pokimane

Imane Anys was born in Morocco on 14 May 1996.{{cite news |last1=Spangler |first1=Todd |date=19 April 2021 |title=Game Streamer Pokimane on Twitch's New Safety Policies, Favorite Games and Her Upcoming Film Debut |work=Variety |url=https://variety.com/2021/digital/news/pokimane-twitch-safety-policies-film-debut-1234954970/ |access-date=16 November 2021}}{{cite tweet|number=1393297215964123136|user=pokimanelol|title=25! 🥳|date=14 May 2021|accessdate=16 November 2021}} Her parents were academics who immigrated to Quebec, Canada, when she was four years old. She grew up in St. Catharines, Ontario.{{Cite magazine |last=Marchese |first=David |date=21 April 2023 |others=Photograph by Doumbouya, Mamadi |title=The Queen of Twitch Wonders What Turns Teenage Fans Into Trolls |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/04/24/magazine/pokimane-twitch.html |magazine=The New York Times Magazine |issn=1553-8095 |access-date=5 July 2023 |url-access=limited}} In middle school, Anys began playing massively multiplayer online games such as MapleStory and Endless Online, where she focused on customization and socializing with other players. Anys studied chemical engineering at McMaster University but later dropped out to pursue her streaming career full-time.

Anys created her Twitch account in June 2013. She began streaming later that year with a $250 PC she bought after reaching Platinum rank in League of Legends. The name Pokimane is a portmanteau of Pokémon and her name, Imane.{{Cite magazine |last=D'Anastasio |first=Cecilia |author-link=Cecilia D'Anastasio |date=26 August 2021 |title=Pokimane Has Done Enough—and Has So Much Left to Do |url=https://www.wired.com/story/pokimane-has-done-enough-and-has-so-much-left-to-do/ |magazine=Wired |language=en-US |issn=1059-1028 |access-date=4 December 2021 |url-access=limited}}

She gained 450,000 followers on Twitch in 2017, earning her account a place within the 100 most followed on the platform.{{cite web|url=http://shortyawards.com/10th/pokimanelol|title=Pokimane – The Shorty Awards|publisher=Shorty Awards|access-date=1 August 2018}} As a result of her account's rise on the platform in 2017, the Shorty Awards named her as the Best Twitch Streamer of the year. The Shorty Awards detailed that her gameplay and commentary on the popular game League of Legends propelled her to popularity on Twitch. Anys had a cameo appearance in a League of Legends trailer announcing a new game mode.{{cite web|last=Dedmon|first=Tanner|date=20 May 2018|title=League of Legends' New Clash Trailer Offers Advice From Faker|url=http://comicbook.com/gaming/2018/05/20/league-of-legends-clash-trailer-faker/|access-date=2 August 2018|work=Comic Book}}

File:Pokimane_at_Twitchcon_Berlin_2019.png

Anys has been known to stream gameplay and commentary of Fortnite, which she first streamed as part of a sponsorship.{{cite web|last1=Nicol|first1=Will|last2=Winn|first2=Riley|url=https://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/fortnite-twitch-streamer-pokimane-interview-e3-2018/|title=Twitch streamer Pokimane on playing 'Fortnite' full-time, building a community|work=Digital Trends|date=15 June 2018|access-date=2 August 2018}} At E3 in 2018, Epic Games, the developers of Fortnite, arranged a pro–am event.{{cite web|last=Bishop|first=Sam|url=https://www.gamereactor.eu/esports/660973/Fortnites+Celebrity+ProAm+gets+more+details/|title=Fortnite's Celebrity Pro-Am gets more details|work=Gamereactor|date=24 May 2018|access-date=2 August 2018}}{{cite web|last=Goslin|first=Austen|url=https://www.polygon.com/2018/6/1/17417568/fortnite-e3-tournament-teams-players-ninja-ali-a|title=Here's everyone playing in Epic's major Fortnite E3 tournament|work=Polygon|date=1 June 2018|access-date=2 August 2018}} The event paired streamers with mainstream celebrities in a match of Fortnite{{'}}s Battle Royale mode; Anys was paired with rapper Desiigner but shortly before the event, he was replaced with basketball player Josh Hart. In mid-March 2019, Anys addressed her declining amount of Fortnite streams, stating that she needed to "think about what I like or dislike about the content that I've been making."{{cite web|last=Bonfiglio|first=Nahlia|url=https://www.dailydot.com/parsec/pokimane-fortnite-hiatus/|title=Pokimane explains why she stopped doing Fortnite streams|work=The Daily Dot|date=4 April 2019|access-date=17 September 2019}}

