Newbie question regarding monetization (unmonetizable content)

Sorry for this noob question but I just need to know -

I have this channel with 962 subscribers and 13.4k hours watch time. Let's assume I delete the videos and upload a non-copyrighted video of something relevant to the topic, could I monetize this channel?

thanks for your answers

You will lose any watchtime that isn't public. If you delete or private a video the watchtime will disappear.