Algorithm, Search & Distribution
Resurfacing
Also called: second wave, revival, re-promotion
Resurfacing is what creators call it when a video that went quiet starts pulling views again, sometimes years later. YouTube keeps testing uploads against new audience segments long after publish, so a video's ceiling is not set in its first 24 hours. A back catalogue can wake up on its own. It also wakes up when a recent upload does well and sends fresh viewers digging through everything else you have made.