Tech news website Digital Trends detailed that Anys frequently interacts with her audience and described her "laidback but enthusiastic personality" as "perfectly suited to long-form streams."{{cite web|last=Gurwin|first=Gabe|url=https://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/best-twitch-streamers-to-watch/|title=Here are 8 fun Twitch streamers you should start watching|work=Digital Trends|date=19 April 2018|access-date=2 August 2018}} Aside from streaming gaming content, Anys also podcasts and streams miscellaneous real-world moments.

As one of the more popular streamers on the platform, Twitch has directly partnered with Anys. In July 2018, Twitch selected her as one of 15 ambassadors for the 2018 iteration of their TwitchCon event.{{cite web|last=Weiss|first=Geoff|url=https://www.tubefilter.com/2018/07/06/pokimane-avajaijai-djarii-ambassadors-twitchcon/|title=Pokimane, Avajaijai, Djarii Named First-Ever 'Ambassadors' For Twitch's TwitchCon|work=Tubefilter|date=6 July 2018|access-date=2 August 2018}} Later that month, Twitch also scheduled Anys as a partner for their Twitch Creator Camp, a series of broadcasts and articles designed to help content creators build successful channels.{{cite web|last=Chan|first=Stephanie|url=https://venturebeat.com/2018/07/24/twitch-creator-camp-has-both-crash-courses-and-master-classes-for-streamers/|title=Twitch Creator Camp has both crash-courses and master classes for streamers|work=GamesBeat|publisher=VentureBeat|date=24 July 2018|access-date=2 August 2018}} In March 2020, Anys signed a multi-year exclusivity with Twitch.{{cite web|last1=Asarch|first1=Steven|date=5 March 2020|title=Pokimane will be streaming on Twitch for at least a few more years|url=https://www.newsweek.com/pokimane-sign-exclusivity-deal-twitch-stream-1490797|access-date=5 March 2020|website=Newsweek|language=en}} Social Blade listed Anys as the 9th-most-followed user on Twitch, with over 8.5 million followers as of 21 December 2021.{{cite web|title=Top 100 Twitch Streamers Sorted by Followers|url=https://socialblade.com/twitch/top/100/followers|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20201103153440/https://socialblade.com/twitch/top/100|archive-date=3 November 2020|access-date=19 May 2020|publisher=Social Blade}} In late October 2020, Anys collaborated with U.S. representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar along with several other notable streamers including Disguised Toast and HasanAbi for a session of Among Us as part of a get-out-the-vote initiative for the 2020 United States presidential election.{{Cite web |last=Stephen |first=Bijan |date=20 October 2020 |title=Watch AOC play Among Us live on Twitch with HasanAbi and Pokimane |url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/10/20/21525740/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-aoc-twitch-hasanabi-pokimane-ilhan-omar-among-us |access-date=21 October 2020 |website=The Verge |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Fudge |first=James |date=20 October 2020 |title=U.S. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar to Join Pokimane in Among Us Twitch Stream to Promote Voting |url=https://esportsobserver.com/aoc-ilhan-omar-pokimane-twitch/ |access-date=21 October 2020 |website=The Esports Observer |language=en-US}}

Anys was named a featured honoree in the 2021 Forbes 30 Under 30 under the category of "Games", which noted her prominence as the largest female streamer on Twitch and as one of the founders of OfflineTV.{{cite web|title=Forbes 30 Under 30 2021: Games|url=https://www.forbes.com/30-under-30/2021/games/?profile=imane-anys|website=Forbes}} She had 8.5 million followers on Twitch as of July 2021.

