Darren Jason Watkins Jr., famous online as IShowSpeed, just turned 21 and officially became the first Black creator to reach 50 million subscribers on YouTube.
The popular streamer’s journey began while he was still in high school. He continued his streaming career despite initial concerns from his mother.
Her worry was understandable, especially considering the immediate success of his very first stream, which, as reported by AfroTech, attracted a massive audience of 30,000 viewers.
Appearing on the “Club Shay Shay” podcast with Shannon Sharpe, IShowSpeed revealed that he essentially abandoned his academic life and all other previous activities during his sophomore year to dedicate himself entirely to his streaming career.
He stated, “I kind of gave up on school. I kind of gave up on everything that I had in my old life and just put everything on my stream. I streamed every day. I didn’t care about nothing else except YouTube streaming.”
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IShowSpeed achieved millionaire status by the age of 16. Initially, his streams, as reported by Forbes, centered on video games like “NBA 2K.”
In 2023, he expanded his streaming globally, starting in Europe and subsequently moving to Southeast Asia. Notably, he set a record in Indonesia with a single livestream that attracted one million concurrent viewers.
“When I reached that moment, I just started crying because [there were] a million live viewers, something that I always dreamed of. That’s the accolade that every streamer wants to reach. And I did it alone. No collab. No event. Just me streaming. That’s true art right there,” he told Forbes.
According to Forbes estimates, IShowSpeed was among the highest-earning creators in 2025, bringing in an estimated $20 million.
He celebrated this massive accomplishment during a special livestream held in Lagos, Nigeria, where the content creator chose to celebrate his 21st birthday as part of his broader 20 African nations tour.
His Instagram account provides regular updates on the “Speed Does Africa” tour, which recently included documented visits to Zambia, Egypt, and Algeria.
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“Chat, this is the best birthday gift that I could ever ask for. I love y’all so much. I love all my fans from the bottom of my heart. I’m so happy chat. We finally reached 50 million,” he said on stream.
Pre-teen boys in Rwanda and Ethiopia were visibly excited when they welcomed him, according to a report from the BBC.
During an initiation ceremony at a royal palace in Eswatini, he was inducted as a warrior dedicated to protecting the king and his family, and he received the name “Logijimako,” which translates to “the one who runs.”
He and his team, consisting of recording, security, and logistics personnel, are scheduled to travel to 20 African countries over a 28-day period. The planned itinerary includes stops in nations such as Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Liberia, and Ghana.
