Minnesota and Midwest reference · Originally published on Josh Liljenquist’s website. KitGlade hosts this edition. Original authorship, publication dates and sources are credited below.
Source-backed directory · unranked
A source-backed comparison of hometowns, formative communities, early creator milestones and current Minnesota relationships for 16 creators.
Scope
Compare origins with the professional-base directory. Current source qualifications are versioned separately from the unchanged historical inputs.
This research separates hometown and upbringing, first documented creator work, and current Minnesota base. Those are different facts: being based in Minnesota now does not prove Minnesota origin, and Minnesota origin does not prove current residence.
The directory is a selected evidence set, not a census of every Minnesota creator and not a follower ranking.
Direct answer
The records show several patterns without claiming statewide completeness: Greater Minnesota origins, Twin Cities origins, Minnesota career starts, and creators whose later base differs from their hometown.
Derived reference view · version 1.0.0
This comparison links 16 selected origin records with the 47-entity creator-base directory. It uses explicit identities, source dates and entity types—not matching names or audience locations. The origin edition was reviewed September 21; the base directory was compiled October 29. The crosswalk and citation annotations were reviewed October 30, 2026; none of those dates means every location was newly verified.
The eight matches include five Person records and three Organization records. A person and a channel are not merged simply because one created the other. CboysTV’s base evidence is dated; How To Make Everything’s current-base source review remains unresolved. Neither is a new present-location verification.
Birthplace is a separate evidence question. Two of the 13 Person-origin records have an explicit Minnesota birthplace in the specific retained citation checked for this view. Birthplace is not established here for the other 11; the three Organization records are not person-birthplace observations. This does not mean only two were born in Minnesota: other biographies may document more. College-era work, upbringing and member roots remain distinct evidence types.
Five of the eight matched base-source publication dates are unknown in this view. Review dates and access dates are kept separate rather than substituted. This is not a fresh count of everyone currently working in Minnesota or a census of Minnesota-born creators.
On narrow screens, scroll the table horizontally. All rows and source links are in ordinary HTML and remain available without JavaScript. Filters on the original cards below do not change this fixed comparison.
| Origin record | What the origin citation supports | Identity relationship | Base evidence and its limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| CboysTV Organization · Cormorant area | Group roots and channel origin Minnesota Star Tribune · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2021-01-28. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | Same entity CboysTV · Organization Exact shared identifier; Organization in both. | Recorded directory label: Cormorant, Minnesota 2019/2021/2023 material is dated context. The existing directory match is not a fresh verification of its current operating base. Source published: 2019. Record reviewed: 2026-09-27. |
| Grant Collins Person · Rochester | Hometown and creator-work origin University of Minnesota School of Dentistry · OFFICIAL INSTITUTION Published 2023-01-26. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | Same entity The Braces Guy · Person Exact shared identifier; official profile explicitly equates Dr. Grant Collins with The Braces Guy. | Recorded directory label: Rochester, Minnesota Maintained professional or organization page readable on the access date; publication date unknown. Public professional context, not private residence or presence today. Source published: Unknown / not established. Record reviewed: 2026-10-29. Access checked 2026-10-30; not a publication date. |
| Jimmy Darts Person · Walker | Hometown and early channel start Minnesota Star Tribune · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2026-07-08. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | No counterpart in the selected directory No counterpart identified within this selected directory. | No counterpart in this selected current-base directory. This does not establish where the creator currently works or lives. |
| Snake Discovery Organization · Woodbury and Maplewood | Member upbringing and Minnesota operation Woodbury Magazine · INDEPENDENT LOCAL PROFILE Published 2024-10-01. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | Same entity Snake Discovery · Organization Exact shared identifier; Organization in both. | Recorded directory label: Maplewood, Minnesota Maintained professional or organization page readable on the access date; publication date unknown. Public professional context, not private residence or presence today. Source published: Unknown / not established. Record reviewed: 2026-10-29. Access checked 2026-10-30; not a publication date. |
| Food Dolls Organization · Eden Prairie | Raised and creator-work origin Minnesota Star Tribune · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2025-02-25. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. Publication date supplied from the matching publisher citation; the original directory source-date cell remains unchanged. | Same entity Food Dolls · Organization Exact shared identifier; Organization in both; identical retained source URL. | Recorded directory label: Minnesota Dated 2025 reporting. Directory review date is not a fresh publication date or proof of physical presence today. Source published: 2025-02-25. Record reviewed: 2026-09-17. |
| Justin Flom Person · Eden Prairie | Raised and early professional formation Minnesota Star Tribune · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2014-08-19. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | No counterpart in the selected directory No counterpart identified within this selected directory. | No counterpart in this selected current-base directory. This does not establish where the creator currently works or lives. |
