Pokimane: Being A Faceless Streamer

Imane ‘Pokimane’ Anys said that if she could start again with her Twitch career, she would be a faceless content creator since it would allow her to keep her identity.

Anyone familiar with the streaming scene will recognize Poki. She is one of Twitch’s most famous streamers, and her notoriety led to a cameo appearance in the blockbuster hit Free Guy. Her sudden rise to fame, however, hasn’t been all rainbows and sunshine. It has not only harmed her mental health and well-being over the years, but it has also put her in the crosshairs of haters and stalkers. 

Fortunately, she’s in a better place today, and she explained that a significant reason for that is that she’s able to keep her streamer and personal identities distinct, which helps her deal with criticism and abuse.

Poki said in an interview with Anthony Padilla about keeping her identities separate; “That has served me well because when people say things about Poki, I don’t take it personally, and I don’t think any creator should. These people don’t know you personally, so their comments, therefore, cannot be personal. However, that doesn’t mean I won’t consider what they say or take constructive criticism. But I at least compartmentalize it.”

Poki explained that it helps her avoid lying in bed thinking about something a generic hater said about her.  Then she dropped a bombshell that would have further fixed the matter. “If I could do it again, I would be faceless.”

She feels that anonymity would eliminate many of the disadvantages of streaming. After all, it’s worked brilliantly for Corpse Husband, Dream, and a slew of other VTubers without limiting their popularity.  

Poki was a VTuber in the early days of the platform. The difference was that she began streaming in 2013, at a period when faceless content creation had yet to acquire popularity.