top of page
Copy of Copy of Copy of nfd Twitter Header (5).png
Writer's pictureNoFallDamage

We Spoke To The Anime Avatar Twitch Streamer Who Surpassed Kai Cenat

At the tail end of September, the Amazon-owned livestreaming platform Twitch posted a celebratory tweet to its official X account. Streamer Ironmouse smashed the world record for the most subscribers on the platform at over 321,000, a number that eclipsed AMP star creator Kai Cenat’s

There was a lot of praise for the impressive achievement. Creators such as fighting game streamer Koefficient and variety YouTuber Ludwig gave Ironmouse her flowers. Meanwhile, some streamers, like Adin Ross, minimized her accomplishment because it was “the first time” they’d heard about Ironmouse. But while she may have a greater spotlight on her now for breaking this record, Ironmouse isn’t a new name on Twitch.


Who Is Ironmouse Then?

Ironmouse began streaming around 2017. She’d play stuff like Creative Assembly’s survival horror game Alien: Isolation in the hopes of curing her own isolation caused by common variable immunodeficiency (CVID), an immune disorder affecting approximately 1 in 30,000 people that makes it difficult for the body to produce the necessary antibodies to help fight off infections. As a result, CVID has left her largely bedridden. She told Complex in an interview that because of her compromised immune system, she couldn’t work to afford the medications she needed and couldn’t make friends because of the anxiety she felt around her condition. However, because of her desire for autonomy and friendship, she turned to VTubing to compensate.

“I don't want to be on camera because I'm connected to medical devices,” Ironmouse said. “I don't want people to judge me. I don't want people to see me. And it's just a lot, [but] I had a friend tell me, ‘Hey, there's this program that you can use and you can just basically be an anime girl.’ And I'm like, ‘Wait a minute. I thought that was going to be super expensive.’ But it turns out that you can start by just using free [software].”


VTubing is exactly what it sounds like. Using tech such as the static-image animator Live2D Cubism and the face-tracking software VTube Studio, virtual YouTubers create avatars for themselves instead of using their real faces. This not only helps hide their identities, but also gives them leeway to enact personas that may differ from their IRL personalities. Ironmouse isn’t the first VTuber, but she’s certainly one of the most popular right now. That’s thanks to the VTuber agency VShojo, which she joined as a founding member in November 2020. And now, four years later, she’s amassed millions of followers across all her social media accounts.


But What’s With the Name?

Despite the name “Ironmouse,” the Puerto Rican American streamer isn’t a mouse made of iron. In fact, she told Complex the name comes from mangaka Naoko Takeuchi’s shōjo anime Sailor Moon. In the OG show, which aired on Cartoon Network’s late-night Toonami block from 1992 to 1997, Sailor Iron Mouse is part of the villainous group Shadow Galactica. The Iron Mouse in the anime and the Ironmouse on Twitch only have two things in common: their names and evil backstory.


“It was just like a username to me. It wasn't really me, but then it became me,” she explained. “I remember thinking, ‘What is it that I want to look like? If I could be my ideal self, what [does] that look like and what kind of characters do I gravitate towards?’ I realized I just really love pink characters because pink is my favorite color. When thinking about a persona, because even though my name is Iron Mouse, I'm not a mouse, I’m a demon. I’m actually Satan. And Satan has become this anime girl to come to Earth because she's bored of being in hell, and she decides to take on this persona and stream on the internet because she realized she gets soul energy through the computer and she has way more fun doing it this way than torturing people in hell.”


The irony here, though, is that Ironmouse is the furthest thing from Satan reincarnate. In actuality, the Latina streamer is affable, bubbly, endearing, and full of bashfully cute charm. That’s what makes her livestreams so engaging. While she’s using a virtual avatar, Ironmouse comes across as delightfully human. I guess she should since there’s a real person—and not artificial intelligence—behind her anime character.


So, What Does She Stream Then?

While Ironmouse tends to play a lot of video games, from Epic Games’ battle royale shooter Fortnite to Mojang Studios’ sandbox adventure builder Minecraft, that’s not all she streams. Catch her on any given day and her broadcast may be entirely different from the previous one: a video game here, some reactions to internet videos there, a sleep stream, maybe even a metal cover or original song. “Creative chaos,” she calls it.

“I do a little bit of everything,” she said. “I love to sing a lot. I love playing games, specifically horror games. I love sim games. I love playing games with my friends. And I do some reacting, too, but I also love to do events and special things with my community. I've done a VTuber Academy, which is kind of like a mini-reality show to try to turn normal streamers into VTubers. I like to do a lot of charity work. I just like to try different things to see how far it could take me and my streams. And that's what I like doing. Just different stuff all the time.”


Streaming has really given Ironmouse the creative outlet. She wanted to pursue a career as a coloratura soprano opera singer, but CVID—along with the anxiety it fostered—essentially threw that out of the window. Through streaming and the comfortability of using an anime avatar as her identity, she’s been making friends, building community, singing (and screaming) her heart out, and having fun while doing it. It’s cool to see, especially since Twitch isn’t necessarily known for its VTubers.


How Does She Feel About the Record?

Ironmouse has been incredibly humbled by the congratulations on breaking the record for the most subscribed streamer on Twitch. Even now, while she’s still broadcasting a subathon—where 50 percent of the proceeds will go to the Immune Deficiency Foundation—she can’t believe the numbers she has amassed. However, it’s only a matter of time until someone dashes past her current subscriber count. As a matter of fact, although Kai Cenat congratulated Ironmouse on the achievement, he promised he won’t be outdone by anyone. That’s fine with Ironmouse, though, because she just wants streamers to keep going regardless of who holds the record at the moment.


“It's incredible,” she said. “At the end of the day, records are always meant to be broken, and I think him coming out and shattering the record again would be incredible. He's a really nice guy. He messaged me and he said congrats. I think he also congratulated me at his event, which was very, very kind of him to do. He didn't have to go out of his way to do that, but I just think it would be amazing. To me, just keep going further beyond.”

At the end of the day, whether it’s a few hundred or a few hundred thousand people watching her, she intends to keep streaming on Twitch because she’s “in love with streaming.” It’s her greatest passion. It’s what has allowed her to take care of herself—both medically and personally—as well as her family. She does have one thing to say to anyone who doesn't get virtual YouTubers or understand her lively community:

“Please donate plasma.”

3 views0 comments
bottom of page