We’re reaching out to some popular creators to get their best tips and tricks for success and better understand the ups and downs of life as a trailblazer on the internet.
This week, we caught up with the Baka Bros—aka DiazBiffle, Repullze, and LuckyChamu—over email. The Baka Bros are a gaming trio that met through playing Call of Duty. Since they’ve met, they have become popular online for streaming Call of Duty: Warzone games on Twitch, winning gaming tournaments, and breaking world records. All three streamers were among the top 60 highest-earning Call of Duty: Warzone gamers in 2020. Their gaming skill and entertaining personalities have cultivated a community of over 786,000 followers between the three of them on Twitch.
The interview below has been condensed and edited.
What’s the first thing you do to start your day online?
Repullze: Kicking off a stream with high energy is critical, so I usually have a mini-concert with my chat wherever I start!
What do you wish you knew when you were first starting out as a creator?
LuckyChamu: How fun it could be when you do it with your friends, I would have started a lot earlier.
Repullze: To be ready for the journey you’re about to start and don’t ever take anything for granted.
When did you realize you’d broken through and become a successful creator?
LuckyChamu: I don’t think there’s an exact way to measure your success as a creator. I think once you consider yourself “Successful” you let off the gas.
DiazBiffle: August 2020 was a special moment. I had just crossed 2,000 subscribers and won the Toronto Ultra $100,000 tournament with NICKMERCS and FaZe Swagg. Those guys are huge and to be on their team, doing big things – everything was up from there.
If you hadn’t become a creator, what would you be doing right now?
LuckyChamu: If I wasn’t a creator I would probably be still working in HR and finishing up school. Right around now I would actually be graduating.
Repullze: I would probably be going to school to get my PHD in Physical Therapy
DiazBiffle: I would probably be in college right now, figuring out what I wanna do in life.
What’s one thing you do to manage your relationship with your fans?
LuckyChamu: I never consider my community fans, but rather friends. Talking to them in and outside of the stream is important to me because they are a big part of who I am.
Repullze: Similar to Lucky, I genuinely consider everyone in chat as family. But one thing I try to do is to always take time out of every stream to sit down and talk to everyone on a personal basis. I want to break the barrier between “streamer” and “viewer” so I always try to get to know everyone on a more personal level.
What do you think of the idea of cancel culture?
Repullze: People should be held accountable for their actions but at the same time, people should be allowed to learn from mistakes. With so much hate out there, I live by the motto “Love First,” regardless of how people treat you.
How much of your true self do you show online?
Repullze: 100% of me. I am known for being fully transparent on my stream and who I am online. I don’t apologize for being me. I wear my heart on my sleeve, so fans will always know where I stand.
LuckyChamu: I express to my community a lot about what’s going on in and outside my career. Building a relationship with your community, especially a strong one, makes it easy to go and express really how you feel. As much as they may rely on me, I rely on them.
What’s one of the best interactions you’ve ever had with someone who follows you?
LuckyChamu: It would be with one of my first ever viewers. “Chilis” was someone who supported me from the very beginning. He was the one of many I stayed in contact with and he would go beyond to make sure the streams ran smooth. Over a year later, he now works with the whole crew as someone who helps behind the scenes. It’s great to know one of my original supporters will always be by my side.
DiazBiffle: I remember at Call of Duty Champs, someone came up to me and shook my hand but he was so nervous to meet me that he was shaking. That one stuck with me because I didn’t think people would be nervous to speak to us.
What is your most treasured tool?
Repullze: My custom controller. Series 1 of 1.
What holds you accountable?
Repullze: My girlfriend of 8 years Ashley. No matter what happens she’s always there pushing me to work as hard as possible
Thank you, Baka Bros, for speaking with us!
We’ll be featuring a new Q&A with a creator every week, so shoot an email to [email protected] for a chance to be included.
