IShowSpeed facts for kids

Quick facts for kids IShowSpeed
Watkins at Chinatown, Singapore, in 2024
Born	Darren Jason Watkins Jr. (2005-01-21) January 21, 2005 (age 21) Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
Other names	Speed John Bobby Jiakang Ge 甲亢哥 Barima Kofi Akuffo
Citizenship	United States Ghana (since 2026)
Occupation	YouTuber online streamer rapper
Years active	2016–present
Twitch information
Channel	IShowSpeed
Years active	2018–2021 2023–present
Genre	Gaming
Followers	3.5 million
Twitter information
Handle	@ishowspeedsui
Display name	Speed
Years active	since September 2018
Topic	clips from streams
Followers	3.9 million
YouTube information
Channel	IShowSpeed
Genres	Gaming Let's Play IRL travelling soccer
Subscribers	51.7 million
Views	7.5 billion
Musical career
Genres	Comedy hip-hop trap pop rap
Labels	Warner
Last updated: March 30, 2026

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Darren Jason Watkins Jr. (born January 21, 2005), known as IShowSpeed or simply Speed, is a very popular American YouTuber and online streamer. He is famous for his energetic and lively videos. These include his live streams where he plays games and shares his real-life adventures from different places around the world. Speed is seen as a cultural ambassador. He often visits countries to show their unique traditions and new ideas to people everywhere.

Speed was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He started his YouTube channel in 2016, first sharing videos about video games. Speed became well-known in 2021 for his enthusiastic reactions while gaming. In 2022, he started focusing more on soccer content. He became a big fan of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Speed also has a music career. He signed with Warner Records and released his song "World Cup" in 2022. This song became popular in several countries. He won the "Breakout Streamer of the Year" award in 2022. He was also named "Streamer of the Year" in both 2024 and 2025.

Speed's Online Journey

Growing Up and Starting Out

Darren Jason Watkins Jr. was born on January 21, 2005, in Cincinnati, Ohio. His father, Darren Watkins Sr., and two younger siblings also share videos on YouTube. His great-grandfather, Harold Watkins, was the first African-American fire chief in Detroit in 1988.

Speed grew up in the Bond Hill area of Cincinnati. He went to Cincinnati College Preparatory Academy for elementary school. He then attended Purcell Marian High School. As a child, he was called "Speedy" because he was athletic and loved to run. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a video of him reacting strongly to a video game became popular. After some disagreements, Speed moved to Detroit, Michigan, to live with his father. There, he began livestreaming full-time using a PlayStation 4 camera.

2016–2021: Early Videos and Platform Challenges

Watkins interacting with fans in 2021

Speed started his YouTube channel "IShowSpeed" in 2016. At first, he only uploaded game clips sometimes. He began streaming regularly in December 2017, playing games like NBA 2K and Fortnite. His early streams had only a few viewers. By 2020, he usually had about ten people watching at a time.

His audience grew a lot in 2021. His channel went from 100,000 subscribers in April 2021 to 1 million in June 2021. This growth happened because clips of his energetic reactions during streams, often directed at games or his camera, became popular memes on TikTok. Kotaku magazine called him "one of the biggest and fastest-rising streamers" on YouTube then.

Sometimes, Speed's behavior led to him being temporarily unable to stream on certain platforms. In December 2021, he was part of a Twitch "e-dating" stream. During the show, Speed made comments that Twitch moderators found inappropriate and against their rules. Twitch then temporarily stopped him from using their platform. His account was reactivated almost two years later, on October 10, 2023.

On December 29, 2021, during a long livestream, Speed played a Fortnite match that became a famous internet moment. In the game, a teammate asked for help, saying his mom was struggling with housing. Speed tried to hide his laughter, and another player scolded him. This clip became a viral meme on platforms like TikTok. The stream itself even got a very high rating on IMDb for a short time.

Speed later reunited with these two players in October 2025. During that stream, the teammate confirmed his mother's housing situation had improved. The player's mother even appeared on the stream and playfully reminded Speed about his reaction from 2021.

