Who is IShowSpeed and how did he get so popular?

IShowSpeed, whose real name is Darren Watkins Jr, is a popular content creator who regularly posts to more than 69m subscribers and followers across YouTube, TikTok and Instagram.

He's recently passed the 25m subscriber mark on YouTube - but celebrations didn't quite go according to plan when streaming as it seems he was in London for the Champions League final when the moment happened with low battery on his laptop.

A video shared on social media captured the moment Speed hit the milestone - but his laptop or internet connection seemingly from his hotel room appeared to fail him and his celebrations stuttered.

But who exactly is IShowSpeed?

Speed has become a star online, with 27m followers on TikTok, 25m subscribers on YouTube and 17.2m followers on Instagram; he also posts on X / Twitter to more than 2m followers.

On YouTube, he regularly streams himself attending sporting events such as football cup finals, playing games and chatting and interacting with followers.

He then posts videos from this on YouTube and on his social media accounts, as well as creating short form videos specifically for TikTok and Instagram.

Speed's clips are usually funny, controversial or a bit of both - they certainly get people talking whatever he's up to, recently getting into altercations with fellow Manchester United fans, having to go to hospital after his first-ever cheese rolling event and being RKOd by Randy Orton at Wrestlemania to name a few.

Speed is 19-years-old at the time of writing and is from Cincinnati, Ohio; he was born on January 21 2005.

He's been active on YouTube since 2016, when he would have been 11, uploading videos of him playing games such as Fortnite and NBA 2K - he then began streaming in 2019 and it really took off for him in 2021 when he gained a million followers in just a few days.

Speed would post content of him playing games and reacting violently when things weren't quite going as planned, such as blasting games, other players and his camera which would then become memes.

He's since been banned from streaming on Twitch and the video game Valorant for different incidents, such as misogynistic and derogatory comments, that have landed Speed in trouble in the past.

In 2022, Speed shifted his focus more to football-related content, which he's known for now.

He played in a charity match alongside the Sidemen and won a Streamy award in the 'breakout streamer' category that year and has gone from strength to strength since.

It's reported he didn't start making substantial money from streaming on YouTube until 2022.

Speed has made a number of WWE appearances and even released music; he's released 10 tracks across four singles and EPs in four years and even reached number one in the Netherlands with his 'World Cup' track in 2022.

It reached sixth in Sweden, 37th in Ireland and 52nd in the UK and is his only single to chart to date.

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