| Connor Franta Person · La Crescent | Raised and early channel start Minnesota Star Tribune · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2015-04-30. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | No counterpart in the selected directory No counterpart identified within this selected directory. | No counterpart in this selected current-base directory. This does not establish where the creator currently works or lives. |
| Nora Freetly Person · Mankato | College/formative creator-work origin Voyage Minnesota · PUBLISHER-HOSTED FIRST-PERSON Published 2023-02-16. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | Same entity Nora Freetly (Nobo) · Person Exact shared identifier; official professional film bio explicitly equates Nora Freetly and Nobo. | Recorded directory label: Minnesota Maintained professional or organization page readable on the access date; publication date unknown. Public professional context, not private residence or presence today. Source published: Unknown / not established. Record reviewed: 2026-09-17. Access checked 2026-10-30; not a publication date. |
| Andy George Person · Minneapolis | Born and raised Tubefilter · Publisher-hosted creator interview; series partnership disclosed Published 2019-10-23. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. Birthplace and upbringing are first-person interview statements, not current-residence verification. | Related creator and channel; separate entities How To Make Everything · Organization Publisher interview and official About identify the creator/host; Person and channel remain separate entities. | Recorded directory label: Minneapolis, Minnesota Creator-to-channel relationship only; separate Person and Organization. The current-base source review remains unresolved; 2019 launch context is not a new location verification. Source published: 2019-10-23. Record reviewed: 2026-09-27. |
| Yung Gravy Person · Rochester | Rochester upbringing Minnesota Star Tribune · Independent concert review with biographical context Published 2023-08-30. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. Retained citation supports upbringing, not a precise birthplace. | No counterpart in the selected directory No counterpart identified within this selected directory. | No counterpart in this selected current-base directory. This does not establish where the creator currently works or lives. |
| Zach Johnson Person · Lowry area | Raised and creator-work origin Minnesota Star Tribune · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2022-01-29. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | Same entity Millennial Farmer · Person Exact shared identifier; official site explicitly equates Zach Johnson and Millennial Farmer. | Recorded directory label: West Central Minnesota Maintained professional or organization page readable on the access date; publication date unknown. Public professional context, not private residence or presence today. Source published: Unknown / not established. Record reviewed: 2026-09-17. Access checked 2026-10-30; not a publication date. |
| Haley Kalil Person · Excelsior | Born in Minnesota Minnesota Star Tribune · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2026-03-16. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | No counterpart in the selected directory No counterpart identified within this selected directory. | No counterpart in this selected current-base directory. This does not establish where the creator currently works or lives. |
| Josie Lewis Person · Northern Minnesota | Northern Minnesota upbringing Augsburg University Art Galleries · Institutional exhibition record with artist biography Published 2014-09-06. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. Corrects publisher/date attribution and narrows the origin claim to upbringing. The page also displays 2021-11-09, whose date role is unverified; no teenage artistic-start date established by this citation. | Same entity Josie Lewis Art · Person Exact shared identifier; Augsburg origin source links josielewis.com; creator site links @josielewisart, matching directory official profile. | Recorded directory label: St. Paul, Minnesota Separate July 2026 professional-base reporting; the 2014 artist biography is not current-location evidence. Source published: 2026-07-14. Record reviewed: 2026-09-19. |
| Josh Liljenquist Person · Fairmont | Hometown and college-era creator development Mankato Free Press · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2020-07-16. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. The retained 2020 citation documents Mankato creator development; Fairmont hometown context is sourced separately in the official Minnesota biography. No excluded press URL re-exported. | Same entity Josh Liljenquist (Joshlilj) · Person Origin canonical #person resolves in current homepage/about schema; same Person name/alternateName Joshlilj and current official site plus @joshlilj. Exact explicit alias/URL chain, not name similarity. | Recorded directory label: Chaska, Minnesota First-party dated geography reference: professional/creator base, not private residence. March 2024 residence wording is historical. Source published: Unknown / not established. Record reviewed: 2026-10-21. |
| Adam Young Person · Owatonna | Hometown and creator-work origin The Guardian · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2010-01-28. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | No counterpart in the selected directory No counterpart identified within this selected directory. | No counterpart in this selected current-base directory. This does not establish where the creator currently works or lives. |
| Tay Zonday Person · Minneapolis | University/formative creator-work origin TIME · INDEPENDENT REPORTING Published 2016-07-07. Origin record reviewed 2026-09-21. | No counterpart in the selected directory No counterpart identified within this selected directory. | No counterpart in this selected current-base directory. This does not establish where the creator currently works or lives. |
These names remain qualified for their existing directory context; this list makes no birthplace, hometown or residence inference. How To Make Everything appears here because its association with Andy George is not person-to-organization identity equivalence.