On 8 January 2022, Anys' Twitch account was suspended for 48 hours midway through an Avatar: The Last Airbender watch stream following a DMCA claim from ViacomCBS.{{Cite web|last=Diaz|first=Ana|date=7 January 2022|title=Pokimane banned on Twitch after streaming Avatar: The Last Airbender|url=https://www.polygon.com/22873041/pokimane-twitch-ban-tv-meta-avatar-last-airbender-dmca|access-date=8 January 2022|website=Polygon}}{{Cite web|last=Zwiezen|first=Zack|date=8 January 2022|title=Pokimane Receives First Twitch Ban, But It's Only Temporary|url=https://kotaku.com/pokimane-temporarily-banned-on-twitch-after-streaming-a-1848326406|access-date=8 January 2022|website=Kotaku}} Later in the month, Anys' stream was hate raided by viewers of JiDion. He was later banned, which received the attention of streamer Ninja, who stated he would use his connections to get the ban reversed. Anys criticized this response from Ninja, particularly calling out Ninja's use of the word bitches when speaking on the issue.{{cite web|last=Arshad|first=Sahar|url=https://www.insider.com/pokimane-ninja-jidion-twitch-feud-hate-raid-ban-2022-1|title=3 gaming influencers are embroiled in a messy feud involving accusations of harassment, misogyny, and lies|work=Insider|date=19 January 2022|accessdate=17 February 2022}}{{cite web|last=Asarch|first=Steven|url=https://www.inverse.com/gaming/pokimane-ninja-twitch|title=Pokimane and Ninja controversy reveals one thing Twitch must change|work=Inverse|date=25 January 2022|accessdate=17 February 2022}}{{cite web|last=Winslow|first=Jeremy|url=https://kotaku.com/twitch-star-ninja-threatens-pokimane-with-legal-action-1848380039|title=Twitch Star Ninja Threatens Pokimane With Legal Action For Alleged 'Harassment'|work=Kotaku|date=18 January 2022|accessdate=17 February 2022}} Anys and JiDion have since made amends.{{Cite web |last=Shadee |date=2022-12-12 |title=From Internet beef to burgers, How Pokimane and JiDion squashed bad vibes. |url=https://shadee.care/2022/12/12/from-internet-beef-to-burgers-how-pokimane-and-jidion-squashed-bad-vibes/ |access-date=2024-12-05 |website=Shadee Care |language=en-US}} Later in February 2022, Anys re-signed with Twitch.{{cite web|last=Garcia|first=Ethan|url=https://dotesports.com/streaming/news/pokimane-re-signs-with-twitch|title=Pokimane re-signs with Twitch|work=Dot Esports|date=8 February 2022|accessdate=17 February 2022}}

On 30 January 2024, Anys announced that she would stop streaming on Twitch stating that she was "done with Twitch's messy behaviour" citing the changes that the company has made in recent years.{{Cite web |date=30 January 2024 |title=Pokimane Leaves Twitch After A Decade With The Streaming Platform [Updated] |url=https://kotaku.com/pokimane-leaves-twitch-streamer-1851209661 |access-date=1 February 2024 |website=Kotaku |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Carpenter |first=Nicole |date=31 January 2024 |title=Pokimane is leaving Twitch exclusivity behind |url=https://www.polygon.com/24056004/pokimane-leaving-twitch |access-date=1 February 2024|website=Polygon|language=en-US}} However, she has continued to stream.{{Cite tweet|user=pokimanelol|author=Pokimane|title=mother is home|url=https://twitter.com/pokimanelol/status/1767625604961374520|number=1767625604961374520|date=12 March 2024|accessdate=21 July 2024}} On 22 October 2024, Anys and fellow streamer Valkyrae hosted a livestream featuring U.S. senator Bernie Sanders in support of the Kamala Harris 2024 presidential campaign, along with streamers AustinShow and Sykkuno, and other popular figures such as Hank Green, Mark Cuban, and Mark Hamill.{{cite magazine |last=Klee |first=Miles |date=22 October 2024 |title=Mark Cuban, Mark Hamill Crash Bernie Sanders Twitch Stream to Trash Trump |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/mark-cuban-mark-hamill-crash-bernie-sanders-twitch-trump-1235140620/ |access-date=8 November 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone}}

