In a recent Fortnite stream, eyebrows were raised as Richard ‘Ninja’ Blevins called out both Jack ‘CouRage’ Dunlop and Ali ‘Sypher’ Hassan for their short-form content styles. Not one to hold back his thoughts, the ex-esports player unabashedly admitted, “I just think it’s fake.”
Before we go and sound the drama alarms, it’s worth acknowledging the friendship that these three media giants share. Often featuring in each other’s content, the trio enjoy a very natural chemistry, especially when streaming live together. It is perhaps down to this ease of conversation that Ninja embarked upon his mini-’rant’.
“Jack, for once…I want you to just not be on,” Blevins bemoaned while playing Fortnite with the content creators on his Dec. 5 stream. “Your guys’ content, every time I see it, it’s just some freaking catered…‘what’s up, everyone!” This drew forth the snark of both CouRage and Sypher, who questioned if their friend knew anything about being a dedicated content creator. Certainly, when it comes to short-form content such as YouTube Shorts and TikTok, lacking a vocal panache of some sort is very noticeable amongst the rapidly growing competition.
To his credit, the owner of the most followed channel on Twitch would go on to support his argument with genuine critique. “Maybe I’m in my own head, but I just think it’s fake,” he shared. “You watch your livestream, right, and the energy is just not there.” Now, this is a perspective I wholeheartedly agree with. Part of my disinterest in short-form content is that creators try too hard to grab attention and can make their work hard to listen to. Not to mention, having two different voices for studio and live content creates a fracture in what viewers can expect.
Ninja’s opinion isn’t shared just by this writer. In an X thread, Hunter shared some findings after scrolling through both CouRage’s and Sypher’s recent posts. Comments galore paid mention to this particular moment and how, with Sypher in particular, there was an obvious change in his approach to presenting thereafter. “Bro changed his tone after Ninja yelled at them,” observed one user. “Maybe Ninja was right, you sound better now,” said another.
Ultimately, Ninja was just poking fun at his mates with a genuine point of view. All three creators are incredibly successful and know exactly what it takes to make an impact. CouRage knew this yet still clapped back with a retort worthy of mention. “Hey, guys! Today I’m showing you why Ninja hates playing with CouRage and Sypher,” going all-in with his ‘catered’ enthusiasm.
