Hannah Melton, a sophomore public relations major, burst onto the viral video scene with a little help from one of the greatest tricks of YouTube sensations: anesthesia. A video of her pretending to be Hannah Montana after having her wisdom teeth removed made it big after being posted online for her IST 400: “Social Media Enterprise” class, also known as #RotoloClass. Upon the success of the video, Melton was asked to appear on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.” During the April 18 episode, she spoke about the video and her love of Hannah Montana. The Daily Orange spoke with Melton to find out more about her experience. 

The Daily Orange: What’s the funniest reaction you’ve gotten to your video?

Hannah Melton: I guess not the funniest, but the best thing about it would have to be when people say that it was the best — that it cheered them up on that day. I’ve had people message me, saying, “I was in a really bad mood that day, and then I saw your video and it completely turned my day around,” and stuff like that. That would definitely be not the funniest part, but the greatest part about it.

The D.O.: How was it being on “Ellen”?

Melton: Legally, I’m not sure what I’m allowed to say, but I’ll say she’s just as great as you’d expect her to be. I couldn’t ask for a better show to be on.

The D.O.: How did your family react to you being on “Ellen”?

Melton: They were super excited. My sister actually decided to go with me and take the trip with me. That was a great experience. Overall, everyone was really excited. My whole family watched it at home and they were really happy for me. I mean, it’s not like I necessarily want to have a career. It’s never been my intention to have a career out of this, like acting or being a YouTube star. That’s never been my intention, so it’s been more fun for them more than anything.

The D.O.: Who was actually recording you when you were under the anesthesia?

Melton: My mom recorded the video, but my best friend, Hannah Redfield, posted the video with the subtitles on it. But my mom recorded the video and was there with me after surgery. My friend posted the video for Rotolo’s social media class.

The D.O.: Would you want to make more viral videos in the future?

Melton: I think it’s a very interesting, upcoming field. I know that YouTube has their own office now, so I think that it’s a very interesting field, and I would like to. I think it’s very fun, but I wouldn’t necessarily want to do it for a career.

The D.O.: What has been your favorite moment out of all of the events since you made this video?

Melton: I would have to say my favorite moment would just be people’s reactions to the video — it just makes my life. Like when my seventh-grade teacher — she’d seen the video, she lives in Vermont now and I hadn’t seen her in years — and she posted that she’d seen my video on the “Ellen” show and just said how excited she was.

Published on April 21, 2013 at 11:48 pm

Contact Chelsea: cedebais@syr.edu | @CDeBaise124