Streamers Who Lost Almost Their Entire Viewer Base In Months
Seeing a streamer come crashing down from the top is a jarring experience, and there are plenty of reasons why it may happen. A complete loss in viewership can result from a streamer being cancelled, becoming less popular over time, or leaving their jobs of their own accord. These falls from grace do not discriminate, and some of the world's top internet entertainers have lost nearly the entirety of the fanbase they built up over the course of many years.
What may be most surprising is the speed at which these losses occur, as a whole follower count can vanish in a matter of seconds. Comparatively, it is even possible for a streamer's total viewership to depreciate over time, producing a similar outcome.
It's not always a bad thing, though. Some broadcasters have the ability to make a return, but their absence — whether it be permanent or temporary — can lead to the internet forgetting about their presence altogether. The internet's attention span is ever-changing, so it can be tough to swallow when the realization sets in that one's favorite streamer — who may have thousands of hours of content available — has all but vanished in the public eye. Here are some streamers who lost their entire viewer base within a matter of months.
Ice Poseidon
There aren't many streamers who can say they have been surrounded by more controversies than Ice Poseidon. Ice Poseidon has suffered through a number of viewer-induced incidents, with the most infamous being the time he was swatted on an airplane.
On April 28, 2017, Ice Poseidon was swatted on American Airlines when a viewer called in a bomb threat that caused police to forcibly remove him from the aircraft. As reported by Vice, due to the incident and nationwide spread of the story, Twitch decided to permanently ban Ice from its platform. From his early "Runescape" streams to IRL streaming, Ice created a recognizable brand on Twitch that lasted until this ban forced him to find a new platform.
After trying out YouTube for a couple of years, Ice transitioned to Mixer, where he eventually built up to 2.2 million views and 40,000 followers. However, Mixer's failure left Ice with little choice but to move back to YouTube. The sporadic changes in his career have led to a mass exodus of fans, as Ice Poseidon averaged about 32 thousand viewers for his broadcasts in the month of July 2021. This is a massive downgrade from the Twitch community that once tuned into his content. It also pales in comparison to his more popular video uploads that were posted from 2017 to 2018, some of which have close to 4 million views.
Ninja
Ninja is another streamer who has been caught up in the transition between different platforms for his streaming content. After ditching Twitch for an exclusive contract with Mixer, Ninja remained an exclusive content creator until the Microsoft-owned site was shut down.
Since returning to Twitch with an exclusive deal, Ninja has intermittently streamed titles such as "Final Fantasy 11," "League of Legends," and "Fortnite." Unfortunately, a number of factors have made Ninja's viewership much smaller than when he was at his peak.
A decline in popularity for "Fortnite" as well as a diminished fanbase from the constant platform changes has contributed towards to a downward spiral for the most-followed Twitch account. Ninja's VODs clock in at about a few hundred thousand views per video on Twitch, with his live viewership averaging about 12,672 viewers (per Dexerto). This seems to stand in opposition to his current 16.8 million followers on the platform, and seems to suggest that a majority of the people following him are no longer tuning in. Ninja still does well when compared to most other streamers, but the disparity that developed between the height of his career to now is staggering.
Nathan
Nathan's situation is pretty out of the ordinary when compared to others on this list. Many YouTubers and livestreamers have seen a chunk of their following being taken from them as a result of fan detachment or the removal of millions of bots (via Dot Esports). In Nathan's case, however, his entire follower count was wiped clean with little-to-no explanation from Twitch.
As reported by Talk Esports, an entire 21,000 followers were removed from the "Minecraft" player's account, leaving him in disbelief. Since no resolution was being provided by Twitch, the streaming community stepped in to help Nathan regain his previous status.
During a stream being raided by fan generosity and support, popular streamer and YouTuber Tubbo gifted Nathan 100 subs. After seeing the notification, Nathan immediately became emotional and showed his gratitude, saying, "Thank you for everything you've done for the 'Minecraft' community, as well as being an inspiration to me as a young creator."
The feel-good story has resonated with many as Nathan continues to stream and has even found himself with 30.8k followers added to his name following the dilemma. This is a unique occurrence in which one's community disappeared overnight and seemingly returned just as fast.
