Controversial figures lead YouTube’s most popular streamers list
Google revealed the top YouTube streamers of 2022 based on hours watched, and at the top of the list are some of Twitch’s more controversial entertainers. YouTube’s most popular streamer of the year was Darren Watkins, Jr. (IShowSpeed), the 17-year-old who was banned from Twitch after threatening to sexually assault a contestant during a dating show he took part in.
Watkins was also banned from Valorant and other Riot games after repeatedly making misogynistic comments. He posts few videos on the platform, but the ones he does publish regularly get upwards of 20 million views or more.
Second on the list is Kuzuha Chan, a VTuber – streamers who use digital avatars instead of their faces – whose persona is an unemployed vampire. Pokora Chan and Miko Chan are also VTubers, the latter of whom only streams in Japanese.
- IShowSpeed – 38.5 million hours
- Kuzuha Chan – 27.4 million hours
- TimTheTatman – 26.6 million hours
- DrDisRespect – 25.2 million hours
- Pekora Chan – 23.3 million hours
- Ludwig – 22.5 million hours
- Windah Basudara – 21.9 million hours
- Vegetta777 – 20.9 million hours
- Miko Chan – 20.7 million hours
- DJMariio – 20.4 million hours
The full list also includes popular CoD Warzone and Apex Legends streamers DrDisRespect and TimTheTatman. DrDisRespect was banned from Twitch in 2020 for unknown reasons and previously caused controversy after filming people in public bathrooms without permission.
Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF