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Where Are They Now? Raider.IO's Featured Streamers (Part 1)



Since its inception in April 2020, Raider.IO’s Featured Streamer program has become a weekly segment that we’ve all come to look forward to every Wednesday. To date, there have been over 50 streamers featured, and each one of them has brought something unique and fresh to our platform. From Race to World First (RWF) raiders, to high Mythic+ pushers, casual transmog farmers, and leveling grinders, we’ve featured a wide spread! Whether you’re a well-known streamer in the World of Warcraft community or just going “live” for the first time, we’re proud to feature you and showcase your content.



Table of Contents






What is the Featured Streamer Program?



The Featured Streamer program is a weekly program in which our team hand selects a World of Warcraft streamer to feature for 1 week. The featured streamer’s channel is then embedded on various pages across the site, including on the premiere location of our front page — while they are actively playing WoW:



In addition to the stream embeds, we also announce the feature on our social media platforms (Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook) with customized graphics and a highlight reel:




Depending on the streamer, and if they have something unique, honorable, or timely that they provide, a feature might even be accompanied by a Community Spotlight interview.



How are Featured Streamers Chosen?



One question we are often asked is, “How are Featured Streamers chosen?”

To put it simply, there is no set rule or metric used by our team. In general, we try to align streamers based on current events in the game or the overarching community. For example, we may feature someone who specializes in high Mythic+ for a big push week, a RWF streamer at the beginning of a new raid tier, or someone who is cultivating unique and helpful content in the PVE sphere. As you might have seen from our past features, we like to be as inclusive and open-minded as possible! When it all comes down to it, we do our best to find a streamer that we feel fits each particular week, and we're thrilled to shine a light on some of the amazing people of our community!



Where Are They Now?



For Part 1 of this series, we have met with 8 of our former Featured Steamers: Psybearslat, Darkmech, Zmok, Beyzi, Plka, HaughtyChicken, Celheals, and Tiqqlethis. So without further ado, let’s catch up with them!



“I was the first person to be featured under Raider.IO's featured streamers program, which was a massive honour. The fact that they recognised me as a smaller streamer and put their faith and trust in me to do a good job was a really humbling experience.”



Psybearslat was our very first Featured Streamer back in April 2020! Psy is most known for his high Mythic+ Feral Druid and survival hunter gameplay. He is also a renown WoW esports caster and a content creator on YouTube!


Q: What did you learn about yourself as a person and streamer after your Featured week?

Psybearslat: My featured week with Raider.IO gave me the opportunity to see what my stream would be like with a much bigger audience. It allowed me to test my ability as a streamer to interact with chat and keep up with all of the conversation. It gave me confidence in myself to continue streaming and making content.


Q: What did being chosen as a Featured Streamer mean to you?

Psybearslat: I was the first person to be featured under Raider.IO's featured streamers program, which was a massive honour. The fact that they recognised me as a smaller streamer and put their faith and trust in me to do a good job was a really humbling experience. It's tough as a smaller streamer because you're searching for that validation, that you matter and that the content you're making matters. When an organisation like Raider.IO then acknowledges you and gives you that chance to show off a little bit, it really means everything.


Q: It's been a while. What have you been up to since your Featured Week? To put things in perspective, your feature was in April 2020, and you were our first one! What new or exciting things have happened to you or your stream since then?

Psybearslat: It's been quite a wild ride but that same week of my feature I was approached by Pieces to join their organisation as a streamer - funnily enough less than a month earlier they'd declined my application to join them as a raider lol. In October 2020 I flew out to Copenhagen, Denmark to cast the Dream Mythic Masters - my first time casting - which was some of the most fun I've ever had in WoW! Since then I've cast/host a whole bunch of events including Blizzard's The Great Push tournament earlier this year. I'm also continuing to play WoW and represent the Feral Druid & Survival Hunter PVE gameplay!

I'm currently trying to break into hosting/casting for other games outside of WoW and have my first ever meetup planned with some other streamers/members of the community (I hope they don't put me on the bench IRL like they do in-game).


Q: What advice can you share to up-and-coming streamers and/or content creators looking to make it into this scene or industry?

Psybearslat: BE CONSISTENT.

Consistency is the absolute most important aspect of streaming. People need to know where you are and when more than an overbearing parent with a teenage kid.

The second most important thing is to INTERACT with your chat. When I started streaming to 1 viewer, I began by starting stream pretending there were 100 people watching. I spoke about my day, how I'm feeling and what I've got planned for the stream. If people enter your stream and you're already in discussion, it's a lot easier to jump into the flow. If they join into a dead silence, then it's hard for the viewer to want to interrupt that.


Q: What was your favorite part or aspect about being featured?

Psybearslat: My favourite part was knowing I was going to have more eyes on me and people wanting to interact. Ultimately streamers just want to talk to people and give their HOT TAKES. It was awesome getting more people coming in going "feral good? what the hell?" and then be able to talk about what I love most about the game - depleting keys with the homies.

It also felt really great to be acknowledged in the community.




“What I learned wasn't so much about myself, but more the fact that I have made some amazing friends in this game.”



Darkmech was featured in June 2020 — over a year ago! He is most known for his high Mythic+ Blood DK gameplay and his tank guides on YouTube. Dark is also an amazing WoW esports caster and a sponsored streamer for BDGG.


Q: What did you learn about yourself as a person and streamer after your Featured week?

Darkmech: What I learned wasn't so much about myself, but more the fact that I have made some amazing friends in this game. When I was lucky enough to be featured I asked my mates if they would run keys for basically the entire week for hours on end each day. The affixes were Tyrannical/Explosive/Raging - I think that’s a sign of true friendship right there. The exact same goes out to my community and mods, who came and hung out in chat all day, cheering me on and welcoming new people. I also learned the greatest thing about having high viewer numbers is being able to pass that onto someone else. Honestly, there is no greater feeling than hosting/raiding someone and trying to give them the same amazing feeling you've just been experiencing.


Q: What did being chosen as a Featured Streamer mean to you?

Darkmech: It was a huge honour and I guess a sort of validation in a lot of ways as a content creator and streamer that you are starting to do something right. I didn’t really feel deserving of it and was honestly just surprised I was even on that kind of radar. But it was such an amazing experience and one that I'll be forever grateful to Raider.IO for.


Q: It's been a while. What have you been up to since your Featured Week? To put things in perspective, your feature was in June 2020. What new or exciting things have happened to you or your stream since then?

Darkmech: I’m pretty honest with people when I talk about this; the Raider.IO feature I feel pretty much set me up for a lot of the opportunities I have today around streaming and WoW. I owe so much of my “success” or progress to Raider.IO and that feature I feel. I’ve been extremely lucky in being picked up as a sponsored streamer for BDGG, I’ve casted for Keystone Masters, casted 2 Race to World Firsts (RWF) with 2 Organisations (BDGG and Method), and casted the Mythic+ Charity ProAM. To top it all off, I made Partner on Twitch, which as a filthy casual gaming dad, was always a goal of mine. I've also gotten to hang out with all the cool kids in WoW, which is really rad.



Q: What advice can you share to up-and-coming streamers and/or content creators looking to make it into this scene or industry?

Darkmech: Comparison is the thief of joy. Everyone has different circumstances; I think it is extremely important to recognize your own circumstances and to work within those. Some streamers or content creators do this for a living, others have families and less time, some are students, some have full time jobs, the list goes on. Don’t compare yourself to someone who might be doing this full time and wonder why you aren’t in the same position. Your self-worth shouldn't be determined by a subcount or views. Be happy for other people's success, someone else being successful does not detract from your own success or your ability to be successful.

Lastly, always be yourself. I think it’s great to watch successful streamers or people that you like or look up to, but I think it’s always important to be genuine with your viewers and community. Be yourself.


Q: What was your favorite part or aspect about being featured?

Darkmech: Two things. The first was feeling like one of the big kid streamers; I still have screenshots of streaming to 1.5k people and feeling like I was the coolest kid since ice cream. The other was being able to pass that onto smaller streamers; some of the reactions were amazing and, in some cases, I wanted to end my streams earlier when I had peak viewers to be able to do that just for the reactions. One still stands out for me, the guy was so happy he was almost crying. Chat really got involved in following and spamming the chat; it was just a really awesome moment to play a part in.


Q: Lastly, link us a clip from your channel, a meme, or gif that describes you, your stream, or your content!

Darkmech:






“...One of the best things I experienced was all of the knowledge sharing. It's always great to remember that we can learn from each other.”



Beyzi was our Featured Streamer in June 2020. He is most known for his high Mythic+ Boomkin gameplay and his lively vibes and good music on stream. Beyzi is also a RWF raider with Soniqs Imperative.


Q: What did you learn about yourself as a person and streamer after your Featured week?

Beyzi: The feature really taught me to stay on top of my research. Viewers often ask me questions (usually related to Balance Druid) and sometimes I don't have the answers on the spot. There's a wealth of information out there about all classes and specs, and probably one of the best things I experienced was all of the knowledge sharing. It's always great to remember that we can learn from each other.


Q: What did being chosen as a Featured Streamer mean to you?

Beyzi: It meant the world to me. I was chosen as a Featured Streamer during Pride Month 2020. Because the pandemic was still a fairly new experience for the world, it meant a lot to be able to celebrate with my global stream community. I wasn't able to see family or friends, so I really valued that time spent with my stream community.


Q: It's been a while. What have you been up to since your Featured Week? To put things in perspective, your feature was in June 2020. What new or exciting things have happened to you or your stream since then?

Beyzi: For starters, thanks to the vaccine I was finally able to see family and friends on the 4th of July, most of whom I hadn't seen since the holidays 2019. I recently joined Soniqs Imperative for this tier, and it's been a wonderful experience being able to raid at such a high level for the first time. I'm constantly inspired by everyone's dedication and commitment to mythic progress and to all of the people behind the scenes working diligently to help keep us all prepared.


Q: What advice can you share to up-and-coming streamers and/or content creators looking to make it into this scene or industry?

Beyzi: Try not to worry about numbers. It can be pretty stressful always worrying about viewership and audience retention, but make sure first and foremost that you're streaming for yourself, not for a viewer count. Try to develop a consistent streaming schedule and try not to marathon stream (10+ hours) because you feel like you need to reach a certain threshold. Your sleep and well-being are incredibly important and, early on, it can sometimes be hard to remember that. Stay positive!


Q: What was your favorite part or aspect about being featured?

Beyzi: The wonderful sense of community from other members of the LGBTQIA+ community and allies from around the world. Everyone is always positive in my stream, which helps keep my energy high and the vibes great all the time. I also loved sharing my favorite music with people. At the time of my feature, Balance Druid was in a pretty weak spot and the perception of the spec wasn't great. It was nice being able to show what the class could do given its limitations. I ended up transitioning to Resto Druid around that time too since Moonkin fell out of the meta.


Q: Lastly, link us a clip from your channel, a meme, or gif that describes you, your stream, or your content!

Beyzi:





“Consistency and scheduling are key. Making sure that people know when they can come back to join the stream is huge.”



Tiqqlethis was featured in October 2020. He is most known as a WoW multi-glad shaman for all 3 specs. Tiqqle is also knowledgeable with PVE shaman and has a plethora of YouTube content and guides for both PVE and PVP.


Q: What did you learn about yourself as a person and streamer after your Featured week?

Tiqqlethis: There are so many people who I haven't had the chance to interact with from the Mythic+ side of the game, and so much opportunity to play with others. Mythic+ is the most forgiving, competitive aspect of the game and is open to anyone as long as they have some friends. Pushing positive experiences with a community of people is the most fun thing I've done in PvP, and now in Mythic+ it is even better playing with 4 others!


Q: What did being chosen as a Featured Streamer mean to you?

Tiqqlethis: It meant entering a world where I was less experienced, Mythic+, and meeting so many new people interested in playing together and talking about a part of the game which is fun and as competitive as you want it to be.