LeafyIsHere
Always a polarizing figure, LeafyIsHere has left YouTube and streaming altogether — only to return and then quickly get banned for allegations of bullying. After a long hiatus, as reported by Insider, Leafy returned to poke fun at longtime enemy iDubbbz when drama arose between the YouTuber and his girlfriend. Leafy saw the positive reception to this return and proceeded to upload more and more, with many videos aimed at fellow content creator, Pokimane (via Dexerto).
The comments directed toward Pokimane and her fanbase were seen as "harrassment," which led to a permanent ban of LeafyIsHere's YouTube channel, which had contained nearly 5 million subscribers. Leafy immediately went on Keemstar's YouTube series Drama Alert to discuss the closure of his channel. At the time, Leafy said, "Obviously I'm going to try to get the channel back, but you know, if I am going to be banned, like, so be it."
Leafy's Twitch account was also banned just weeks later. A Twitch representative elaborated on the platform's decision (via Rod Breslau) by stating, "The safety of our community is our top priority, and we reserve the right to suspend any account for conduct that violates our rules, or that we determine to be inappropriate, harmful, or puts our community at risk."
Leafy is also currently suspended on Twitter, making it next to impossible for him to rebuild his fanbase. Surprisingly, Leafy is still relatively active on Instagram.
TSM Daequan
Streamers like TSM Daequan are an enigma, as it is always shocking to see someone leave their community of their own volition. The "Fortnite" and "Warzone" streamer left his 5.3 million YouTube subscribers and 3.8 million Twitch followers hanging when he abruptly put a halt on his content. Daequan has a good reason for this, however, as he is taking a break following a number of difficult life events.
In an extensive TwitLonger post from December 2019, Daequan discussed his health, loss of family members, and his girlfriend's medical issues. Fortunately, there was a silver lining. At the time, Daequan described his inevitable return to streaming and pro gaming: "I have so many plans, so many plans and it's gonna be wild, entertaining, and fun for all of us. You guys are gonna see, but I am so motivated, I'm so ready, and I'm gonna make all these things that I want to happen, happen." He then proceeded to thank his fans for constantly supporting him.
His latest update came in the form of a tweet made on November 26, 2020. Alongside a reassuring photo of Daequan posing with his cat, the tweet simply read, "Feeling better than I have in years. Always thankful."
Daequan is a unique position. His following is not exactly lost, but is instead on standby, waiting for his return. It is difficult to predict when he may make his comeback.
TSM Hamlinz
Paralleling Daequan is fellow TSM member Hamlinz, who left his career temporarily to focus on his personal health. Hamlinz had already been gone for a bit before a YouTube upload in 2019 in which he explained the reasons for his break. He said, "If you don't know my grandpa passed away nine months ago and my grandma recently had breast cancer. And once she got breast cancer it really f***ed me up, because it made me realize I wasn't really over my grandpa." Since then, Hamlinz has disappeared from the YouTube scene once again.
The "Fortnite" streamer shares many commonalities with Daequan, as a loss of family was a large reason for both men taking a hiatus. Coincidentally, as reported by Dexerto, Hamlinz and Daequan have since moved in together.
Hamlinz has not posted since February 2020, and also has an empty library on his Twitch channel. A 1.2 million subscriber YouTube channel and a Twitch account with 2.1 million followers are currently abandoned, just waiting to be capitalized on. In a similar manner to his roommate, Hamlinz has at least posted a Twitter update for his fans. The update, which was posted in October 2020 and has over 140k likes, simply states, "Feeling like myself again."
The overwhelmingly positive reception to the status update proves that Hamlinz's community is still thriving, but he finds himself in a position very similar to Daequan. A future resurgence is solely dependent on the content creator's health and well-being.
Boogie2988
One distinct aspect of the audience's view of an internet personality's career is the ability to see the creator themselves change over time. In the case of Steven Williams, a.k.a. Boogie2988, fans have been able to see both a physical change and a change in personality. Boogie2988 began his career producing videos criticizing companies like Bethesda and 2K, as well as many others. He also made sure to create goofier videos for his over the top online persona, a character named "Francis." This range of content made Boogie skyrocket within the gaming niche of YouTube and shaped him into a staple of the PC gaming landscape.
