Video game streaming is often perceived as an overwhelmingly “white” activity. This is a shame since black Twitch streamers have been part of the streaming community since the very beginning.
The truth is that gamers are far more diverse than the stereotype of a teenager white guy. In fact, the average gamer is 34 years old, and 45 percent of gamers are women. Similarly, black adults are actually slightly more likely to be gamers than white adults.
It’s time for advertisers to throw the 1980s gamer stereotypes out the window. A modern Twitch influencer marketing campaign needs to reach a diverse community, which means partnering with black gaming influencers.
CloutBoost has compiled a list of the top 10 black streamers on Twitch. These gaming influencers are listed by the number of followers they have on their Twitch channels. We’ve also featured their current brand sponsorships, which can give you additional insight into whether a given streamer is the right fit for your brand to work with.
Myth, whose real name is Ali Kabbani, is a streamer who has become successful not once, but twice. Kabbani first became famous as a Fortnite streamer, and was considered a top player in the game’s early days.
As the landscape changed and his Fortnite skills stopped winning tournaments, he re-invented himself. Today, Kabbani is the number four Valorant player in the US, and also dabbles in chess and Valheim. With over 7 million followers, he hits the top of our list of most followed black Twitch streamers.
Myth is sponsored by Logitech and LG, and has partnered with Sonic and Samsung in the past.
Nick Polom’s online handle, Nmplol, consists of his initials plus the letters “lol,” and the lol is there for a reason. He’s a competent Grand Theft Auto V player, but Nick’s real strength is his sense of humor.
In fact, with 3+ million followers, he’s currently the number five most-watched channel in the “Just Chatting,” category on Twitch. That’s right. Nick actually gets the bulk of his views when he’s just sitting in front of his computer and riffing with his fans.
Thanks to his charm and razor wit, Nick never has to pay for equipment. He has sponsorship agreements with Logitech, MSI, Yamaha, Philips, Sony, and Shure, just to name a few.
Shofu is a major black Twitch streamer who’s been active for over four years. Despite being one of the platform’s old-timers, he’s managed to keep his real name a mystery, even while amassing 1.4 million followers.
Shofu’s channel is labeled for mature audiences only, mostly because he uses a lot of adult language. Meanwhile, he’s best-known for playing Nintendo games like Super Smash Bros.
This combination of profanity and cute graphics has made Shofu one of the most desired streamers online. Since 2016, he’s been a member of Team eLevate, sponsored by GFuel. He also has a partnership with RoosterTeeth, which gives him access to their sponsor network.
Despite his online handle, Annoying is anything but annoying, at least to his 1.4-million followers. His real name is Mario, and he mostly streams Grand Theft Auto V and Fortnite.
What makes Mario’s gameplay engaging is that he plays Grand Theft Auto the way many fans do: aimlessly. Once in a while, he’ll play a mission. But he spends most of his time fooling around, stealing cars, and causing mayhem.
Mario is sponsored by Postmates. He’s also a member of the HUH Nation, which gives him access to all of their sponsors as well.
Flight23white, whose real name is Clarence Javelli, plays a variety of sports games, as well as Fortnite. But the bulk of his 1.3 million followers are fans for a reason: his insane skill at the NBA 2K series.
Javelli is famous not just for being a good player, but for being an honest critic of the 2K series. One of his top-rated videos is called “flight says 2K trash but still plays it and pay for it lol.” As a matter of fact, he actually turned down a sponsorship offer from 2K games, since he felt it would impact his objectivity.
Despite this, he’s had no trouble obtaining sponsorships. All of Javelli’s streams are sponsored by Wendy’s and UberEats.
Cash Nasty is a versatile streamer who does a bit of everything. He spends more time playing the NBA 2K games than anything else, but he’s also an active Among Us streamer. Not only that, but he spends a fair amount of time chatting and giving commentary about games, rather than actually playing.
Cash’s 840 thousand followers seem to like what he’s doing, and his channel continues to grow at a steady pace. He’s currently sponsored by Simple Mobile, which gets a pre-roll ad on all his saved clips. He also gives them a shout-out during his streams, as expected.
With 772 thousand followers, Aphromoo is the number one black League of Legends streamer on Twitch. In addition to League, he also enjoys Apex Legends and Black Desert Online. Aphromoo, whose real name is Zaqueri Black, is also one of the site’s oldest streamers. He first started streaming way back in 2011.
Black’s sponsors fall heavily on the high-tech side of things. Among others, he’s sponsored by Verizon, Razer, and HyperX. He also has a partnership with Dignitas VPN.
Yes, that Soulja Boy, the rapper. Soulja Boy rocketed to fame in 2007, and earned over $30 million in ringtone sales alone on his hit single “Crank That.” But many people would be surprised to learn that Soulja Boy is also one of the top Twitch streamers online.
Soulja Boy, who was born DeAndre Cortez Way, has amassed a following of 718 thousand people. He spends most of his time streaming Grand Theft Auto V, but has also been known to relax in “Just Chatting” mode with his fans.
Way has multiple sponsorships, including with Yums and World Poker Fund Holdings. He’s even founded his own company, SODMG gamers, and helped produce a handful of mobile games, including Weed Firm 2: Back to College.
Dontai Ethridge, alias Im_Dontai, is a bit of an oddball. His show is better described as “gaming-adjacent” than as an actual gaming channel. Most of his time is spent in “Just Chatting” status, where he’s become one of the most popular streamers overall, with more than 600 thousand followers.
Dontai talks about anything and everything. In one recent stream, he chatted with followers about a Mars probe landing and the possibility of alien life, all while playing chess at a fairly high level.
Most of Dontai’s funding comes from subscriptions and fan donations. He does have partnerships with GTR and Logitech, though, who provide most of his equipment.
Tourva, who goes by Ty, is an active player in several Call of Duty games. As with most CoD streamers, this means he currently spends most of his time playing Warzone for his 547 thousand followers.
Ty is quieter than many streamers, preferring not to clutter up the game chat with a lot of banter. When he does talk, it’s generally relevant, game-related chat with his teammates. This isn’t to say that he’s boring. He loves to crack a joke now and then. But when he’s actively in the midst of a match, he’s got his game face on.
Ty is an ambassador for Dialed Up Games, and has a sponsorship from Audeze. He’s also sponsored by GFuel, and has his own fan discount code on KontrolFreek.
If you are looking to engage black Twitch streamers in your next influencer campaign, don’t go it alone. Work with a Twitch influencer marketing agency to take care of the campaign’s success on your behalf. CloutBoost has been working with leading streamers for years, and can help you create a well-thought marketing campaign to boost your brand’s growth.
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Discover how Cloutboost can boost your video game's success with our Influencer Marketing Services.