In addition to streaming on the Twitch platform, Anys also has multiple YouTube channels: Pokimane, Pokimane Too, Pokimane VODS, Poki ASMR, and imane. {{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/user/pokimane/about|title=Pokimane – about page|work=Pokimane|publisher=YouTube|access-date=2 August 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCy2if-N3KVswQF2KjiqWx9Q/about?&ab_channel=PokiASMR|title=Poki ASMR – about page|work=Poki ASMR|publisher=YouTube|access-date=2 August 2018}} However, in 2021, Anys publicly announced that she had stopped doing ASMR, due to the amount of time and dedication it takes to make ASMR videos. The Pokimane channel features edited gaming clips from streams while Pokimane Too includes unrelated clips of her gaming content, vlogs, and podcast. On the Pokimane VODS channel, full unedited VOD clips of streams are uploaded. The Poki ASMR channel featured videos that are part of a broader YouTube community of ASMR content, though Anys has ceased uploading on the channel.{{cite web|last=Gutelle|first=Sam|date=23 June 2018|url=https://www.tubefilter.com/2018/06/23/asmr-revenue-vidcon/|title=ASMR Creators Rustle Up Some Revenue On YouTube And Beyond|work=Tubefilter|access-date=2 August 2018}} In 2021, Anys launched a new channel entitled simply 'imane' which covers more personal topics and vlogs rather than gaming-related topics.{{Cite web |title=imane |url=https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdROBklME9BXuF7sVa9lQkA |access-date=2024-06-19 |website=YouTube |language=en}}

Anys was also a member of OfflineTV, a collaborative YouTube channel made up of content creators.{{Cite news |last=Grayson |first=Nathan |date=23 December 2021 |title=Twitch streamers and McDonald's joined metaverse then it got weird |pages=C12 |work=Sun Journal |agency=Washington Post |location=Lewiston, Maine |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/832040095 |access-date=22 April 2023}}{{cite web|last=Lee|first=Julia|url=https://www.riftherald.com/interviews/2017/7/14/15966098/pokimane-offline-tv-interview-lol|title=Pokimane on Offline TV, trying new things and why Scarra is most like Zilean|work=The Rift Herald|date=14 July 2017|access-date=2 August 2018}} Speaking about the channel, Anys stated, "it's not fun being a streamer and living alone, so we decided to come together in a way so we not only keep each other company but we can also collab and actually do good work and content for everyone else."

In October 2021, it was announced that Anys had helped launch a talent management and brand consulting firm called RTS, where she will serve as the Chief Creative Officer.{{Cite web |date=27 October 2021 |title=Pokimane is starting a talent management company for streamers |url=https://www.engadget.com/pokimane-rts-streamer-talent-management-company-150034597.html |access-date=27 October 2021 |website=Engadget |language=en-US}}