Q: It's been a while. What have you been up to since your Featured Week? To put things in perspective, your feature was in October 2020. What new or exciting things have happened to you or your stream since then?

Tiqqlethis: Since the feature, I've continued playing all specs of Shaman in PvP, and also kept up with Elemental and Enhance in Mythic+! I haven't been bold enough to try to heal Mythic+... but that time is coming soon.


Q: What advice can you share to up-and-coming streamers and/or content creators looking to make it into this scene or industry?

Tiqqlethis: Consistency and scheduling are key. Making sure that people know when they can come back to join the stream is huge. Focusing on providing value to your viewers in terms of help about the game, or even just taking time to interact with them so they feel seen is why people will come to you over others.


Q: What was your favorite part or aspect about being featured?

Tiqqlethis: Meeting new people from the Mythic+ community and even those at Raider.IO!

Q: Lastly, link us a clip from your channel, a meme, or gif that describes you, your stream, or your content!

Tiqqlethis:





“Being asked validated my decision to become a streamer...It also meant that I mattered in the streaming space and that Raider.IO had an interest in other gamers beyond end game, and I appreciated that very much.”



HaughtyChicken was our Featured Streamer in November 2020. She is known for her ideology that “gaming is ageless” and has a wholesome and supportive community called “The Coop.” Haughty is a variety streamer and is sponsored by AMD Gaming.


Q: What did you learn about yourself as a person and streamer after your Featured week?

HaughtyChicken: When I was chosen, I originally felt concerned that as a casual gamer I would be open to ridicule and judgment from players from the end game, harder-core demographic. What I learned however was that I can contribute to the streaming space as a casual gamer. I felt accepted and so did members of my community. Because of my exposure that week, I gained more confidence in the demographic of casual gamers I represent and as a streamer.


Q: What did being chosen as a Featured Streamer mean to you?

HaughtyChicken: I had been streaming less than a year at the time I was chosen, so I was incredibly excited because it gave me an opportunity to share my channel with a greater audience. Being asked validated my decision to become a streamer and I was curious how the other, more high-end players would accept seeing me as a featured streamer. It also meant that I mattered in the streaming space and that Raider.IO had an interest in other gamers beyond end game, and I appreciated that very much.


Q: It's been a while. What have you been up to since your Featured Week? To put things in perspective, your feature was in November 2020. What new or exciting things have happened to you or your stream since then?

HaughtyChicken: Since my featured week, my channel has doubled in followers with almost 15k members of the community since last year when I started. I became officially sponsored by AMD Gaming and recently supported via some gifted Razer ANZU products. My channel now streams a variety of games since, particularly Final Fantasy 14 and now New World.


Q: What advice can you share to up-and-coming streamers and/or content creators looking to make it into this scene or industry?

HaughtyChicken: My advice is to determine early what your “brand” is, your identity on Twitch. This will help you develop the type of community you want to attract and grow. Thinking of your stream as a business (i.e. if you plan to grow to Partner) will give you a roadmap for goals and also help when you want to pitch to sponsors etc. down the track.


Q: What was your favorite part or aspect about being featured?

HaughtyChicken: Introducing my community and my stream to gamers I might normally not reach. Rather than attract criticism and judgment, I actually received a lot of positive reactions from gamers pleased to see an older female streamer encouraging people to play whatever game they wanted, however they wanted to play it.


Q: Lastly, link us a clip from your channel, a meme, or gif that describes you, your stream, or your content!

HaughtyChicken:






“If you are starting to get into streaming, do it because you love it; do not think of it as a way to make money.”



Zmok was featured this year in January 2021. He is a legendary high Mythic+ player and former MDI healer. He is most known for his Holy Pally gameplay and streaming fun/meme keys, which are all available on his YouTube channel.


Q: What did you learn about yourself as a person and streamer after your Featured week?

Zmok: The amount of viewers might not be everything, but it definitely boosts your mood as a streamer when you see the numbers go up. I also saw an increased interest from companies that were looking for sponsored content.


