‘Jack Denmo’ sees mayhem at Queen’s as ‘marketing opportunity’

Content warning: This article contains quotes using misogynistic language which may be upsetting to some readers. It is included for the sole purpose of providing an accurate and comprehensive view of the article’s subject matter. Reader discretion is strongly advised.

It is no secret that unsanctioned street parties in the University District associated with Queen’s University have been causing numerous headaches, both literal and figurative. One man who sees this as a “marketing” opportunity on which to capitalize is Jack Densmore.

“Jack Denmo,” as he calls himself, is a YouTuber whose channel description reads “A man and his friends making funny videos based out of Toronto, Canada.” His videos have garnered 118,147,021 views since he joined YouTube in August 2017.

“I’ve been making videos for the last couple of years, primarily focusing on bars, clubs, universities, large crowds of hyped-up people. Because what you do is you get to hype up and meet hundreds if not thousands of people, and then they check out [your videos] and anytime you start something in the future, like say, a podcast a series, they’re interested. It’s the best way to market and build a YouTube channel,” said Densmore in an interview Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021.

“I know everybody wants to watch these drunken degenerate videos where people are jumping onto pong tables and stuff, but my dream is to grow the podcast, so this is all just marketing.”

Densmore then addressed a particular aspect of his videos from time here in Kingston that have drawn a lot of ire, both locally and from viewers across the province.

“I bring virgins to the club; it’s a series I do. We got young men, we give them confidence by taking them out with all the boys and get them a bunch of kills with girls,” explained Denmo, who uses the term ‘kills’ in his videos to describe sexual hookups.

“We needed a haircut for him. So, I found a barber that actually was running a barbershop out of his dorm room [in Queen’s University’s Brant House Residence], went in to get a haircut with him, and eight police showed up right away, ticketed me, banned me from the campus. And so, now I’m officially banned from Queen’s University.”  

Densmore said, “I got a $2,000 ticket because, apparently, I didn’t leave the street when they put the siren out — but I’m gonna fight it because realistically, there’s no way anybody can hear anything like that, it’s way too loud on the street.”

He described his goals, which he intends to work towards through his videos and following.

“Within five years, I want to own a ranch in BC, have a hot wife and pump her full of a bunch of kids, have vegetables, and cattle running around, but before that, get into acting, filmmaking and, right now, create the number one podcast in North America,” he shared.

Densmore attended both Homecoming Weekend, as well as “Fake Homecoming” for what he calls his “gonzo journalism,” and said he was, “very surprised with the turnout, especially considering the weather, but Queen’s students are absolute savages and they don’t care what the weather’s like, they’re still going to go out and party.”

He continued, noting he “was impressed by how little property damage was done because, at McMaster, there was cars flipped, which we condemned as a crew, but there was no damaged cars or anything like that, to the same extent [in Kingston]. So, I consider last week an extreme success.”

Confronted with the fact that there had been a stabbing and multiple other property damage incidents at parties during Queen’s Homecoming weekend, Densmore said, “I think it’s awful that people even bring weapons to homecomings,” before indicating the sword he carries, “is a fake sword, obviously.”

“But yeah,” he continued, “I think it’s awful that there’s any kind of violence at homecomings. There’s a bunch of fights, obviously there’s always going to be hooligans when you have a bunch of young drunk people at nighttime, but I feel awful for whoever got stabbed, I hope they’re okay. And anybody listening, I absolutely condemn violence, and I hope nobody stabs anybody ever again at a Homecoming.”

Queen’s University Homecoming 2021: The Movie was posted to YouTube on Monday, Oct. 18, 2021. The over an hour-long video includes footage of drunken young people shotgunning beer, shooting off fireworks, falling over, and telling Denmo, “I love you, bro.”

Densmore and his team conclude the video with a scene of them sitting in a hotel room discussing the events of the weekend.

Densmore addresses his Kingston audience in the video, “I don’t know what you guys want me to do at this point, not only am I bringing you guys millions of dollars,” referring to a group of international students whom he claims attended Queens only because they saw how “awesome hoco was” in his previous videos.

He claims,“I reached out to the police before I came here, ‘hey let’s work together to make sure it goes smooth, safe, even if it means you know, posting a photo of us shaking hands like hey, let’s be safe. Let’s get along. Let’s have some drinks together.’ Nothing, no response.”

Two young men identified as “Cringedaddy” and “Train Boy,” both described as “Denmo’s intern and prodigy” also appear in the video complaining that they were treated with “disrespect” by Kingston Police and describing an incident in which Cringedaddy says a female officer “fucked with Train Boy.”

“I was walking down the street with my boys, and they saw my beer belt and like they demanded ID. Yo, you’re under 19, you can’t have that. Like, that violates a constitutional right like that goes against the Charter, they can’t just demand ID like that in Canada,” declared Train Boy in the video. “That’s pretty screwed up, and the Kingston cop got right in my face, was super threatening, demanded that I show her some respect when she was screaming at me.”

“Was she showing you respect Train Boy?” asks Densmore in the video.

“No, definitely not,” he replies.

“Did you see any damaging shit that happened today?” Densmore asks Train Boy.

“Other than like, every single lawn on Aberdeen Avenue being like, completely screwed up. No,” is the answer.

“So, besides every single house getting pissed and shit on,” Densmore confirms.

True to his word, Densmore concludes his video by encouraging his audience to check out his podcast and, “Stay in school, get a safety net, get jobs, build a nice network, be safe, start a business, get on your purpose guys.”

“It’s not about day kills, either,” he muses, again referring to sexual encounters, this time particularly those that occur during the day, as opposed to at night. “I think I’m actually retiring from day kills. I mean, the boys were talking about this, we had some extreme close calls these last couple hocos, and it’s basically gotten us to the point where it’s like, you know, the day kills are just not as important as they used to be. It’s about the boys, it’s about the drinks, not necessarily getting day kills.”

This week, on Wednesday, Oct. 27, 2021, Queen’s Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Services (SVPRS) and Sexual Assault Centre Kingston (SAC Kingston) will host an online event, a virtual screening of The Bystander Moment, featuring Jackson Katz. The two associations have partnered up as part of an Engaging Men on Campus Series, and the event aims to break down gender stereotypes, explain how to become active bystanders, and inspire leaders in our community.

The following sexual violence resources are available in Kingston and at Queen’s University:

There are a number of resources in place at Queen’s for students who have been affected by sexual violence, including Student Wellness Services, the Human Rights and Equity Office, and the AMS Peer Support Centre.

Any student in need of support is encouraged to contact Queen’s Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Coordinator, Barb Lotan, at [email protected]. For free 24/7 crisis support, students can also turn to Empower Me and Good2Talk. Faculty and staff can contact the Employee and Family Assistance Program.

Learn more on the Queen’s Sexual Violence Prevention and Response website.

To connect with Sexual Assault Centre Kingston, click here.