Download the 16-row comparison CSV · Download the versioned identity map and citation annotations · Download the standard-library reproduction helper
Cite Josh Liljenquist, Minnesota Origin–Base Comparison, view 1.0.0, reviewed October 30, 2026, and this stable comparison section. For an individual geographic fact, cite the linked original source, its publication date and the exact relationship it establishes.
Inputs: the unchanged 16-record origin edition and 47-record fixed directory edition. The original inputs retain historical wording; current citation corrections are explicit in the versioned map and this page. No held-record metadata is copied into the new view.
Run the helper with the two source files and map, then use --summary for denominators or --verify with the comparison CSV. It checks all three digests before deriving the view; no network or source edits. In the CSV, \N is unknown/null, not zero. An empty text cell remains distinct. Identities are explicitly mapped; there is no fuzzy-name or location inference.
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16 records shown
Group roots and channel origin
The group developed its YouTube work on the lakes and back roads of Becker County near Cormorant.
View retained source
Minnesota Star Tribune · verified 2026-09-21
Hometown and creator-work origin
The Rochester orthodontist opened a practice in his hometown and began the TikTok account in spring 2019.
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University of Minnesota School of Dentistry · verified 2026-09-21
Hometown and early channel start
Grew up in Walker and started uploading YouTube videos there.
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Minnesota Star Tribune · verified 2026-09-21
Member upbringing and Minnesota operation
The creator organization grew from member roots and educational reptile work in Woodbury and Maplewood.
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Woodbury Magazine · verified 2026-09-21
Raised and creator-work origin
Alia and Radwa Elkaffas grew up in Eden Prairie and launched their first recipe-video page in 2015.
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Minnesota Star Tribune · verified 2026-09-21
Raised and early professional formation
Grew up performing magic on a basement stage in his Eden Prairie home before later online video work.
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Minnesota Star Tribune · verified 2026-09-21
Raised and early channel start
Raised in La Crescent and posted his first YouTube video while in high school.
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Minnesota Star Tribune · verified 2026-09-21
College/formative creator-work origin
Downloaded TikTok in 2020 during her final graduate-school year at Minnesota State University, Mankato.
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Voyage Minnesota · verified 2026-09-21
Born and raised
Born and raised in Minneapolis; his How To Make Everything documentary was tried locally before moving to YouTube.
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Tubefilter · verified 2026-09-21
Rochester upbringing
Rochester upbringing; birthplace unclassified here.
See Rochester’s sourced city directory for further context.
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Minnesota Star Tribune · verified 2026-09-21
Raised and creator-work origin
Grew up in the farmhouse near Lowry and began Millennial Farmer videos from the family farming operation.
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Minnesota Star Tribune · verified 2026-09-21
Born in Minnesota
Born in Excelsior; later built a comedy, fashion and lifestyle creator career.
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Minnesota Star Tribune · verified 2026-09-21
Northern Minnesota upbringing
Raised in northern Minnesota; the retained citation does not establish a teenage artistic-start date.
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Augsburg University Art Galleries · institutional artist biography · posted 2014-09-06; second displayed date 2021-11-09 has an unverified role · original record reviewed 2026-09-21
Hometown and college-era creator development
Fairmont native and Fairmont High School graduate; his biography dates creator work to 2019 during his Mankato university period, independently profiled there in 2020.
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Mankato Free Press · verified 2026-09-21
Hometown and creator-work origin
Owl City began in 2007 in the basement of his family home in Owatonna; Young uploaded the music to MySpace.
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The Guardian · verified 2026-09-21
University/formative creator-work origin
Posted early YouTube work while a University of Minnesota graduate student; Chocolate Rain was uploaded in April 2007.
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TIME · verified 2026-09-21
Records reuse audited canonical identities and relationship-specific sources. Current location is shown only when the retained evidence supports a dated statement. ItemList position is technical alphabetical ordering, not prominence.
Last reviewed .