On 13 November 2023, Anys announced she launched Myna, a company that sells "healthy snack alternative" cookies.{{cite web |last=Winslow |first=Levi |date=20 November 2023 |title=The Pokimane Cookie Apology Tour Has Officially Begun |url=https://kotaku.com/pokimane-myna-cookies-pricing-toatzy-1851036666 |accessdate=21 November 2023 |work=Kotaku}} One four-pack of the company's midnight mini cookies product were sold for $28, drawing criticism from some calling the cookies overpriced. On November 18, during a livestream, she responded to the criticism stating, "When people are like 'oh my god $28 for cookies'. It's four bags, that's $7 per bag. I know, I know math is hard when you're an idiot. But, if you're a broke boy just say so". Her usage of "broke" as an insult attracted further backlash.{{cite web |last=Tsiaoussidis |first=Alex |date=19 November 2023 |title=Pokimane under fire for roasting 'broke' fans who criticised the cost of her cookies |url=https://dotesports.com/streaming/news/pokimane-under-fire-roasting-broke-fans-who-criticised-the-cost-of-her-cookies |accessdate=21 November 2023 |work=Dot Esports}}{{cite web |last=Abraham |first=Ellie |date=20 November 2023 |title=Streamer Pokimane hits back at 'broke' viewers who criticised price of her cookies |url=https://www.indy100.com/viral/pokimane-streamer-cookies-price-broke |accessdate=21 November 2023 |website=Indy100}}

On 12 December 2023, Anys launched her first podcast called Don't Tell Anyone.{{Cite web |last=Spangler |first=Todd |date=12 December 2023 |title=Pokimane Launches Her First Podcast, Promising to Reveal Her 'Most Embarrassing Secrets' |url=https://variety.com/2023/digital/news/pokimane-podcast-dont-tell-anyone-embarrassing-secrets-1235834170/ |access-date=19 March 2024 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}

On 17 January 2024, Anys made a special guest appearance at Samsung's biannual Galaxy Unpacked event, where she demonstrated the new gaming features of the S24 Series of devices' adaptive displays.{{Cite web |date=18 January 2024 |title=[Galaxy Unpacked 2024] Highlights From Galaxy Unpacked: The Promise of a New Beginning With Galaxy AI |url=https://news.samsung.com/global/galaxy-unpacked-2024-highlights-from-galaxy-unpacked-the-promise-of-a-new-beginning-with-galaxy-ai |access-date=26 February 2024 |website=Samsung Newsroom |language=en}}

In October 2019, it was announced that Anys, among a number of other internet personalities, would appear in the film Free Guy, directed by Shawn Levy,{{cite web|last1=Walker|first1=Ben|title=Ninja, Jacksepticeye, Pokimane and more will co-star in Ryan Reynolds' Free Guy|url=https://dotesports.com/streaming/news/ninja-jacksepticeye-pokimane-and-more-will-co-star-in-ryan-reynolds-free-guy|access-date=5 October 2019|website=Dot Esports|date=4 October 2019}} which was released in August 2021.{{Cite web|last=Kit|first=Borys|date=28 September 2018|title=Ryan Reynolds, Shawn Levy Team for Action Comedy 'Free Guy'|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/ryan-reynolds-star-action-comedy-free-guy-1133159|access-date=19 March 2020|website=The Hollywood Reporter|language=en}} She also appeared in the music video for Bella Poarch's song "Inferno", released in August 2021.{{cite web|last1=Haylock|first1=Zoe|date=13 August 2021|title=Bella Poarch Welcomes You to Her Tower of Terror in the 'Inferno' Video|url=https://www.vulture.com/2021/08/bella-poarch-drops-inferno-music-video-ft-sub-urban-watch.html|access-date=16 November 2021|work=Vulture}} In March 2025, she starred in the music video for d4vd's song "What Are You Waiting For".{{Cite web |date=2025-04-01 |title=d4vd Shares The Perilous 'What Are You Waiting For?' Video |url=https://uproxx.com/music/d4vd-what-are-you-waiting-for-video-twitch/ |access-date=2025-04-05 |website=UPROXX |language=en-US}}

In May 2024, Anys disclosed her diagnosis with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).{{Cite web |date=2024-05-29 |title=Pokimane reveals PCOS diagnosis & urges viewers to "get checked" |url=https://www.dexerto.com/twitch/pokimane-reveals-pcos-diagnosis-urges-viewers-to-get-checked-2749667/ |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Dexerto |language=en}}

She endorsed Kamala Harris in the 2024 United States presidential election.

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Category:1996 births

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Category:21st-century Canadian women

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