Boogie then changed directions slightly, also making his channel a platform that chronicled his journey towards weight loss, which was positively received. However, the dark truth is that Boogie has also come under heavy fire for controversial comments made during streams (warning: NSFW language) and an arrest for firing a weapon in a populated area.
These days, Boogie typically struggles to reach 10 thousand viewers on his Twitch broadcasts, whereas his YouTube channel has a difficult time managing 100 thousand views on a video. For comparison, his top uploads years prior had no issue gathering 1-2 million views at the very least.
Phantoml0rd
Usually a streamer being banned on Twitch means absolute failure and loss, but Phantoml0rd actually managed to turn it into something of a win. As reported by PC Gamer, allegations were made towards "CS:GO" enthusiast Phantoml0rd for promoting a gambling site without disclosing his part-ownership of the company, leading to Twitch banning him permanently.
A court case brought forth by Phantoml0rd in retaliation led to him winning and gaining $20,720 in damages as a result (via GamesIndustry.biz). Phantoml0rd was originally looking for $35 million, but he still seems to consider this a total win, judging from his more recent tweets on the matter.
But one thing that cannot be regained due to Twitch's actions is the lost potential of Phantoml0rd's viewership, as well as his inability to stream on the platform to this day. Following the case's conclusion, a Twitch representative made a statement to PC Gamer on the situation: "We absolutely stand behind our decision to terminate his account, and he will not be allowed back onto the service."
And so, Phantoml0rd is in a weird position. He has won his case, but does not have an option to reclaim his former Twitch glory. His last YouTube upload was made 5 years ago, so it doesn't seem likely that he'll be building that particular audience back up any time soon.
Indiefoxx
A major figure in the recent hot tub debacle, Indiefoxx is facing tremendous consequences for her on-stream behavior. Following quite a bit of risque content in her hot tub and ASMR streams, Indiefoxx lost her partnership with Twitch. This puts quite a hole in her revenue stream, as Twitch Partners make noticeably more than regular Twitch Affiliates. Twitch Partner status is a difficult position to acquire, since 27,000 streamers are Partners out of 2 million. To make up for this loss in revenue, as reported by NME, Indiefoxx has decided to sell clips from her older streams as NFTs.
The extremely popular streamer was front and center of the hot tub meta on Twitch, during which streamers would go live from the comfort of a hot tub, typically while wearing swimsuits. This led to the platform introducing new rules and categories for hot tub and ASMR streams in an attempt to clarify its stance on suggestive content.
The most recent ban that was placed on Indiefoxx was her sixth one thus far. It will also most likely be her last, as it seems she has not returned to the platform since her partnership status was revoked. Indiefoxx is still active on Twitter, where she promotes her OnlyFans and interacts with her followers. It is unknown whether or not her alternative revenue streams will continue to succeed, but the fallout from Indiefoxx's racier Twitch streams have put a severe dent in her career.
DSPGaming
DSPGaming, a.k.a. DarksydePhil, has had quite the controversial presence online, between an NSFW mishap with a webcam (via The Sun), and claims that racist jokes are "okay" (via Dexerto). DSP has over 100 thousand followers on Twitch, but he has been a bit more active on his YouTube channel after recent conflicts with Twitch.
After losing his partnership status and being given a suspension from Twitch, DSP took to Twitter to defend himself. Twitch eventually retracted the ban after he made them aware of the misunderstanding, but the streamer made it clear that he planned to make a more permanent move to YouTube.
However, during the time in which his partnership was revoked, more damage was done to his following. DSP received considerable backlash from individuals like ReviewTechUSA, specifically after begging for donations and berating Twitch viewers who were hesitant to use PayPal to donate. ReviewTechUSA had a message for Phil, stating, "They owe you nothing, and for you to sit there and guilt them must be exhausting for you." This particular streamer trend has been known to damage reputations in the past, such as in the case of InvaderVie, who slammed her viewers for not donating enough and was eventually forced to apologize.
Despite DSP's efforts, his YouTube channel has gone from boasting "Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions" playthrough videos that have reached 3.2 million views to more recent Lets Play clips that have struggled to reach 1,000 views. However, he still keeps fans apprised of his streaming schedule through his Twitter account, so there's still a chance that this gamble with YouTube streaming may pay off.