Imane "Pokimane" Anys is one of the streamers whose face is the most easily recognisable on Twitch. 2013 was the year when the content producer began broadcasting herself playing video games on the site, including League of Legends. She has progressed over the past decade to the point that she is now a co-founder of OfflineTV, a leading content development group, and she has accumulated a following on Twitch of approximately 9.3 million people. In addition, the creator had a role in the film Free Guy and streamed the show Among Us alongside Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, which became one of the streams with the most views of all time. However, as of late, she has expanded her presence on platforms other than Twitch, and as a result, I've seen more of her than ever before.
Pokimane's professional life is at a crossroads right now as she ventures into an uncharted area for the first time. She announced in September that she would be streaming on Twitch less frequently going forward. Pokimane described Twitch as a "rat race" in a video in which he also stated that it was no longer enjoyable to chase every trend that emerged on the platform. Moving forward, one of her goals was to produce more content relating to lifestyle and to broaden the range of platforms on which she publishes her work. Since then, her activity on TikTok and Instagram has significantly increased. In light of these developments, Polygon contacted the creator to inquire about how life has been going for him since he made this adjustment in his professional trajectory.
Pokimane's visibility on other platforms has not been hindered in any way by the fact that she is now under contract with Twitch. In the past, she has produced a variety of videos on her YouTube site, including vacation vlogs and moving videos. Despite this, the majority of her time spent online has traditionally been spent streaming on Twitch. Even in the case where the creator became famous on TikTok, it was because a particularly cute or amusing moment from her stream was clipped and then redistributed across a wide ecology of fan accounts and news accounts.
However, recently, Pokimane has started posting more content that is tailored exclusively for the video-sharing platform TikTok, and the emphasis of that content has switched. Pokimane has transitioned away from streaming gameplay videos and is now focusing more on sharing her day-to-day existence. This may mean watching her experiment with a side part in her hair for the first time, lip-syncing to Ice Spice and PinkPantheress' new bop, or showing off her dress for The Streamer Awards while engaging in a TikTok trend. All of these things are possibilities. Since she made her debut post on TikTok in June 2019, she has managed to amass over 6.7 million followers there.
Pokimane stated in an interview with Polygon that she creates material for TikTok depending on how she would like to consume it herself. She explained her perspective by saying, "I tend to take a consumer-first approach, in the sense that I consume the type of content that I enjoy on a platform." "I look at what kinds of formats typically have good results, and then I reverse-engineer them to suit my preferences and produce the kind of thing I want to make."
Her fanbase has evolved in tandem with the expansion of her presence across many channels. TikTok has emerged as a leading platform for users in the younger demographic. The Pew Research Center surveyed in 2021 and found that 48 per cent of young adults in the United States aged 18 to 29 reported using the app. According to the findings of another study conducted by Pew and published in 2022, 67% of young Americans use the app TikTok, with 16% claiming to use it "almost constantly." When compared to Twitch, which, according to Pew, was claimed to be used by 20% of kids, this statistic is quite staggering. According to the findings of the study, there are significant demographic variations between the platforms. For instance, the researchers found that teenage boys are "more likely" to use platforms such as Twitch and YouTube, but teenage girls are "more likely" to use TikTok.
The work of Pokimane contains a reflection of this idea. When compared to her audience on Twitch, her PR revealed to Polygon that the proportion of female viewers on TikTok is significantly higher than on Twitch. As a result of this, Polygon questioned Pokimane about whether or not her concentration on producing material for TikTok was intentional — taking into consideration that the artist has said how much she enjoys producing content for females — or whether or not the presence of a predominantly female following on the newer platform was simply a happy coincidence. She explained to us that it was both of those things and that she has what she calls "a diverse audience." She said, "It seems my audience varies more and more as I explore different interests and evolve as both a creator and a person."
Moving into the lifestyle arena on TikTok, in addition to the gaming space, has its own unique set of prospects for a career. Pokimane revealed to Polygon that she has expanded her team to include specialists in the fields of fashion, lifestyle, and other areas that she is interested in entering. She chronicled her trip to London Fashion Week in February as part of a paid relationship with the Italian luxury brand Moncler, during which she attended the event. According to a survey conducted by Triple Whale, TikTok is the most valuable platform for direct-to-consumer marketers. Features like its Talent Manager Portal and the TikTok Creator Marketplace enable brands to search for artists who may meet their target demographic to collaborate with them on their content.
Her shifting interests and possibilities bring corresponding shifts in the difficulty of the tasks. She mentioned that it was enjoyable to attempt something new, but that short-form material is "an entirely different beast" with its trends and procedures. She also mentioned that this short-form content has its methodologies. For her, every variety of content comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages.
"Streaming typically requires more time and work but assists in developing a very profound connection with your audience. Short-form content, on the other hand, may require more planning but less time spent recording, and it may be able to reach more people. However, it may be more challenging to develop a profound connection with your audience because they will not be spending as much time interacting with you, as Pokimane explained.
It's hardly the most significant shift in the world, but it is noteworthy because an increasing number of popular streamers have been departing the platform in favour of partnerships on YouTube. Nevertheless, it would appear that Pokimane has achieved a greater sense of equilibrium at this point, as she continues to stream for a reduced amount of hours and posts more content on TikTok related to her lifestyle.
"I think it's only natural for creators who have done something for several years to want to try something new at some point," she added. "I think it's only natural for creators who have done something for numerous years." "I wouldn't necessarily say that it's a trend as opposed to a natural career progression," she said. "It's more of a natural progression." It's similar to how some people who started as YouTubers or Tiktokers eventually transitioned into being streamers on those platforms.