Don't Sleep on Twitch...
This week we're looking at Kai Cenat's 12-hour sleepover stream with Druski and Kevin Hart + why Nike have signed the creators as part of their talent roster. 🤔
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Kevin Hart x Druski x Kai Cenat. An Iconic link-up. Prime MSN entertainment levels.
Kai Cenat hosted a 12-hour sleepover livestream on Twitch with Druski and Kevin Hart. The stream peaked at 712K concurrent viewers. Breaking the North American record for max viewers. Featuring Facetime with Lebron James, one-chip challenge at 6am and many dance battles. A multiverse of content, creators, influencers and celebrities. It was one for the ages.
In the days since the live stream, I’ve been creasing at the clips that have been all over my TikTok FYP. For the 712K people watching, I can't imagine how entertaining it would be to see things unfold. There were streamers live-streaming their reactions to Kai Cenat’s live stream. So the figure could have been higher than 712K. Stream-ception.
Kai Cenat rose to popularity via hilarious Twitch streams famed for creativity. Kai has more than 10.5m followers on Twitch and 7.8m subscribers on YouTube. Druski is known for his comedy skits and is the CEO of entertainment company 4lifers. Which houses mock music label, ‘Coulda Been Records’. The label started with Instagram Live talent shows. This has now evolved into a high-production reality show on YouTube.
Leveraging Kevin Hart’s celebrity status allows Kai to build hype and appeal to a wider audience. Yet appearing on a Kai Cenat stream is also a smart move for Kevin Hart. It allows him to tap into a highly-engaged Gen Z community. Kai’s streams are now a credible part to a PR strategy. Artists such as Tyla, Offset and 21 Savage have jumped on ahead of album rollouts. The same way people would traditionally go on a talk show to get in-front of a mainstream audience.
Kai has a deep connection with his community. It could be argued it’s more valuable for Kevin Hart to jump on this stream than in-front of mainstream media. Kai’s connection with his audience has been built over a long period of daily streams. A streamer like Kai will typically stream for around 5/6 hours. Spending time actively speaking and engaging WITH his audience. The key being speaking with his audience and not to them. As a result, the community on Twitch feel they have direct impact on the decisions and content in streams. This live-element makes Twitch streamers reign supreme when it comes to audience connection.
You also can’t fake who you are on a 12 hour live-stream. This vulnerability with his audience allows him to strengthen the bond. 82% of Gen Z say it’s important that brands are authentic. The modern day creators are now brands in their own right. Audiences trade multiple-hours of their day to watch their favourite streamers. This highlights their influence.
Both Druski and Kai Cenat have inked deals with Nike. Kai Cenat announced his deal on stream and was the first streamer to ink a deal with Nike. Whilst Druski fans would have seen him in unreleased Nike items. As well as the unique tech fleece tracksuit that was made for the contestants on the Coulda Been House show.
Nike will have realised the pair's influence on Gen Z communities. The brand has continued to attach itself to influential Gen Z personalities recently. Clint (founder of Corteiz) and Central Cee (rapper) are heavily affiliated with Nike. The two have strong Gen Z communities and hold real influence. This could signify a change in focus from athletes to influential figures. A strategy that may be more cost-effective in engaging Gen Z.
Nike still have heavy hitters Mbappe, Haaland and Vinicius Junior. But the brand has also been happy to lose high-profile athletes. With Harry Kane, Nikola Jokic and Simone Biles a few of the many high-profile names to leave recently. Good breakdown by The Long Play below on Nike’s cost-cutting measures.
Going back to Twitch, we've also seen Wayne Rooney make appearances on Girth N Turf. The EAFC Pro Clubs founded by Yung Filly and Angry Ginge. This has helped to increase Rooney's Gen Z relevance, those watching may not have seen him play in his prime. Twitch content also humanises athletes and make them relatable. The raw insight streamers give their fans, allows for everday conversations. Such as Wayne Rooney's opinion on a McDonald's Filet-o-Fish.
The communities streamers have built on Twitch are highly engaged. They also dispel the rumours that Gen Z want to scroll TikTok all day with their 8s attention spans. There’s an opportunity for brands in sport to start producing content native to the platform. Gen Z fans are supposedly becoming ‘disconnected’ with sports. But Twitch provides a powerful way for brands to speak directly with the audience.
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