American YouTuber and streamer IShowSpeed, aka Darren Jason Watkins Jr. has officially crossed 50 million subscribers on YouTube, becoming the first Black individual creator to reach this milestone. He hit the mark on January 21, 2026, on his 21st birthday while streaming live from Nigeria during his Africa tour.
Speed celebrated the achievement atop a car in traffic, surrounded by fans and a birthday cake, as his live stream showed the subscriber count hitting 50 million. In his signature energetic style, he exclaimed, “Let’s go! 50 million! 50 million on my birthday.
“This is the gift I asked for, I love y’all so much!” He also hinted at his next big goal of becoming a 100-million-subscriber YouTuber, calling it “halfway there.”
Ishowspeed hit 50 million Subscribers on his 21st birthday.
Reaching 50 million subscribers is a major milestone for a creator whose channel focuses on live gaming, challenges, and viral reactions, rather than scripted content.
In 2025, Speed ranked among YouTube’s top gaming streamers, clocking over 64 million hours of watch time in a single year. His explosive growth has been fueled by high-energy content, global tours, and strong engagement with his chat community. Just recently, he won the content creator of the year award. This was his second title in a row.
Ishowspeed youtube journey began in 2016 with modest gaming streams, but his career truly exploded in 2021:
- April 2021: Reached 100,000 subscribers.
- June 2021: Just two months later, he hit 1 million subscribers.
- July 2022: Hit the 10 million mark as his football-related content and support for Cristiano Ronaldo went viral.
- January 2026: Jumped from 48 million to 50 million in just 10 days during his tour of Kenya, Algeria, and finally Nigeria.
Among American individual creators, MrBeast remains at the top with over 460 million subscribers, but IShowSpeed now stands out as one of the fastest-growing solo streamers in the world. His achievement also highlights the rising influence of Black creators on YouTube’s global stage.
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With his Africa tour ongoing and the 100-million-subscriber target in sight, fans can expect even bigger moments from IShowSpeed in 2026.
