The Rise of Small VTuber Agencies and Indies

Indies and small agency VTubers have been on the rise in the industry for quite some time now. Even the big corpos feel a heavy decline and interest in their products. Be it better engagement, better ideas, better specs, and better treatment of their talents, small agency VTubers and indies are en route to solidify their place in the industry, and someday perhaps even becoming the next big agencies.
Like and subscribe for more content! It really helps a lot. This channel's purpose is to archive important moments, history, and cultures in the VTubing industry. These include influential figures, memes, milestones, decisions, and trends. Basically, I'm a historian but for VTubers. If you think I missed something, drop a comment!
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#vtuber #hololive #positive

[@synapse0]

"Better working conditions from smaller corpos" is a half truth. Small corpo horror stories abound. What happens, however, is that they break very fast. They filter themselves.

[@DepressedNousagi]

True lmfao. Maybe should have added more emphasis on that last part, esp with Tsun, Cyberlive, and everything else

[@DALKurumiTokisaki]

​@@DepressedNousagiAlways remember that small corpos like Wactor exist.

[@hitttomiii]

@@DALKurumiTokisaki we do not talk about wactor

[@paken4627]

Cries in the tragedies of WACTOR

[@nickelouscage]

Makes sense. Small corpo can be like a start-up, and that includes plenty of “all hands on deck” moments

[@Pudding404]

It's a good thing that different agencies and talents are getting the spotlight on them, especially the mentioned IdolCorp and Phase since they aren't exactly "new." Even corpos that are definitely new like EIEN that's getting a new gen, and Pixellink that just started are getting attention as well. Spread the small and upcoming corpo and Indie love.

[@stacyimagination3936]

And CreatiVT too

[@HoezellCadarn]

@@stacyimagination3936 This and the comment you answered to are the first time I've learned about PixelLink and CreatiVT. From what I've seen in the last 2 hours of hyperfocus they're dishing out pretty good and consistent content. Also, such great covers! Welp, time to fall into the rabbit hole again.

[@DepressedNousagi]

Couldn't include all the indies and small corpo VTubers i wanted to. Can't give a shout out to all of them, unfortunately

[@jon-unicorn-doxxer]

someday rise of VSPO? the 3d debut numbers of their talents recently are Hololive level like 50k-130k ccv,,, They are probably bigger than Vshojo and claim the top 3 spots behind Holo and Niji... Also, VSPO has 18 talents while Vshojo only has 9...

[@MildlyOCD]

PhaseConnect really feels like a good middle ground between Holo, Niji, Vshojo, & indies. I forget that it's a company half of the time (indie), Fishman really feels down-to-earth (Yagoo/Holo), the talents have relative freedom (Vshojo), & the fan base is loyal to a fault (Niji). It really feels like they're moving up to stand toe-to-toe with the other big names, while dragging as many indies behind them as they can, & I'm here for it.

[@hafirenggayuda]

Don't forget, the talents have quite a good relation with other agencies

[@MildlyOCD]

@@hafirenggayuda I was gonna argue & say, "Maybe not Vshojo," but... Nyanners left & there's no way that Henya doesn't know about Pippa. IYKYK

[@natu101yay]

​​​@@MildlyOCDHenya and Kson seem to want to collab with Pippa but she has pipkin so we'll see. I think Nyanners was the only vshojo member that might've had a problem with her.

[@MasterOps0]

@@natu101yay There is still Froot, but she tends to cower away from direct confrontations when disagreements occur, so she might just stay silent about it

[@natu101yay]

@@MasterOps0 true, I keep forgetting froot exists lol

[@Punkalopi]

Weird rabbits in the thumbnail. 10/10

[@blahaj.]

Omg it's punkalopi 🤯

[@R1tsu_Tyan]

No one will notice this. I'm gay for Nousagi voice

[@ramendampfen]

Im not but its calming mhmhm

[@soranai4851]

I did... I noticed...

[@ramendampfen]

Btw everyone like this dude so nousagi sees him being gay lmao

[@readyplayerxcvii]

We did notice. Never underestimate the power of KZbin. We are now collectively staring in your direction.

[@pikimikiii]

me too

[@JanusGrombulus]

Phase Connect got me into small company vtubers and from what I can tell Sakana has the makings of a great CEO like Yagoo. I really appreciate how they have formatted their Discord server and it allows for a strong community of fans to interact with each other and the talents. And yes, when the streamer is less popular, it just means more engagement with the audience. I think overall this is a good change for the industry so it doesn't remain stagnant. As Pippa pointed out, every smaller agency wants to be known as that 4th top vtuber corporation on par with Hololive, Nijisanji, and Vshojo. It seems that by the end of the year there will be one.

[@MikaHolic_Channel_OFFICIAL]

as a Rin Penrose fan, im glad smaller corpos like Idol are finally getting more and more attention. I believe with the right talents, marketing, and drive, such corpos will become the next Holo/Niji in the future.

[@thebigcheese_6997]

ohh glad to see a fellow Rin enjoyer here hahah

[@andres-vb7js]

they also give oportunities to fun but unknown people nijisanji's 100.000 followers to just be considered rule is bullshit... they're just dragging polemic people in latelly...

[@nujevad28]

​@@thebigcheese_6997You mean Bin Benbose.

[@shreyosengupta5742]

Fake fan, didn't call her 🅱️in 🅱️en🅱️ose

[@thebigcheese_6997]

@@nujevad28 I will commit so many crimes.

[@RedRabbit-ZA]

I love Phase Connect and Idol so much. I hope both these agencies stick around.

[@lukeamparo6586]

Pippa and 🅱️in 🅱️en🅱️ose respectively got me into those agencies.

[@emircanozad914]

​@@lukeamparo6586I met Idol EN E-sekai when an ad popped up while watching a video. Multiple times.

[@lukeamparo6586]

@@emircanozad914 me too. Those ads were good. Now I’m stuck with Blahaj.

[@PaulBen19]

They both are friends with one another it’s kinda like Hololive and Nijisanji are friends with one another.

[@emircanozad914]

@@lukeamparo6586 The prince of all Blahajs

[@Panopticon83]

"Until some of them go mainstream and are no longer the same anymore" *ahem* sir, no need to call yourself out like that. Also, ayyyy you got Kilia Kurayami in there! Respect.

[@NLuck-eh5cd]

When vtubers were newer, they really needed to establish themselves as a genre of entertainment. This was part of the brilliance of Hololive focusing on idols, and Nijisanji focusing on live streams. They were able to say "this is what a vtuber is and this is why you should care". I think we're starting to see vtubers become more of a medium - you can do pretty much any kind of content behind a vtuber, and now that it's not some weird alien thing, people are a lot more free to take it in whatever direction they can think of. There's absolutely still a role for big corpos like hololive - some events like big idol concerts are only really possible at that kind of scale. But it feels like vtubers as a concept has really matured a lot in this past year - it's moved from being a novelty to just being another part of the internet, and any corpo that just rests on their laurels and expects "anime characters live streaming" is enough of a niche to keep them alive is going to disintegrate.

[@astranix0198]

I just want the holy trio(filthyfrank, maxmoefoe, and idubbbz) do their shit again

[@fartexplosion4480]

And since most VTubers livestream nowadays, Niji has lost their footing and don't have as solid management as Hololive does

[@worldhello1234]

It pretty much started with Kizuna Ai. Why do you care about vtuber corporations anyway? They aren't people and care more about their bottom line than innovation.

[@Kreativedragonling]

YES!!! For me, VTubing is just another way to be a creator online. I was actually kind of shocked at how established the culture was and how so many people stuck to it to try and find success. I'm SO glad more people are pushing VTubing out of it's bubble, it just has so much potential!!!

[@TheWhiteDragon3]

Here's my personal take on the rapid growth of small VTuber agencies and Indies: it's a symptom of the growing English-speaking viewership. The lion's share of VTubing's viewership and revenue base has been and still is the domestic Japanese population which has different views about entertainment than we do. Japanese people seem to want a more organized approach from talent agencies, and while Nijisanji and Hololive are very chaotic by Japanese standards, the heavy collaboration, behind the scenes coordination, and general adherence to company doctrine really does make Hololive's and Nijisanji's platform of streamers seem more like a reality show than a group of streamers. The Western (and by extension, English-speaking) approach to celebrity culture is more focused on the individual person and their individual agency. The most glaring example of this is how you'll often hear people talking about movies as if it's the work of their favorite actor in the movie instead of the director, i.e. Tom Holland's Spiderman series. While Hololive and Nijisanji have adapted their marketing and management strategy for their EN branches (unsuccessfully in the case of Nijisanji), these young VTuber Agencies and Indies are fully committing and catering to the Western audience, and the general atmosphere around their behavior and conduct reflects this, most notably in Pippin Pipka's loudmouth ranting about politics and culture. All in all, there's nothing particularly good or bad about this phenomenon, just a sign of changing times and shifting markets. I personally favor the semi-planned approach Hololive offers, so I'll be sticking with that, but I am very pleased to see new talent crossing my dashboard and the opportunity for more people to get the content they want.

[@Angrenost02]

The question is: can those small corpos survive becoming big? Can they survive the yabs that will inevitably come with mainstream success? Time will tell.

[@natsudragneel-ir7sr]

​@@renmcmanusBudlight try to cater to the people opposite of their consumer base. People drink Budlight are not aligned with people who support those things. Budlight shoot themselves in the foot when they choose to cater to people who are at war with their original consumer group

[@Pers0n97]

Thankfully the social media is comming to an end, and with that the cancel culture it fostered.

[@thegreatbeavers]

The real question is.. can the vtuber trend take form properly? If vtubers ever become mainstream, you know big corpos are gonna chime in on the success and that's when it gets real serious. There's already Sonic The Hedgehog and Tails with vtuber models. If Sega really wants to, they can go full throttle into the vtuber trend too. Also The Italian Air force has a vtuber whose there for information on seatbelt safety.

[@Pers0n97]

@@thegreatbeavers I'm not really sure about that (that big corpos will chime in). If we are talking about streamer vtuber, you could just look at the past, with "influencers", and streamers, and no matter how big they got, corpos never made their own influencers or streamers And sure, Vtubers have that "corporate own avatar" aspect to them in some cases, but even then, I don't think we'll ever see proper streamer vtuber (and I wouldn't call a "streamed a couple of time" corporate mascot a real streamer vtuber).

[@Edelweiss1102]

Just don't become a black company like Ninji and Vshojo and they will be fine.

[@pfeilspitze]

Small vtubers are so bitter-sweet. It's wonderful when they achieve their dream and become successful, but sad at the same time that the previous engagement is no longer possible.

[@arien6882]

The magic that niji lost imo is how close the gens are. Imo after Noctyx- I don’t pay attention to any of the newer gens (Ig I see Kyo and Scarle a lot but imo they feel like they’re on their own bubble). The charm for niji en for me was just how connected and fun they all were but atm its not the same anymore :// I still watch my oshis tho

[@soasertsus]

This is exactly why I never got into niji, they just debut too many waves all the time instead of focusing on their existing talents and you lose that close knit family feeling that Hololive for all its faults really specializes in creating

[@arien6882]

@@soasertsus Fr!! I really wish I can get into hololive (havent tried holostars yet) but no matter how much I watch their clips I can’t really vibe with their streams or dynamics :((

[@Drachir0n]

The older gen's closeness was what drew me to niji in the first place, but you're right, after Noctyx it really feels like the new gens no longer have that close bond the previous gens had, let's hope that with Krisis having a smaller group debuting (tho that probably happened because one of them literally left), it can provide more opportunities to bring back that charm again

[@ryanbolt1841]

it feels kinda the same way in the jp side given how many members there are it doesn't feel like a lot of them hang out or talking to each other.

[@emircanozad914]

Salome fell off too?

[@abraohader]

If i dont see Shondo here, i'll cry. 😭😭😭 (Tears of joy)

[@f.b.lagent1113]

For those who wonder, Shondo or Fallen Shadow is apparently quite literally a Schizo but also very good at acting as a joke so most of the time it’s hard to say if she’s joking or having an episode, edit: the clip used here where she’s “crying” is her take at making fun of the meme where the audience reacts in a certain way to “male voice” on the stream of their idols/oshi or whatever you call it as it implies their waifus have a guy with them, the “male voice” in her stream was text-to-speech, it’s actually funny how fast she can meme the situations in a schizo way and almost always it’s a coherent(sane) joke given the context

[@July_Wave]

Define schizo. Are we talking legit medical condition or 4chan dweller terms? Genuinely don't know.

[@TOBY-jy7bz]

Is she actually a schizo? I watch her content and I assumed it was just a joke about being a schizo

[@MrNorker77]

@@TOBY-jy7bz It's a joke :) parody Schizo is what I would call it

[@kazekori9593]

@@MrNorker77 Wait i thought she was genuinely diagnosed with schizophrenia

[@hang_kentang6709]

@@kazekori9593 I remember she mentioned her condition as schizoaffective. regardless, better not mention it in her streams unless she brought it up first.

[@palmfruits3023]

I found myself being more and more addicted to small Vtuber. That interaction is something behold. From V&U, Idol Corp, Akio Air, EIEN and others indies, there're so many interesting people that i had to filter. And there's so much more coming or recently out...I begin to understand Ollie so much more.

[@dokuganP]

Thanks for featuring us!! It’s true that large corpos have paved the way for what fans expect from VTubers, so my goal is to create corpo-quality content on an indie scale!

[@emircanozad914]

Look who decided to drop by? The British Android cat herself!

[@matt6260]

I tried streaming once and let me tell you being a small streamer is such a blessing tbh if you are not aiming for money Even if you only have like 5 to 10 viewers but you know those 5 to 10 people watching you are really enjoying interacting with you in chat which is so fun and really fullfilling

[@freakysquirrel7218]

"Neuro-sama who has a unique charm" Fitting that you took *THAT* clip xD

[@JulyYunico]

🤣

[@mika_fernandes]

It's crazy to me that these past few months i've been watching more and more indies and small agency vtubers than hololive streams. Some of my favs have been Pippa, Neuro, Rin and most of IdolEN's gen 2 girls, especially Roca!

[@bored_boar]

I'll be honest, as much as I enjoy Hololive, they do get a little... stale at times. Don't get me wrong, they're fun, wholesome, comfy and are super talented but they're also too.. safe? Like they always seem to be holding back on their jokes and the stuff they say because they have an image to keep. Heck, even Gura, Mumei, and Ame feels a little sterile at times despite her reputation of being a gremlin. Only one I watch almost religiously is Fauna because she's funny as hell.

[@FuMiO02110]

​@@bored_boarI mean it can be stale if you're get accustomed to much of higher level kind of yab jokes like the ones in Niji does....but the point about being safe, I agree to disagree because I can see Kiara and Calli drop F (sometimes C) word everywhere and talking about unhinged shit...I just think they, THE TALENT themselves that refrain from joking too wildly I guess? Because really that kind of joke is not that sustainable after all (even Matsuri the one who knows for probably the most unhinged when she Collab with a male is mentioning this)

[@raiden6507]

@@bored_boar yeah i get you after watching PC girls like Pippa, tenma or lia hololive can feel a bit safe

[@NationalistsRuinAmerica]

I like Pippa more since the last few months. when she first started she was really not that good since she came fresh from some 4chan political forum and had massive brain disease, some of it probably still remains. this plus a big chunk of her audience trying to constantly push her into saying some racist shit is what turned me off, but she's been improving a lot since then.

[@misora25chan]

The fact that Hololive JP and EN have not released a new wave in I think 2 years already is amazing. Then again, Holostars EN and HoloH3ro filled those gaps. That aside, I like Idol Corp and I'm glad they are getting traction.

[@ryanbolt1841]

I think that's because they don't debut new members until they can financially support them as well as making sure they get the right people as in professionals. also they debuting talents this year so it's fine.

[@NecroAsphyxia]

@@ryanbolt1841 essentially quality over quantity Bau Bau ^.^

[@youngthinker1]

Kirche and Pippa when they combine their powers almost always ends up with the stream being yeeted off the internet. You have to set your location to Mexico or Japan to find replays of it. So, they cover some things that other agencies would not touch with a ten foot pole. Shoot, the reason why they really picked up in popularity came down to a fake drama involving AI and Pippa's shenanigans which culminated in Kirche writing a Twitlonger about the situation and a colaboration confronting each other over what happen. Just remember to tell Pippa that she is the pink bunny from Tictok when you join her stream.

[@sasi5841]

Make sure to call her scizo, stinky, moldy rabbit

[@youngthinker1]

@@sasi5841 She does not jump at that.

[@velvetra29]

There's a new corp named PixelLink, they just debuted their 1st generation consisted of 5 talents. The girls seems very fun and chill, i wish them the very best luck.

[@Absolute__Zero]

As someone who fell into the Hololive rabbithole during its very early years, admittedly, I do miss those days when the community was a lot smaller and interactions with the talents were a lot easier. However though, I’m more so happy for their massive growth and success. Hololive probably wouldn’t have been here today had it stayed as the same, tightly knitted community.

[@moonclown305]

The first comment I seen of yours, in a vTuber video was 2019/20, since there werent that many usual international commentator back then, I remember you guys, those who haven't change their avatar or nicknames. It was a really different time. I hope I still see you guys around for many more years to come.

[@Fishnberg]

-I miss the days the community doesnt milk a meme to death lol- /jk

[@moonyamoonya997]

1. Find small corpo/indie 2. Enjoy creative streams 3. They become huge and popular 4. Drop them because they lose their creative freedom 5. ???? 6. Rinse and repeat

[@jessepeterson6694]

NGL i felt that vtubers like Shiki Miyoshino from Prism Project and Lia from Phase Connect deserve much bigger fan bases due to how entertaining they felt to me but now i'm starting to think they're both better off with the handfuls they have.

[@ShinmenTakezo1234]

Rin's shorts are what got me into them. I almost never watch any Vtuber's stream through the whole thing mainly just clips because i felt it's too long (unless it's a special occasion) so her light speed talking shorts really suit me.

[@Kuya_Enz0]

I love it when big corpos remove half their talent

[@stacyimagination3936]

Niji purging half of the members

[@CBRN-115]

"This conpany must be purged...."

[@EricMuller]

Nice to see some coverage outside of the big corporations. It's also nice to see some people I watch in the clips you used (and a few interesting ones I hadn't seen before)

[@KiliaKurayami]

Woah! Thank you for featuring me in your video! Super great points too! 🖤

[@RiikamiVT]

I rarely go on youtube anymore but I stuck around for this video entirely just because the way you explain with such smooth sequences and transitions. This video really captured my attention. This was very informational and overall you did your research definitely going to continue watching. Love the bunny png lmao

[@albedokreideprinz1012]

Wah - it's you!

[@ayakiria6597]

My main issue with the big corpos is that my timezone is basically left in the dust when it comes to their EN spheres. (GMT)

[@jon-unicorn-doxxer]

vesper and kiara stream at this timezone very often..well if your a holo fan

[@gokbay3057]

Kiara is probably the best Holo for European timezones, especially because she is one herself (at least when she is at home in Austria rather than in Japan). For Niji, Ike is Swedish and they do have several British livers so I presume their timeslots are good for Europe, thought I dunno if they actually are, I don't follow Niji EN closely.

[@ShinigamiRC38]

Thanks for the video, it's a treat like always ! (but inserting Miloh "Universe" at 01:26 was a low blow man )🧡🍞

[@elementochannel6994]

We can not forget about SHYLILY also. She rose & became the biggest indie twitch streamer in a span of year. So, I agree with you Indies are gonna grow & gonna be big

[@emircanozad914]

She is one of the Twitch Vtuber streamers who went past the 1 million milestone.

[@elementochannel6994]

@@emircanozad914 yup

[@zee-fr5kw]

She's basically a twitch thot, she's not really a vtuber, nothing would change if one day she was in a hot tub with a bikini. If your content is the same as every other female twitch streamer you're not really a VTuber....

[@GL0UDZ]

Back at it again Mr. Depressed Nousagi!!!!

[@TheAHuman]

About a year ago, I basically just watched Hololive and Mouse. But then, after listening to the weekly episode of Adeptus Ridiculous (a Warhammer 40K podcast), I saw one of the videos it recommended was some 4 hour video of a Vtuber learning Warhammer lore. I watched the whole video and have been a fan of Kaneko Lumi ever since (she is my 4th favorite Vtuber of all time). That made me interested in what these smaller vtubers were doing. I started watching smaller vtubers and found them to be great. I found someone who is ADHD incarnate. Shondo, who I was already familiar with as she and LemonLeaf/Lily (the first Vtuber I ever watched who you might know as someone else) were good friends. I found a new agency (or at least their first English branch) and watched this strange Bri’ish “person” blew up and then when the second Gen came out, I found my third favorite vtuber of all time in a certain burping dragon. I found a woman who is a great cook and yet somehow burns rice and doesn’t shower. And many more. I find myself enjoying the antics of the smaller companies and indies much more than the big two. They feel more genuine and like Lily was 2.5 years ago when I watched my first vtuber. I still watch Lily and she is still my favorite vtuber, but she isn’t the same now, but the smaller vtubers capture that same feeling.

[@gokbay3057]

I have seen that Vtuber reacting to/learning about Warhammer video and been planning to watch it but have never found the time (quite busy currently anyway so definitly won't have time for it for a month or so).

[@matthewmatthew981]

Warhammer 40k is like the most untapped niche the Vtubing world has seen, it's not even funny.

[@michaelsmale4830]

Let’s goo another nousagi vid😮

[@danifandit]

I love Idol EN so much, I've liked all their talents so far, and I really experienced what a normal moving chat is about, getting read and engaging with them make the stream so much more fun. There's always that fear in the back of my mind that they will grow too much for me to be able to enjoy their streams as much, but I hope they can reach the point of viewers they want to reach

[@soasertsus]

I think I'll always be hololive main just because I'm already in the bubble and don't really have time to follow my existing favorites let alone new streamers, which I think is the biggest obstacle for small corpos trying to break in; most of the vtuber boom happened during the pandemic when people had infinite time to sit and watch streams, and now that it's over and everyone is busy again, I think a lot of people already have their oshis in hololive or niji and don't have time to give new corpos a chance. It'll be hard for them to pull away viewers without another big event like that. I could actually see a vtuber or corpo that focuses more on classic Kizuna Ai style prerecorded and edited videos instead of streaming really making a big splash, a 20 minute episode of high effort content is much more suited to people's busy schedules post covid than a 6 hour stream. I've also been impressed by idol lately. I never gave them a chance when they debuted, but sure enough Rin's shorts kept popping up on my homepage and I kept watching them and just through the shorts I ended up really liking her. She's honestly a genius with making those. I've been checking out her and Yuko and I'm liking them both, and all the models and stuff look top quality too.

[@UncleButterworth]

Really good essay, dude.

[@dDeckon]

Not gonna lie Saw Lopi on the Thumbnail, I clicked & I liked Glad to hear she's being talking about & happy for her Success!

[@risktorise2103]

Thanks for the vid , it give me some insight about the indie's scene of vtubing.

[@mr.smiles3212]

Hololive got me into vtubers, Phase Connect and Kirsche are what keeps me watching.

[@OrangeSan]

Same brother

[@ultimate9685]

Same. Also Kirshe is the secret member of Phase, fishman is yet to get the memo.

[@SF-rf9if]

fishman is too cowardly to hire her

[@pixymisa8087]

If HoloEN are streaming something interesting I'll probably watch it, but I'll still check to see what Pippa is doing.

[@Liquid-XIII]

The spicy cat is the funniest and most cursed vtuber I can think of

[@chipiso]

You're the expert, but I think that more corpos are going to take a page from Vshojo's book and recruit indies that have already "made it" so that they don't have to deal with all the risks/cost starting a new talent, and designing their brand entails. An indie/smol corpo golden age is probably the best ending we could ask for after April.

[@Fishnberg]

After this video, I kinda teared up abit Feeling nostalgia for the past, and seeing the little people finally got the attention they needed puts a smile in my face. This rabbit hole really is a wild ride, wonder what will it take us next~

[@PaulBen19]

From the way I see it Phase Connect is going to be the next big vtubing agency soon to take up Hololive spot. Their numbers just keep getting bigger and bigger and they get even more popular every year as time goes by. Management is really good and their talents are really entertaining, risk taking and they know what they’re doing to keep engaging with fans. Hell Phase Connect already got massive recognition from big names like Kson, Henya, and Fauna so they really going places. I look forward to seeing Phase Connect get bigger and bigger!!

[@NationalistsRuinAmerica]

One key word that nousagi also mentioned is "based".you know, the thing that gets spammed in chat whenever a PC girl says something about some conspiracy theory (Pippa), something borderline or blatantly racist or just something insulting. I get the excitement of some risque jokes but these "based" things cater to a very specific audience. and if the vtuber fan community turns more and more towards that direction of "comedy" or entertainment, people like me who aren't big fans of disguised hate will turn their backs on VTubers.

[@PaulBen19]

@@NationalistsRuinAmerica Disguised Hate is a stupid fucking word and it tells me that you don’t watch them but heard what everyone else says and you bought into it. To your point So What, so if there’s a specific audience for that kinda comedy making edgy jokes, referencing pop culture, anime, singing and dancing are things vtubers do and Phase Connect has done that and still doing it and everyone is seeing their results and it’s helping them get bigger. You also mentioned a form of “comedy” sorry to tell you but vtubers already have that form of comedy. Hell look at Hololive for example they have allot of based takes and edgy joke moments, so does Nijisanji, Vshojo, and etc. So don’t know what else to tell you

[@NationalistsRuinAmerica]

@@PaulBen19 I can promise you I went into a fucking DEEP DIVE on Pippa's content. mostly because I have internet brain disease and whenever I find something that takes me by surprise I wanna find out more about them. So no, I've not looked her up on Twitter, quite the opposite. I've been on 1001 image boards and chan forums additionally to watching thousands of clips and deleted fan archived VODs. By my impression there are Pippa fans who are just light edgy, and then there are Pippa fans who believe she's holding back and who are hoping for the day when She goes mask off and praises the Führer or something. and I'm also not surprised that this kinda shit takes off in popularity because there are arguably more right wing people and right extremists on the internet than leftists. and all these people who were terminally online to begin with now find an anime girl who low-key Supports their fucked up world view. again, this is not some second hand revelation, I put my rain boots on and went into the mud myself. I dug deep. and it really didn't feel good reading what I was reading.

[@zee-fr5kw]

​@@NationalistsRuinAmericayour bread is dying. People are sick of oversensitivity, and virtue signaling.

[@NationalistsRuinAmerica]

@@zee-fr5kw Just like they were in 1939.

[@GCJACK83]

I will always fight other people in the street for Suisei, but I also wound up branching out and watching some small corpos and indies. Three smaller corpos I find to be reliable for throwing on in the background during hard grinding sessions in FFXI are KawaiiPro, Prism Project, and Phase Connect.

[@SteelRatVT]

This is probably your best video to date. You perfectly described why I watch indies for hours, while I stay on big channels for minutes.

