The life of being a top Twitch streamer is often glamorized by the thought of making a living just by playing video games and doing other simple tasks. However, just like celebrities in similar industries, fame often comes with its share of hardships. More often than not, privacy is taken away from celebrities and popular Twitch streamers, resulting in annoying interactions with toxic fans and even potentially dangerous situations.
Female Twitch streamers, in particular, are frequently victims of harassment and threats both on and off the platform. No matter what level of popularity female streamers reach, there will always be the potential of a fan taking their relationship with the streamer too far.
Pokimane, one of the most followed female streamers on the platform, has dealt with obsessive Twitch fans in the past. After a recent interview with Anthony Padilla on YouTube, Pokimane shared a recent story about a fan stalking her and walking around her neighborhood trying to find her address.
The stalker flew out to California to find Pokimane because they were convinced that "they were meant to be together." The stalker knew the general location where Pokimane lived, but didn't have an exact address. Eventually, they came across Pokimane's roommate, who they recognized from her streams, and told them to take them to her. Luckily, the roommate was able to warn Pokimane, who locked all her doors and streamed for the rest of the night, too fearful of leaving the house.
Pokimane later says that it's interactions like this that prevents her from buying a house or investing in real estate. If someone ever leaks her address, she won't be able to easily relocate to another place from a home as quickly as moving from an apartment. It is also preferable to her that the apartment complex has 24/7 security and measures to prevent the public from reaching the actual apartments themselves. On top of that, Pokimane also has three different phone numbers just in case any of them get leaked.
Sadly, this sort of situation isn't unique to Pokimane. Other Twitch streamers have been stalked in the past, and there isn't any clear indication that this problem will ever disappear. Until the day that society can acknowledge that celebrities are humans just like the rest of us and deserve their personal space, stalkers will continue to do things just like this. In the meantime, it is essential for both female and male Twitch streamers alike to be cautious with their fan interactions since there is no telling what that person may be capable of.