2022–2023: Becoming More Popular

In April 2022, a video clip of Speed playing Valorant on a live stream appeared online. In the video, he made an inappropriate comment to a female player. Because of this, one of the game's creators, Sara Dadafshar, permanently stopped Speed from playing Valorant and other Riot Games titles. YouTube's head of gaming creators also looked into the issue. Speed later apologized for his behavior, saying it was "wrong." He mentioned that he had received mean comments from other players that day.

On July 4, 2022, during Independence Day, Speed set off a Pikachu firework inside his bedroom. This filled the room with smoke and caused the fire department to respond. He reached 10 million subscribers on YouTube later that month. In late July 2022, Speed received a warning and a one-week ban on YouTube. This happened after inappropriate content from a Minecraft game modification was accidentally shown to many live viewers.

In August 2022, Speed experienced a "swatting" incident while livestreaming on YouTube. This is when someone falsely reports an emergency at a person's home, causing police to arrive. Officers handcuffed him, and his cameraman had to end the broadcast. He later said he was briefly held and that another streamer, Adin Ross, helped him return to streaming on August 11. In September 2022, Speed played in the Sidemen Charity Match. During the game, he got upset with the referee for not allowing a goal. Speed playfully hit the referee with his jersey, which earned him a yellow card.

In November 2022, Sky Sports announced they would no longer feature Speed on their platforms. This was after some of his past inappropriate comments resurfaced. They removed all content with him from their social media and website. On November 16, Speed faced criticism for promoting a type of online money that turned out to be risky during a livestream. The next day, he apologized, saying he "made a mistake" and was "not a scammer."

In December 2022, Speed won the "Breakout Streamer" award at the 12th Streamy Awards. That same month, during the 2022 FIFA World Cup, he had a misunderstanding with a Chinese spectator in Qatar. During a livestream, he approached a man wearing an Argentina jersey. When the man indicated he did not speak English, Speed repeatedly said "Konnichiwa" and made sounds that some found disrespectful. He later uploaded an apology video to Twitter.

Speed expanded his streaming in May 2023 by announcing a special deal with the Rumble platform, working with Kai Cenat. In June 2023, he finally met his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo, in Lisbon after a soccer match.

By August 2023, Speed had over 20 million subscribers on YouTube. On August 16, an unexpected moment during a game of Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach caused a stir online. YouTube did not ban Speed for this incident. In December 2023, Speed took part in a charity boxing match with KSI, raising money for the Anthony Walker Foundation.

2024–Present: Traveling, Awards, and Continued Growth

On February 23, 2024, Speed played in the "Match for Hope 2024," a charity soccer game in Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Qatar. A video of him slide tackled former Brazilian soccer player Kaká became very popular.

Speed appeared on Night 2 of WWE's WrestleMania XL on April 7, 2024. He dressed as a bottle of Prime drink for a championship match. During the event, he was kicked by Randy Orton and thrown onto a commentators' table. Speed later appeared on the April 29 episode of Raw to announce picks for the 2024 WWE Draft.

On May 29, 2024, Speed attended the annual Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake in Gloucestershire, England. He suffered a leg injury there and said he needed to go to the hospital. In June and July 2024, during the UEFA Euro 2024 soccer tournament, Speed traveled around Europe. He reached 25 million subscribers on June 2. On July 3, Speed visited Norway and streamed from a souvenir store. While interacting with many fans from a window, he injured his ankle. As he was being escorted out, he was attacked by the crowd and had to go to the hospital. Speed's European tour received over 2.5 billion views across different social media platforms.

Speed has expressed support for Palestine and donated $50,000 to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund in June 2024.

On August 3, 2024, Speed performed a live-streamed stunt where he jumped over two fast cars in Miami. The stream was later removed on August 5 because it broke YouTube's rules. While touring in Southeast Asia, he reached over 30 million subscribers. One of his livestreams in Indonesia was the first time an English-speaking streamer had one million people watching at the same time.

In November 2024, Speed raced against Olympic gold medalist Noah Lyles in a 50-meter sprint. MrBeast organized and refereed the competition. On November 22, Speed began his tour of Australia and New Zealand. On November 26, it was announced that Speed became the president of the U.S. version of Baller League, a six-a-side soccer league. Later that month, Complex Networks ranked him first in their list of "The 25 Best Streamers Right Now."

In December 2024, Speed won several awards at the 2024 Streamer Awards, including "Get Off Your A** Award (Best IRL Streamer)," "Best International Streamer," and "Streamer of the Year." He also won the "Most Influential Soccer Creator" award at the GOAL Champions Awards.

Watkins making his entrance at WWE Royal Rumble in February 2025

On January 10, 2025, Speed announced a tour in South America. On January 28, during his tour in Peru, the mayor of Lima declared him an honorary mayor for an hour and an "ambassador of Lima."

On February 1, 2025, Speed appeared in WWE's Royal Rumble event. He took the place of another wrestler and managed to help eliminate one opponent before being eliminated himself.

Later, on February 14, 2025, Speed participated in the "Match for Hope 2025," a charity soccer event in Stadium 974, Qatar. His team played against another team, and the event raised over $10.7 million for charity.

On March 5, 2025, Speed was featured on CBS Sports Golazo's coverage of the UEFA Champions League. Later, on March 8, 2025, Speed played in the 2025 Sidemen Charity Match at Wembley Stadium in London. He was the captain and scored his first goal in the charity match series. Speed also helped his team win by scoring the deciding penalty in a shoot-out.

On March 18, 2025, Speed announced a tour in mainland China and Mongolia. During his tour, Chinese state media and people praised Speed for "promoting good relations between China and the United States." In contrast, his stream in Hong Kong was very crowded and chaotic due to many fans. His subway ride led to some damage at Tin Hau station.

A map showing the countries IShowSpeed has visited on his livestreams

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     United States     Visited by IShowSpeed

On May 5, 2025, Speed experienced another "swatting" incident at a KFC store during a Cinco de Mayo livestream.

On July 5, 2025, Speed announced a second tour to Europe. He also started streaming on Twitch again after four years. On July 9, Speed visited Serbia and met Baka Prase, who gave him a €30,000 Rolex watch. In Latvia, some people were unhappy with Speed's behavior at a monument and with the government agency paying for his travel. Later, on July 22, Speed participated in the MLS All-Star Skills Challenge. He joined a soccer player in shooting and passing challenges.

On August 28, 2025, Speed began the "Speed Does America" tour. This was a 35-day, 24/7 livestreaming trip across the United States. He streamed continuously on both YouTube and Twitch while visiting 25 states. That same month, Rolling Stone magazine named him its "Most Influential Creator of 2025."

The tour ended at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Speed hosted the premiere of his five-part YouTube series Speed Goes Pro there. Many famous people attended, including Justin Bieber and Kim Kardashian. This show, sponsored by Dick's Sporting Goods, followed Speed as he tried to improve his skills in various sports. He trained with professional athletes like Tom Brady and Kevin Durant.

Two outfits based on Speed were added to the game Fortnite Battle Royale on December 25, 2025.

On December 29, 2025, Speed began the "Speed Does Africa" tour. He livestreamed visiting 20 African countries in 28 days. During his tour of Egypt, Speed became the first content creator to stream inside the Great Pyramid of Giza. While touring in Nigeria, he celebrated his 21st birthday on January 21, 2026. On the same day, his YouTube channel reached over 50 million subscribers. After his visit to Ghana, it was announced that he received Ghanaian citizenship.

In February 2026, Doritos released a special snack in partnership with Speed. The product combined the "Cheddar & Sour Cream" flavor of Ruffles chips with traditional Doritos chips.

On March 21, 2026, Speed played in the first-ever Fanatics Flag Football Classic in Los Angeles. He played against current and former NFL players.

Speed's Music Adventures

In August 2021, Speed released his first song on his YouTube channel. It quickly became popular on YouTube and TikTok. In November, Speed released "Shake," which used parts of other famous songs. The music video for "Shake" has been watched over 211 million times on YouTube.

In June 2022, he released "Ronaldo (Sewey)" because of his admiration for Cristiano Ronaldo. In November 2022, he released "World Cup" with Warner Records to celebrate the 2022 FIFA World Cup. On July 7, 2023, Speed was a surprise guest at the Rolling Loud festival in Portugal. He performed his songs with the help of rapper Ski Mask the Slump God and producer DJ Scheme.

In March 2024, Speed released his first extended play (a collection of songs) called Trip 2 Brazil.

Speed's Song List

Extended plays

Speed on Screen

Awards and Recognitions