[@Komaruuu]

Took the words right out of my mouth

[@aisukururimu7515]

I figured out that Iofi from Holo ID is my kami-oshi after watching so many vtubers from within and outside of Hololive actually, so yeah, I say sometimes the opposite could also happen, the indies & small agencies could be the ones that led you to liking a big corpo vtuber like how it happened to me I do still watch some indies when I can of course, outside of Holo, I'm really invested in VOL lately, especially in Sorara. I mean... her voice is just so oddly addicting to listen to, and the stream vibe is almost like Iofi, it have a sense of calmness and peace in the stream, although Iofi's also have that sense of unpredictability that gets me to listen to her talking for hours since the stream vibe can really go everywhere but still within a natural pace. But yeah, long story short, I lowkey want to listen to an ASMR stream from Sorara too someday lol

[@RC10000]

Nice topic bro nousagui! Facts

[@shocksword6847]

I don't even watch that many vtubers or even clips of them nowadays (started playing Blue Archive, God help my soul) but seeing a new Depressed Nousagi video pop up in my feeds is always a treat.

[@r3ll282]

Just remember, if someone calls you a pedo for playing BA, just tell them that atleast you guys managed to shut down a corrupt branch in the korean government

[@stacyimagination3936]

@@r3ll282 💀

[@swordsman1_messer]

Yup, can confirm; my indie Oshi is Whiskey Project, and I’m glad for all her successes she’s had for this year.

[@patiszejuicebox]

Man, showing Tsunderia during the segment about smaller corpos collapsing hit me hard. They were my fav prior, but I’m glad the vast majority of the former members landed on their feet again, whether it was going indie or joining another corpo.

[@warlockwarlord169]

Its gonna be a long long time if ever for something like HoloMyth to happen again . Professionalism, attitude,personality,talent,camaraderie etc.

[@arkcanon1282]

Agree and what i caught of this video is the opposite, there will be no more group like holoMyth again because the others small agencies and indies are filling niches that are not in Myth area so they will surely be different than Myth.

[@futabaanzu1876]

yeah if it ever does. It was truly a perfect storm. amazing talent, way fewer EN vtubers over all and the corona buff.

[@Pers0n97]

Sadly they killed their thing by focusing their talent time on pointless and lenghty trips to japan to do some "behind the scene" or idol things rather than actuallg stream.

[@warlockwarlord169]

@@Pers0n97 Pointless? looks like we found ourselves a salty 4channer

[@Pers0n97]

@@warlockwarlord169 Oof. That retarded line made me cringe so hard I broke a tooth. Sorry to break your weird bubble you weirdo, but very, VERY few people actually care about the idol bullshit and are actually here to watch anime girls STREAM.

[@xXUnoriginalNameXx33Meygaera]

I have a theory about Pippa's view count and it revolves around Pikamee. Whenever Pikamee wasn't streaming (took a break in Jan. 2023, extended break into Feb. 2023) Pippa was gaining viewers. Then in Mar. 2023 Pikamee returned, announced her graduation date, and streamed almost daily for the rest of that Month. That's the big dip in Pippa's viewers...before it rises considerably in April 2023 after Pikamee retired. Then in May 2023 Henya debuted. I think they have a lot of overlap in fan base.

[@ImPipkinrick]

"Some CEOs treated their girls as a harem or something"

[@Ojisan642]

This video is so right on point.

[@PLandLord]

Thanks for making this video,. I helped me to branch out to smaller channels.

[@pokemonwilliams2176]

The small companies are probably heading towards a bright future if this keeps up

[@RemitheDreamfox]

Excellent analysis, loved the cute and wholesome vibes of the video! :3

[@Chessrook44]

Listening to you describe the state of this industry makes me think of the state of the videogame industy. You have the big names (Activision/Blizzard, EA..... Hololive, Nijisanji...), then you have the smaller corporate names (Cyan..... Phase Connect), and then you have the indies (ToadyOne..... Snuffy). We're getting these stages dividing up now.

[@dorian4646]

It's the decentralization era babyyyy

[@naotokujikawa2751]

as someone who had been following Niji EN since Lazulight the companies choices this past year have been so draining i unfortunately just can't atm and have basically found myself in the Phase and Idol sphere(though did watch Idol EN's first wave i then went back to Niji at the time) of late and its nice having the general nice vibes again and actually excited to watch Vtubers again despite basically stopping for months.

[@coderalfa8991]

being in a corpo is about using their brand, there are 2 response when that brand becomes damaged because of drama, they either protect and support the vtuber or cut them off and burn them along side the drama their in.

[@Knightwalker727]

Suisei is my favorite because of her talents and her story of how she got into Hololive, which will probably be my fave VTuber journey story forever, and Holomyth still has the best group lore imo, but I find Rin Penrose and Punkalopi shorts to be very entertaining and I've probably watched more clips of theirs than the those from Holo and Niji. They're just so funny!

[@velveteensallet949]

Nothing will change the fact that Suisei is my kami-oshi, but I've been drawn to ClioAite lately. She's a hag, she plays RTS and 4X games, she's a history nerd. She's perfect!

[@m4skoo]

She playing EU4?!? Hit me up

[@velveteensallet949]

​@@m4skooYes she is, as a total Venice simp. Though she does do different nations for challenges and stuff.

