Pokimane is streaming less on Twitch, but now she’s a star on TikTok

Imane “Pokimane” Anys is one of the most recognizable faces on Twitch. She started streaming in 2013 while playing video games such as League of Legends. Over the past decade, she’s gone on to co-found OfflineTV, a premier content creation group, and has amassed a following of roughly 9.3 million on Twitch. She also appeared in the movie. No cost to the GuyStreamed There are many of us Alongside Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, this is one of the most popular streams. But recently, she’s has expanded her presence on platforms outside of Twitch — and I’ve never seen more of her.

Pokimane finds herself at an important crossroads in the course of her career as she explores new areas. In September she stated she was going to be less active on Twitch. In a video, Pokimane talked about the “rat race” of Twitch, and said that chasing every trend wasn’t fulfilling anymore. She wanted to create more lifestyle content and expand her reach on the various platforms where she posts. In the past, she’s been active on Instagram as well as TikTok. In light of these changes, Polygon checked in with the creator about what it’s been like since making this career shift.

Pokimane’s current contract with Twitch hasn’t stopped her from building a presence on other platforms. She has published other videos to her YouTube channel in the past, including travelogs and moving videos. Twitch has always been her online platform. It was because she shared a humorous moment on TikTok that made her creator viral. This clip was later redistributed by a huge network of fans and news outlets.

Pokimane now posts more content for TikTok and that has resulted in a shift of the content’s focus. Pokimane is now sharing more aspects of her everyday life, instead of stream gameplay videos. This could mean watching her try a side part in her hair for the first time, lip-syncing to Ice Spice and PinkPantheress’ new bop, or showing off her outfit for The Streamer Awards while participating in a TikTok trend. Since her first post in June 2019, she’s gone on to garner over 6.7 million TikTok followers.

Pokimane shared with Polygon her views on how TikTok should be approached. “I tend to take a consumer-first approach, in the sense that I consume the type of content that I enjoy on a platform,” she said. “I see what types of formats tend to perform well, and then reverse engineer it to my liking/what I want to create.”

Her audience is changing as she adds new platforms. TikTok is a key platform for young people. Pew Research Center’s 2021 survey found that 48% of U.S. Americans ages 18-29 reported using TikTok. Another study from Pew published in 2022 showed that 67% of teenage Americans use TikTok, with 16% saying they use it “almost constantly.” Compare this to Twitch, which, according to Pew, was reported to be used by 20% of teens. According to the study, the platforms have key demographic differences, and teen boys are “more likely” to use platforms like Twitch and YouTube, whereas girls are more likely to use TikTok.

This is echoed in Pokimane’s work. Polygon heard from her publicist, that TikTok has a more diverse audience than Twitch. Given this, Polygon asked Pokimane if her focus on making content for TikTok was intentional — given that the creator has mentioned how much she likes making content for girls — or if the female audience simply came as a side effect of ramping up her presence on the newer platform. She told us that it was both and that she has “a diverse audience”: “It seems my audience varies more and more as I explore different interests and evolve as a creator and person.”

In addition to the games and lifestyle, moving into TikTok offers a variety of job opportunities. Pokimane told Polygon that she’s grown her team to include experts in fashion, lifestyle, and other spaces she wants to be a part of. Pokimane was able to document her February trip to London Fashion week as part of a Moncler paid partnership. According to Triple Whale’s study, TikTok was the most popular platform for direct-to consumer brands. Features like the Talent Manager Portal, the TikTok Creator Marketplace, and its Talent Manager Portal allow brands to find creators that might be able to fit their audience.

The challenges change as her interests, opportunities and priorities shift. She said that it’s been fun to try something new, but that short-form content is “an entirely different beast” with its own trends and techniques. She believes that each type of content comes with its own ups or downs.

“Streaming often takes more time and effort but helps build a very deep connection with your audience. Alternatively, short form content can take more planning but less time filming and can reach more people, but it is more difficult to establish that deep connection with your audience since they won’t be spending as much time interacting with you,” Pokimane said.

It’s not the biggest change in the world, but is notable at a time where more and more popular streamers have been leaving the platform for YouTube deals. Pokimane seems to have found a better balance as she streams with less time and shares more TikTok lifestyle content.

“I think it’s only natural for creators who have done something for numerous years to want to try something new at some point,” she said. “I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s a trend as opposed to a natural career progression. It’s like how some Youtubers or Tiktokers become streamers after years of being on their initial platform.”