After being mysteriously banned from Twitch on June 26, Dr Disrespect has finally returned to streaming today on YouTube.
Dr Disrespect released a teaser on Instagram live earlier today, preparing fans for his imminent return to streaming. He followed up that Instagram stream with a new song titled “Red Skies” before eventually making his comeback on YouTube later in the day.
Following his Instagram live, Dr Disrespect added a $4.99 “Join” button to his YouTube channel—YouTube’s version of Twitch’s Subscribe button. Dr Disrespect’s YouTube stream isn’t part of any official partnership with the platform, however, according to esports journalist Rod “Slasher” Breslau.
Since his ban in June, Dr Disrespect has slowly teased his return to streaming. On July 16, Doc changed the channel link on his Twitter page from Twitch to YouTube, signaling his move to the new platform. The following day, Dr Disrespect posted his first YouTube video after a three-week hiatus.
Although his Twitch ban is reportedly permanent, Twitch hasn’t released any details on its reasoning for the disciplinary action against the streamer. Before being banned, Dr Disrespect held more than four million followers on Twitch.
The Doc broke his silence regarding the situation in two interviews with The Washington Post and PC Gamer, both of which were released on July 16. In his interview with PC Gamer, he said he doesn’t know why Twitch banned him. In the same interview, he also said he has no intention of ever returning to Twitch and is considering legal action against the platform.
During interviews, he refused to engage with the speculation regarding the reason for his ban. “I’ve seen all the theories, I’ve seen all the possible conspiracies, and it’s just like, I’m just not interested in engaging that type of stuff,” he told PC Gamer. Doc did, however, dispel the popular rumor that he found out about the ban during his final livestream.
Dr Disrespect was one of the earliest successful online gaming personalities, publishing his first gameplay commentary in January 2010. Several of his videos were published on what was at the time the epicenter of online gaming content, Machinima’s YouTube channel. In 2011, he landed a job as the community manager at Sledgehammer Games, who were developing Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare at the time. He remained in that position for several years.
His Twitch channel gained traction in 2015, prompting him to leave Sledgehammer and start streaming full time. He saw tremendous success as a full-time streamer, winning Streamer of the Year from the Esports Industry Awards in 2017 and 2019. He’s been involved in his fair share of controversies, including taking a break from streaming due to cheating on his wife in 2017 and being temporarily banned from Twitch after streaming from a public bathroom at E3 in 2019. Despite these setbacks, Doc has managed to accrue a loyal online following, who he refers to as the Champions Club.