[@matijota8728]

Another vtuber besides Lumi that plays RTS??? I'm in

[@gokbay3057]

Holy Based. I have seen some other Vtubers play strategy games as well but not often, and most of the time it was quite a time ago with little hope of return/continuation (Several Nijis played Age of Empires and Civilization. Layla Alstroemeria from ex-ID, one of my top three vtubers alongside Suisei, played a Hearts of Iron once three years ago and also played a little Stellaris back then as well. Thought admittedly she hasn't done that recently. Also shame that Nina is graduating, she played Crusader Kings). (Since you mentioned that one of the draws of this vtuber for you is that she is a history nerd, I wish to recommend Layla even more. She has a whole series called Alstroepedia which are lecture themed streams which have history or Indonesian culture themes most of the time. She also used Assasins Creed, not for gameplay streams but to tour Ancient Greece and Egypt in some past streams.) (History and Paradox Games were in fact exactly what drew me to Layla originally. So yeah, would recommend as a channel that might be of interest for people who like both Vtubers and History. Even if only for VODs as I don't know if she is planning anything history related in the near future)

[@EndoftheBeginning17]

I've been watching the small corpos. At this point Vshojo is ready to drop off as one of the Big 3. Seriously, they should have at least 15 members and hopefully they will pick up a few more in both branches before the end of this year for at least 5 in Japan and another 3 in EN. I think Gunrun doesn't know what h needs to actually grow the company and if he doesn't it will eventually collapse as what it offers over Idol or Phase is very little. It's biggest selling point is the fact that you can bring in your own model and not give up your IP nor have to give your earnings over. Interestingly, he's staying on Twitch as opposed to migrating over to KZbin. I know the Twitch streamers that have migrated over think there is no disciverability, and going through the Gaming or Live tabs on the sidebar that's absolutely true. But going through the search bar at the top of the page, the discoverability is all there, one just needs excellent SEO.

[@Otoshi_Gami]

@@fwiffo indeed because its so frustrating for nazuna and Kson to collab with anyone due to them being blacklisted by corpos and i hope that Vshojo recruit 2 more JP Vtubers so that both of them can collab much easier. its sad that even Nazuna still get Bullied by Antis and Dealing with Mental Illness to this day for over a year.

[@THEWZRD1]

In my opinion Vshojo won't be taken seriously until they grow a Vtuber instead of relying on reincarnation

[@THEWZRD1]

@@fwiffo I'm not saying they shouldn't hire former big corpos but making that your whole identity is weak

[@leandroiuki4337]

The content creators are on demand, more people and even companies are paying for making content. The industry is more bigger than ever, we want to spread/increase the multimedia, connects all kinds of platforms and cultures.

[@jousting]

0:44 to be fair tho 4chans gonna be 4chan

[@NovaPuppeteerMortis]

One small vtuber company that I have kept an eye on since March of last year is AkioAir. All the girls are very talented and yes while they don’t have that much viewership and that one of the five girls graduated since January, I think that they do have a bright future ahead of them and hope to see them grow more.

[@ElainaMaruyama]

Smaller ones are often more appealing because they feel less 'to the book' so to speak. They're more genuine and are more willing to have a laugh and say risky things because they can get away with it. As you said they're more likely to interact with you too. Bigger Vtubers do miss a lot of things because of the speed of their chat sure but I also feel like to a degree they also rarely reply to people who don't have a high duration membership most of the time.

[@NationalistsRuinAmerica]

I notice a lot though that "less to the book" often means "more to the right". like, VTubers like pippa seem to be "refreshing" or unique by just being kinda edgy and by making jokes you usually hear on the school yard from some 9th grader who has discovered 4chan or something. and if this kinda trend continues I predict that these VTubers and their communities will turn into echo chambers and they're gonna start smelling their own farts. I mean, Pippa has been maturing a bit since her debut. she has talked about literally having paranoia about everyone in phase Connect hating her, which is not surprising considering she did nothing but browse /pol/ before becoming Pippa

[@_Adobo]

Wow increased production values. Nice!

[@konohamaru77]

This happen just few months ago. Some japanese indie vtuber have small view. And with help of the fans from overseas, she slowly going big. What an amazing times it is

[@DarkKnight-em7ue]

Wait.... So the vtuber market has gone from consolidated to fractured? Damn!

[@_Phillter]

As much as I still enjoy and watch my original faves in Holo, I firmly believe the newest gen in Idol, ENDLESS, will be a second-coming of English VTubing in the same way that Myth was when it debuted. The personalities that those girls exude from every fiber of thier being, along with the genuine joy that they bring, are the heralds of a new and more interesting age. JamStones forever!⚡🗿

[@theclockisticking9134]

Hey, no offense, but I don't think you fully grasp the harsh realities and challenges on what it takes to be as big as Hololive. These smaller corporations haven't faced major scandals that could potentially rock their foundation. When that happens, we'll find out what they're truly made of. Expect backstabbing, talents revealing their true colors, and talents getting blamed for things beyond their control. How easy it is for everything to fall apart. Hololive has weathered 5-10 major scandals, each one with the potential to sink any other company.

[@_Phillter]

@@theclockisticking9134 None taken. I never said anything about how it's not hard to be Holo, or where they got to. It's amazing that they have gone as far as they have! Esp with the EN concert the other day, a huge milestone has been reached for them...but what Nousagi said about "interacting with chat", streaming creativity, etc...all of that feels a bit stale recently in the holosphere. Maybe it's just "OH SHINY" syndrome, but Idol EN is a real breath of fresh air with how down to earth their streams are so far. Of course, time will tell, but for now, I consume much more of their content and get more enjoyment out of it, than I do from any of my faves in Holo.

[@squalleonkeneddyheart4191]

Bro chill lol they are first Vtuber agency talents, also some of them may have talent but none of them have Keyfabe and don't feel like Vtubers yet, at least aside from the rocker girl Rin Penrose works cuz her Keyfabe as a Handsome "Prince" works well with her actual Quirky personally and banter skills.

