EP 359- Davaun Williams (aka Chess Knowledge with H1) on Chess TikTok Stardom, Opening Traps, and Improvement Recs
This week I am joined by a rising star in chess media, Davaun Williams. To his 200,000+ Tiktok followers and nearly 80,000 Instagram followers, Davaun is better known as “Chess Knowledge with H1.” In our conversation, we discuss H1’s chess origins, the origins of the nickname “H1,” and how he gained fame for using a demo board and throwing the captured chess pieces during his entertaining videos. Davaun’s videos feature a lot of opening traps, and he has just released his first Chessable course, “Opening Traps You Must Learn.” In addition to discussing chess openings, Davaun shares other chess improvement advice, and even advises me on whether or not I should continue to post videos on TikTok. All in all, this was a fun conversation, and it was great to learn more about Davaun’s background. Timestamps of topics discussed are below.
Thanks to our presenting chess education sponsors, Chessable.com. You can see their latest courses here:
https://www.chessable.com/courses/all/new/
0:02- Davaun has been making chess content for years, but during the past year he has seen his TikTok channel explode. What changed?
0:05- Does Davaun have plans to dedicate himself full time to chess content?
0:06- Davaun discusses his unusual USCF rating history:
12:00- Davaun’s favorite chess content creators
Mentioned: Gotham Chess, IM John Bartholomew, KingsCrusher, The Chessbrahs
13:00- Davaun’s chess origin story
Mentioned: Chessmaster: Grandmaster Edition
17:00- How did Davaun develop the habit of throwing the Demo board pieces after they are captured in his videos?
20:00- How did Davaun decide to write a Chessable course on Opening Traps?
Mentioned: Davaun’s video about the Polish/Orangutan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQQW_ZHbut4
23:00- What is Davaun’s theory as to why his shorter videos get more traction than the longer ones? How is his podcast, Chess Knowledge with H1 doing?
https://open.spotify.com/show/6AefOx7Atzw3bgyfHG2bjR?si=3ed28f8e7d794837
27:00-Is Davaun interested in, and does he cover, top-level chess?
Mentioned: Agadmator, Gotham Chess
30:00- Will Davaun’s kids play chess?
33:00- What is Davaun’s favorite aspect of chess? What is his favorite opening to play?
39:00- Davaun gives both chess improvement and chess content advice.
44:00- I ask Davaun’s advice: Should I continue to post videos to TikTok if noone is watching them?
Thanks to Davaun for joining me on the pod, here is his linktree:
https://linktr.ee/H1chess
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Bonus Pod- Three Amateurs on Chess Lessons Learned and Adventures Had at the National Open in Las Vegas
Bonus pod- Law Professor David Franklin returns to Discuss the Dismissal of the Hans NIemann/Chess.com Lawsuit
EP 336- GM Jan Timman: The Legendary Author and Dutch Champion discusses his new book on Max Euwe, How his Generation Compares to the Current One, and Magnus and the Modern Chess Landscape
EP 335- Adult Improvers and Chessable co-Authors, WIM Natasha Regan and Matthew Ball on Improving at Chess in Your 50s, Tips for Playing against Kids and The Similarities between Shogi and Chess
EP 334- GM Ben Finegold on the Possible Decline of Magnus, his New 1. d4 Chessable Course, and more Stories from his Years of Chess Travels
EP 333: IM James Sherwin- A US Chess Hall of Famer Looks Back on his Chess Career and Shares Stories about Fischer, Reshevsky, Seirawan and Many More!
EP 332- GM Vinay Bhat: A Former Child Prodigy Turned Data Scientist Shares Lessons Learned and Memorable Stories from his Chess Career
EP 331- Adult Improver John Neely (aka Benedictine) on lessons learned and recommendations from a long journey to 1800.
EP 330- Chess Improvement Q and A with Top Trainer and Author, GM Wojciech Moranda Topics Include: Annotating Games, Improving Positional Chess, and Learning from Playing vs. Learning from Studying
EP 329- GM Sam Shankland: One of the the top Players in the U.S. on How he Improved His Rapid Game and his Endgame Play, His 2023 Tournament Plans and his Advice for Overcoming Setbacks in Chess
EP 328- Ding delivers in dramatic fashion! World Championship wrapup with Dutch National Champion and Top Trainer, GM Erwin L’Ami.
Bonus Pod- Tied with just one classical game to go! GM Alex Lenderman helps break down the Blunders and the Bouncebacks of this Fascinating FIDE World Championship
EP 327- Geert van der Velde, CEO of Chessable, on the Chess.com Merger, “Chessable 3.0,” Including the Courses and Improvements Chessable Users Can Expect this Year
Bonus Pod - World Championship Round 9 Update- Dramatic Games, Leaked Prep and Chess Improvement Takeaways for Amateur Players with IM Andras Toth
EP 326- Popular YouTuber and Streamer WGM Dina Belenkaya on Lessons Learned from Recent Tournaments, Twitch Streaming OTB Games and her Content and Chess Goals for 2023
Bonus Pod- Ding Deadlocks the World Championship Match after 4 games, with FM Mike Klein of Chess.com
EP 325- Adult Improver Chris Duncan on the Popularity of Chess in the Military and the Connective Power of the Game to bring Cultures Together
EP 324- IM Levy Rozman/Gotham Chess on Surpassing 3 Million YouTube Subs, Retiring from OTB, his DMs with Magnus, and his Future Plans
EP 323- Ding-Nepo World Championship Match Preview Double Episode- GM Daniel King on the Players and Historical Context, NM Matt Jensen on the Match Analytics. Also Discussed: Rating Deflation, The S
EP 322- IM Willy Hendriks- The Groundbreaking Author and Trainer on Chess Improvement, Chess History, and The Books that Most Influenced Him
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