As a bleach-blond teenager growing up in northeast Ohio, Logan Paul always had direction. Everything Paul did—from his social media start on Vine to his eventual migration to YouTube, where he built a community of more than 20 million subscribers—was for a singular purpose. “A stepping stone,” Paul says, “to become one of the biggest entertainers in the world.” And for his brother, Jake, a fellow Vine-turned-YouTuber with a comparable following? “Truthfully,” says Logan, “I don’t know what Jake’s intention was.”
Boxing, ultimately. Over the past 3½ years Jake Paul has emerged as one of boxing’s most marketable fighters, collecting wins—and hefty paychecks—over aging former MMA stars. A decision defeat to Tommy Fury—the first “real” fighter on Jake’s résumé—handed him his first loss but didn’t deter him. On Saturday, Paul returns to the (semi)retired MMA fighter circuit when he takes on Nate Diaz, the popular former UFC star.
Recently Logan, now a rising WWE star, sat down with Sports Illustrated to discuss Jake’s beginnings, his interest in boxing and just how serious his brother is about cleaning up the sport.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Sports Illustrated: So who was the first to pick up the camera?
Logan Paul: I have always been the media kid. Jake was convinced by me to be in the videos that I wanted to make. And he was a very good addition to the content that I was making. Throughout the years of both of us doing it, he just learned how to do it himself. But I could say with confidence that our YouTube wave and content wave definitely started because I was the brother with the attraction towards the video camera.
SI: I read in an interview you did that Jake actually motivated you.
LP: I remember that. It was back when I think Jake had 600 followers on Vine, and I had 400. In high school, that was a big deal. That was like your whole high school. All the kids in your school knew who you were. But it was true, though. My little brother did have 200 more followers than me, which was annoying because for eight years prior, I had been the one editing the YouTube videos. Coming up with the ideas, making sure we’re actually shooting and uploading on our channel.
But Vine was a different story. Vine, for some reason, Jake started off a little quicker than I did. One day Jake taunted me for having 200 more followers than me. That pissed me off. I said to myself, No way my little brother could have more followers than me, and then I just started making daily Vines, and it really started taking off for us.
SI: When did you start to notice that Jake was doing interesting stuff?
LP: I have an interesting perspective because I’m the older brother and for a very long time it was competitive between us. But the thing that impressed me most about Jake’s career at the beginning was his ability to not let the idea that he was in my shadow affect the type of person he was or demotivate him. Jake was never dissuaded by the fact that he was my little brother. In his eyes, he could have the world if he just worked hard. And he was right.
SI: Did that surprise you?
LP: I think it did, dude. I don’t know how well you know Jake, but he’s an emotional being. Even though he’s this hardcore, really intense, driven, passionate boxer now, at his core Jake is an emotional guy. I was proud of him for pushing through all the tribulation that adolescence came with for him and becoming his own entity. That’s not an easy feat to conquer with the internet like he did. On top of it, being the little brother who was also doing the same exact thing isn’t always easy. It did surprise me when Jake put his head down and decided to become his own person and become Jake Paul, versus Logan Paul’s little brother.
SI: How is Jake’s use of social media different than yours?
LP: At 10 years old, I was the one who was inspired to make these stupid little videos and post them online. Granted, Jake loved it, but he was ancillary as far as the creator world goes. I don’t know what his intentions were when he first started creating content online. Dude, that’s actually an interesting question. I just think he liked it. I think he liked it, and he found it a fun way to make money and get popular.
SI: Right. You said you used it as a tool. Jake was maybe more scattershot with it?
LP: That’s exactly what it is, which is ironic because boxing for him is that purpose that I have always felt my whole life with social media. Boil me down, at the heart of my being, I’m a creator. I will be making content or making art or music. Whatever it is, I will be making stuff. Jake is a really unique human who found his calling, if you will, in boxing at age 20.
Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports
SI: Who got into boxing first?
LP: Legitimately with the eyes on making it a profession, at least for a little while, we started at the same time. Because of KSI’s call-out [in 2018]. But Jake had been playing with some anime stuff. He had an anime thing on his channel. He had been drawn to fighting I think before I wanted to do it online.
SI: If KSI doesn’t call you guys out—are either of you in boxing?
LP: I thought about this before. The answer is yes, just because I believe influencer, creator, celebrity boxing would have eventually still become a huge thing. Jake and I, as young men who like combat and working out, would have, regardless of [what] happened then, eventually sunk our teeth into this sport.
SI: Jake likes to say boxing changed him. Do you believe that?
LP: Boxing made Jake into a really well-rounded, emotionally mature human. I’m saying all this from the perspective of being someone who knows him very well, if not one of the most in the world. But the Jake Paul you see online isn’t the Jake that is my brother. Boxing gave him purpose in a way that he hadn’t had before. When an individual finds their purpose, they become the best version of themselves. They have to really work on themselves, which he is. Jake’s devoted his body and mind to self-growth and self-love and become a really great version of himself because of boxing.
SI: He likes to say it saved his life, too.
LP: Growing up, on paper, Jake was a failure. There’s no other way to put it. Jake was an on-paper failure. High school dropout. To go to L.A. to do different media, 1.7 GPA, in the wrong crew in high school, breaking the law, stealing iPhones, committing petty crimes. An on-paper failure. But he found boxing and was able to channel his problematic, fired-up teenage and youthful angst into something with a really great payoff that entertains millions of people, which is something I know he loves to do.
SI: Jake has had some public battles with Dana White over UFC fighter pay. How much of that do you think is real and how much of it is you can generate headlines battling with Dana White?
LP: The fighter pay issue, it’s all real. It's 100% real. He really cares. He, as an innovator, understands that he can have a real, long-lasting impact in this sport, beyond just his own legacy, if he points his finger at the fighter pay issue. Now the person he happens to be pointing his finger at, at the moment, is Dana White, which in general, if you’re going to lead a campaign against something, it’s good to have a target. Which is why I believe he’s chosen Dana as the target because it gives him ammunition and his troops something or perhaps someone to rally around. But he really cares, man. He really wants to make a difference in the sport that he’s participating in, beyond just his legacy as an athlete in that sport.
SI: Do you think his interest in combat sports continues when he is done fighting?
LP: I do. I absolutely do. I think the proof is in the pudding. He’s got a promotional company, Most Valuable Promotions, where he puts out fighters. That’s all they want to do. These people want to be the best fighters in the world. The Amanda Serranos and the other fighters he has signed. I would imagine their careers aren’t going to be short. Jake’s going to be managing them and continuing to sign people to his promotional company for as long as he wants to.
SI: It’s easy to be passionate about your own career. Why do you think he is passionate about helping others?
LP: I think there’s a lot of reasons, but I think if you boil it down it’s because since he started fighting professionally, he’s gained a lot more respect for fighters. Man, this is the hardest job in the world. It can be the most fulfilling job in the world and also the most debilitating job in the world if you let it. Again, as a person who is a 360-degree individual, he’s not just a fighter. He’s not just a content creator. He’s a businessman. He wants to make real change, real impact. The villain that is pretending to be Jake Paul, getting people to buy his pay-per-views, actually wants fighters to be worth what they deserve.
SI: What do you think Jake is doing in 10 years?
LP: Man, I can’t answer that question, unfortunately. Jake and I have been doing media professionally for 10 years. We literally just hit our decade mark on being professional content creators for 10 years. The arc that has taken place in the last 10 years is incomprehensible. I imagine that the arc that will take place in the next 10 years will also be completely incomprehensible. Brother, I have no f–––ing idea. My man could be a monk in the mountains of China in 10 years. I have no idea what Jake Paul will be doing in 10 years.