[@_Phillter]

@@squalleonkeneddyheart4191 And if Kayfabe is really vital to you, then absolutely you are right. They haven't really been around long enough to establish one let alone the experience to maintain it or build on it... But recently closeness to the audience has become more important to me. It's nice to have your message acknowledged by the streamer, or chat with other people watching! Whereas with the bigger talents your messages, be they from normal viewers or members or even supas, are not responded to usually, and if they are it is a brief moment at the end of a stream, or a completely separate supa reading stream, losing that "in the moment" interaction. It totally is a problem of numbers to be sure: they just have MORE so your individual contribution accounts for less, but even knowing that, the interaction portion of a stream is what I want more of. Hence, my enjoyment of the smaller streamers recently.

[@squalleonkeneddyheart4191]

@@_Phillter so you still on that stage huh? Trust me when I say that I use to be like that but you will later realize how Shallow and empty it feels and then you will realize what's really Important. To me it was the growth of the Brand and how far they could go, the talents will one day Graduate for one reason or another and the brand itself will decline and lose prestige as all things should be. The reason why Holomems have it good over others is cuz the Agency is Big but is not hungry for making short term profit that they prioritize the talents Health and well being, which is why contrary to popular Rrat that Gura will soon graduate I think it's the opposite. She is simply taking advantage of the benefits of being Holo as much as she can till she leaves

[@fraktaalimuoto]

I think this is a natural development. Like in music you have both big label pop musicians, and more niche indie musicians. The typical choice between either wide and perhaps consistent appeal vs artistic freedom

[@Star5aII]

Just want to said Hololive used to be a smol indie vtuber agency

[@GMM5Art]

Good video as usual

[@heinloffman]

Hit the nail on the head. 👍

[@brunnokamei9623]

Sometimes we can't help but rooting for the underdog.

[@xiiir838]

I feel good for them 🎉🎉🎉 There's very funny people working for small corps or indie people that deserve more viewers because they're even more entertaining than big corpos. It's a shame I cannot watch streams😅 I love the streaming world a lot, but I just cannot stand watching four to ten hours of content. I honestly don't know how people that's really into streamers do it, maybe I haven't found the one for me (in English)

[@kuzumadesu]

As the honorable Senator Palpatine have said: "And you, young Skywalker, we will watch your career with great interest."

[@wuxian1]

proud of idol-en!

[@legendarydigitize2523]

Prism project is a great one to go to for underdogs I often tune it to give em something to talk about Jun Akane especially I see him as a fellow vtuber fan

[@ShiraKonan]

Prism noooo T_T Well, the talents haven't really gone away. They're closely knit enough that they'll probably function as an indie group. Also, based Jun Akane fan

[@dr.shakib9961]

Pixel Link came out of nowhere and they are some of the most talented streamers I've seen. Hope they keep growing they are so wonderful.

[@camedark_vods]

so farm im loving the raccoon witch, the kaiju nerd axolotl and the cute rabbit that plays tough games.

[@KL-ed4fq]

All I have time to so is watch clips with the bigger corpos but I engage in smaller agencies and indies now

[@Rob_Callistis]

They had the charm where if you are famous enough as a content creator or a vtuber, you can collab with them easily. Though there aren't many male indie groups that are as famous as Idol EN. Still wanting one. (Twitch not for me since Im not a twitch person.)

[@Aereto]

For smaller groups, I got Pipkin Pippa. Got the daki cover from their convention booth, and managed to encounter the meet and greet.

[@greed-1914]

I think some of it is that people want to feel like they got in on the ground floor or that they can feel like it might be too late to get into something that has been around for years now. Engagement is also definitely a factor. A small indie who remembers who you are can be more appealing than sitting in a chat where you are just one of a thousand. I've even heard some more mid-size vtubers say they are glad for the growth, but miss when they could interact with everyone. I suppose one advantage of Niji debuting people so frequently is that it's a starting point for any new viewer. There is also something endearing about small agencies doing what they can. Both hololive and Production Kawaii had concerts this weekend, and both were good in their own ways.

[@PresidentFunnyValentine]

Phase Connect love~

[@elementotv2893]

We can't forget about SHYLILY, who became the biggest Indie vtuber within 1 YEAR & still grinding

[@illefeel]

"better" content and talents are subjective

[@Venom1846]

Remember, if you find a good no view indie, never tell anyone. They'll be ruined by a large audience.

[@carso1500]

or they will be snatched by hololive, yagoo has an obsesion with rescuing girls

[@yumehaminakami3505]

I actually like Yuko's, Juna's and Rin's content more. It's great to see they're getting really popular.

[@camedark_vods]

idol en gen 2 and pixel link gen 0 recently came out and they cooking well.

[@yan2179]

thanks for the voice warning.

[@andrewreynolds912]

Im a start up Indie whos trying to become a Vtuber even if i call myself one i am not exactly yet because i still dont have a model yet because i need a rigger and second i dont have a YT channel because my goal is to have a model than do that. Ive put a ton of time into designing my mascot but not much on my main model so obviously ill have to change my model and update him and such over time etc. Which will suck but oh well i put more into my mascot to be creative by putting a lot of symbolism and semitos into my mascot, than my character main model but thats gonna be addressed in the future because littlely ive been waiting like 5 months or so to get a model has been taking a lot of patience and such for me. Even if im not exactly a vtuber yet I still have the ability to do streams and do what i can for now, yet i halted my streams because i wanted to focus all my energy to getting my first 2D model which is gonna speed it up not to mention itll give me more time of what i could do as a future content creator.

[@thegemguy1334]

Make me wonder if there will be more entities like Mythic emerging.