. The 1-second video became an instant hit on YouTube and has since been viewed more than 37 million times.
Thus, Mylo the Cat was born — spawning a YouTube channel featuring hundreds of creative, humorous videos with millions of views, more than 216,000 subscribers and significant ad revenue. The creator behind Mylo the Cat is UAlbany alum Adam Schleichkorn. (Mylo the titular cat and star of many subsequent videos actually belongs to Schleichkorn’s friend.) Tracing an unlikely career journey from video hobbyist to award-winning editor, pop culture influencer and public health educator, Schleichkorn's story is an inspiring tail...or, rather, tale...of the rewards of hard work and the pursuit of one's passion.
"I got here because I chased my dream,” said Schleichkorn. “People are like 'shut up, that's ridiculous,' but it's true!"
Being a viral video auteur was certainly not on Schleichkorn's radar when he graduated from UAlbany in 2003 with a sociology degree — YouTube itself didn't even exist until 2005. He had selected sociology because it sounded interesting to him, but the Long Island native hadn't envisioned how he would apply it in his career. As it turned out, the study of people and behavior was quite apropos.
"There's actually so much sociology involved in the making of social media," said Schleichkorn. "It's a real-time study of why and how people interact."
His love of video and video editing was cultivated at UAlbany, albeit outside the classroom. One of Schleichkorn's college roommates owned a video camera and hardly ever used it. So Schleichkorn asked if he could borrow it and started making his own short videos while teaching himself how to do digital editing on his computer.
"This was during the industry transition from film to digital video," explained Schleichkorn, "which was perfect timing."
While Schleichkorn took on a variety of jobs after graduating from UAlbany, he was continually drawn to the world of video; he decided to pursue his master's in interactive multimedia at LIU Post, from which he graduated in 2008.
Schleichkorn spent the next few years pursuing freelance jobs as a videographer and video editor, continually honing his craft — often working at night on his own videos after working by day on paid projects for others.
One day, he posted his first Mylo the Cat video. Schleichkorn followed that with more cat and animal videos, gained followers and soon started making videos that combined everything he loved: retro cartoons and kids' shows, pop culture and classic hip hop music. Then things got really interesting.
Schleichkorn started perfecting an editing style in which he would take old cartoons such as the 1970s “Super Friends” show or scenes from popular kids' shows such as “The Muppet Show” and synch those with some of his favorite songs. From mashing up Superman with Wu Tang Clan to setting the Cartoon Network hit “Rick and Morty” to Kendrick Lamar to having “Sesame Street's” Bert and Ernie vibe with Warren G and Nate Dogg, Schleichkorn created his own unique video genre — and attracted the attention of both hip-hop fans and artists.
Which led, in fortuitous fashion, to Schleichkorn’s current role as director of creative development and promotion at Hip Hop Public Health.
Founded by music icon Doug E. Fresh along with professional health advocates, Hip Hop Public Health was developed to promote health literacy and engagement among young people and families in communities of color. One of its most effective outreach methods is music — including original songs contributed by leading hip-hop artists — and video. Which was right in Schleichkorn's wheelhouse.
"At this point in my career, I was looking for a way to make a difference," explained Schleichkorn. "And I really believe in this mission."
Since joining their creative team in the fall of 2021, Schleichkorn's projects at Hip Hop Public Health have included a series of music videos about COVID-19 to address issues such as vaccine hesitancy — using the power of viral videos to help slow an actual virus.
While applying his skills to public health education, Schleichkorn continues to maintain his Mylo the Cat brand. The real Mylo the cat has retired comfortably, but his imagery still shows up in Schleichkorn's work — including a recent animated Mylo homage to Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill." The ever-busy Schleichkorn is also developing an animated TV series.
"I'm so lucky that I love my work," said Schleichkorn. "I am very grateful."
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