Q: What did being chosen as a Featured Streamer mean to you?

Zmok: It meant a lot, since it gives you a lot of exposure to the group of people that is interested in the specific content that I do.


Q: It's been a while. What have you been up to since your Featured Week? To put things in perspective, your feature was in January 2021. What new or exciting things have happened to you or your stream since then?

Zmok: Currently, I’m trying a bit more variety streaming, but it is really hard to get started since my whole viewerbase has been around WoW so far. I haven't pushed too many keys since I felt a little burned out after a couple of years, but lately, I’ve just been doing chill streams and engaging more with my viewers.


Q: What advice can you share to up-and-coming streamers and/or content creators looking to make it into this scene or industry?

Zmok: If you are starting to get into streaming, do it because you love it; do not think of it as a way to make money. If your viewers love you, they will bring friends etc., which will slowly get you more exposure and, who knows, maybe you end up making a living from it.


Q: What was your favorite part or aspect about being featured?

Zmok: Massive boost in viewership and representing Raider.IO was an awesome experience, given that I have been using the website ever since the early stages! It also feels like an achievement to be featured, since nearly everybody that plays dungeons knows what Raider.IO is!


Q: Lastly, link us a clip from your channel, a meme, or gif that describes you, your stream, or your content!

Zmok:





“I learned that my voice and the representation I am trying to bring are valued and valid.”



Celheals was featured earlier this year in March. In WoW, he mains a Druid and is the GM of his guild, Tilted Halos. Cel is mostly known for his WoW content, but is also a variety streamer and strives to promote inclusivity through his platform.


Q: What did you learn about yourself as a person and streamer after your Featured week?

Celheals: I learned that I am able to handle myself in a large crowd. I felt confident in my ability to entertain and educate hundreds of people, while still being true to myself and talking about Queer issues. I was worried that we were going to attract some trolls since that happens as an openly gay streamer, but in the entire week, we only had 1 instance where someone tried to troll me. It was shut down fast, and the community rallied to get that toxic individual out of our safe space. I learned that my voice and the representation I am trying to bring are valued and valid.


Q: What did being chosen as a Featured Streamer mean to you?

Celheals: I cried when I was first contacted. I have tried to build my platform to empower marginalized people and 2sLGBTQIA+ people in the gaming industry, and for an organization like Raider.IO to take note and see my message of love and hope so clearly, really hit me. Representation matters, and I was overcome with emotions knowing that what I was doing was making a difference.


Q: It's been a while. What have you been up to since your Featured Week? To put things in perspective, your feature was in March 2021. What new or exciting things have happened to you or your stream since then?

Celheals: Our channel held the very first Azeroth Pride event, and Raider.IO also featured us during that day. Being able to know that the community is standing in solidarity with the 2sLGBTQIA+ community was HUGE. We have also been very vocal about how we want to get partnered with Twitch to create a 2sLGBTQIA+ and ALLY stream team.


Q: What advice can you share to up-and-coming streamers and/or content creators looking to make it into this scene or industry?

Celheals: Be yourself. Don't hold back. Show your passion, show your emotions, and don't feel pressured to stream if you are having an "off" day. Never feel forced to do anything; enjoy you, and enjoy your content. Your audience knows if it's feeling forced. Also the biggest thing: don't forget who YOU ARE.


Q: What was your favorite part or aspect about being featured?

Celheals: For me, the best part about being featured was knowing the visibility that was going to happen. There are not many partnered Queer content creators in World of Warcraft. Knowing that I was going to be able to show my passion and drive in front of hundreds of people gave me a big confidence boost. Also I met some INCREDIBLE people from the stream that I have ended up doing keys with AND some have even joined the guild. Those are some amazing friendships from this opportunity.


Q: Lastly, link us a clip from your channel, a meme, or gif that describes you, your stream, or your content!

Celheals:





“My biggest advice I can give to up-and-coming streamers is that Twitch chat is Bae, but never forget who you are or what you love. Think about why you started streaming in the first place and pursue that goal.”



