What is VShojo? The biggest VTuber group on Twitch explained
VShojoVTubing is usually synonymous with big groups debuting new talents and fresh generations. VShojo is not like that, with the US-based VTuber agency acting more like a traditional stream team. They’re now the biggest of the bunch on Twitch: here’s how their eleven stars took over the Amazon-owned platform.
VTubing is here to stay. Despite calls of it being a fad across 2020 as multiple streamers jumped on the bandwagon, with the rise and continued climb of Hololive, NIJISANJI, and others, VTubers aren’t going anywhere.
While the aforementioned two dominate YouTube, one group has found their niche on Twitch — and are taking over the industry as a whole. VShojo are the stars of the show on Amazon’s streaming platform, and their rise has been nothing short of meteoric.
What once started as a tight-knit group of seven has now grown into a flourishing family of eleven, and there’s more on the way.
Who is VShojo?
VShojo formed in November 2020 as a project run by former Twitch employee Justin ‘theGunrun’ Ignacio and popular YouTuber Phillip ‘Mowtendoo’ Fortunat.
“Founded by fans of VTuber culture, we aim to create and foster content that pushes the boundaries of VTubing and talent freedom, while maintaining deep respect for the people and companies that helped pave the way,” their website reads.
Originally a group of seven, including Ironmouse, Nyanners, and Projekt Melody — then three of the biggest names in English VTubing despite being independent — the group has since expanded by one, with Veibae joining in April 2021.
The group has more than 5 million YouTube subscribers combined, and the same amount of Twitch followers.
They aren’t just big names in the English VTubing community but worldwide. Not only have they collaborated with the big agencies across in Japan, but they have started their own Japanese branch in 2022. VShojo brought on kson, as well as debuting new talent Amemiya Nazuna, in July to much fanfare.
How is VShojo different to Hololive and other VTubers?
The biggest difference between VShojo and other VTuber groups is where they stream. While VTubers typically dominate the YouTube charts, VShojo has carved out a niche on Twitch.
Given all their talent are English speakers — and had previously-established fan bases on the platform — they were able to catapult into stardom through collabs and become the face of the VTubing community on Amazon’s platform.
VShojo’s stars also have a large amount of freedom compared to other VTuber groups. The agency professes this with “Talent First” as one of their big pillars: “We listen to our talent’s feedback, work hard to achieve their dreams, and have them keep their IP.”
New talents like kson cited this as a big reason to join VShojo.
“In this VTuber industry, not every VTuber has the ability to do whatever they want. They’re not in a circumstance to do whatever the f**k they want because they don’t have their talent-first management, so I wanted to make a change in a fun way.”
List of VShojo VTubers
Debut date based on VShojo launch. Numbers correct as of December 18, 2022.
| Name | Debut Date | Followers |
|---|---|---|
| Nyatasha Nyanners | November 24, 2020 | 990,720 |
| Projekt Melody | November 24, 2020 | 605,414 |
| Ironmouse | November 24, 2020 | 1,405,189 |
| Zentreya | November 24, 2020 | 380,291 |
| Silvervale | November 24, 2020 | 394,413 |
| Froot | November 27, 2020 | 383,230 |
| Hime Hajime | January 30, 2021 | 120,726 |
| Veibae | April 9, 2021 | 978,202 |
| kson | July 16, 2022 | 262,584 |
| Amemiya Nazuna | July 16, 2022 | 251,368 |
| Haruka Karibu | December 3, 2022 | 187,676 |
