Who is IShowSpeed? Breaking down the streamer's unexpected rise to fame

sportskeeda.com:

Darren "IShowSpeed," or simply Speed, is an Ohio-born YouTuber, gamer, and former Twitch streamer. Speed is among the fastest-growing streamers, and his channel has gained over eight million subscribers in just over a year.

It is interesting to note that IShowSpeed's rise to fame wasn't due to an affiliation with content houses or gaming organizations like Sway House or FaZe Clan. Nor did he explode, in terms of popularity, on any other platform like Vine (now discontinued) or TikTok.

Speed started uploading gaming-related videos on YouTube around the middle of 2019. His uploads were often without commentary or face cams. The games usually tended to be NBA 2K, WWE 2K, or Fortnite. His set-up wasn't anything extraordinary either, with him streaming videos in lower resolution.

Initially, his monthly viewership numbers ranged from around a few hundred to a few thousand views till the middle of 2020. On the other hand, his monthly subscriber count saw a rise in the span of a few months. In fact, between the months of May and June of 2021, Speed gained almost 1M subscribers.

Although he did not burst into fame overnight, many viewers believe Speed's rise is due to his compulsive reactions; it is hard to tell whether the American is feigning his reactions or genuinely expressing them.

Speed did not have to rely on any particular gaming-related skill set like Ninja or Myth. His over-the-top and often obnoxious reactions were trendy enough to entertain many viewers and reel in new ones. He also used to post short snippets from his long livestreams, which were particularly appealing to the fans.

A few of his most viral clips were of him barking and raging over his subscriber count going up and down. Between June 22 and June 29, 2021,