Plka was featured this past spring, in April. He is currently the number one Prot Warrior in the world for Mythic+ and managed to accrue 3k IO in Shadowlands S1. Plka also raids in Nascent and creates helpful PVE Warrior content on YouTube.


Q: What did you learn about yourself as a person and streamer after your Featured week?

Plka: Being featured on Raider.IO gave me a lot of confidence as a streamer. During that week I had about 50 – 80% of my traffic viewership coming from Raider.IO directly. It helped me practice my interaction with new viewers and test a lot of features/events I could do that would reach new viewers that could learn more about what my stream was about. It taught me to not be afraid to try new things and Twitch chat interaction is everything. Finally, I would say don’t be afraid to try new things and be confident in who you are. That will attract the type of community you are looking to build.


Q: What did being chosen as a Featured Streamer mean to you?

Plka: Being Featured on Raider.IO was quite an honor. I first saw it back in BFA as a small-time Mythic+ player and was amazed at all the high-end players I would see on there. Some of the biggest names in WoW Streaming have been in there and I was quite proud to be as to be featured. As an individual who likes to set goals and milestones for myself, this was on my bucket list as a WoW Streamer. So at the end of the day, it gave me more confidence to chase other larger bucket list goals as a Twitch Streamer.


Q: It's been a while. What have you been up to since your Featured Week? To put things in perspective, your feature was in April 2021. What new or exciting things have happened to you or your stream since then?

Plka: During my featured week in April 2021, I was blessed with hitting some of the biggest Wow streaming milestones for myself. I was able to achieve 3k io in Season 1 of Shadowlands as well as be accepted to the Twitch Partnership program all in the same week. Since then I was able to venture my stream into some FF14 + other games right before Season 2 started. Now I am fully blasting in Season 2 of Shadowlands as one of the Top Prot Warrior Mythic+ pushers as well as creating Prot Warrior guides on YouTube. Also, I’m slowly getting more and more into social media!


Q: What advice can you share to up-and-coming streamers and/or content creators looking to make it into this scene or industry?

Plka: My biggest advice I can give to up-and-coming streamers is that Twitch chat is Bae, but never forget who you are or what you love. Think about why you started streaming in the first place and pursue that goal. People will always tell you what they think is the right move or how they want your stream to be, but as long as you’re having fun and enjoying what you do on stream, your community will be built around you. Create the content you love; don’t worry about the numbers and your viewers will love it too.

Q: What was your favorite part or aspect about being featured?

Plka: My favorite aspect of being featured was the drive it gave me to try all the new things I wanted as a streamer. During my feature I was able to host a Podcast series, Community Keys, High Push Keys, Mythic Plus Dungeon Guide live recordings, and a ton of predictions. It really pushed me to stop procrastinating on all my ideas. It also allowed me to meet some of the biggest WoW names on Twitch who dropped by in my chat to just say hello. Finally, it also let me interact with some of the best/coolest people at Raider.IO wink wink!

Q: Lastly, link us a clip from your channel, a meme, or gif that describes you, your stream, or your content!

Plka:





Closing Thoughts



Our Featured Streamer program has given WoW streamers from all walks of life an amazing opportunity to showcase their thoughts, beliefs, content, and talent with a wider audience. Since our program started back in 2020, we’ve seen growth, opportunity, and even personal development from many of our former Featured Streamers. We’re extremely proud of Psybearslat, Darkmech, Zmok, Beyzi, Plka, HaughtyChicken, Celheals, and Tiqqlethis for everything they’ve accomplished since their features. We’d also like to thank them for letting us catch up with them in Part 1 of this series.

Next month, we’ll be back with Part 2 where we will have another quick chat with 8 more of our former Featured Streamers. Stay tuned!



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About the Author


Alyssa is the Social Media Manager and Graphic Designer for Raider.IO. She is also a freelance graphic designer, and is most known for her YouTube thumbnails and stream art for WoW content creators. Alyssa is the founder of her cute and cozy community called the Bunny Squad and a Twitch multi-mod extraordinaire. She loves streaming her graphic design on Twitch, and making memes and friends on Twitter.