Despite being an award-winning streamer who was, at one point, the most-subscribed streamer on Twitch, Kai Cenat has found himself at odds with the Amazon-owned platform in 2023.
On Jan. 26, he was banned hours before his subathon kicked off. It was his fourth ban in two years, and although the reason wasn’t revealed, it was believed to be due to consuming cannabis edibles on stream. The 21-year-old star was unbanned three days later.
Since then, however, he’s been more outspoken towards the platform and its policies, and he was furious after Twitch issued him a warning for reacting to a viral clip of YouTube star iShowSpeed, who was permanently banned on Twitch in December 2021, which is against their rules.
“I got a warning, bro, I got a warning. Like, deadass,” he said in disbelief. “Like, you can’t even react. Bro, what? Think about it, they’re off your platform and you can’t do nothing live, but you can’t react?”
Kai Cenat doubled-down, stating he doesn’t like that streamers can’t react to those who have been banned, claiming Twitch is trying to silence that person, which is “extreme.”
To add salt to his wounds, the Speed clip was innocuous. It’s a two-and-a-half-minute video of him calling rap superstar Drake, who hilariously hangs up on him. Twitch’s staunch policy is in place for a reason, however. It stops streamers from evading suspensions—intentionally or otherwise—by appearing on other’s channels.
If things don’t change, though, there’s a chance Kai Cenat could look for another platform to call home. Adin Ross believes this could be the case for himself and others, listing YouTube and Kick as viable options.
Published: Feb 20, 2023 06:47 pm