Rachell “Valkyrae” Hofstetter: From Gaming Enthusiast to YouTube Star
Rachell “Valkyrae” Hofstetter is a popular YouTube streamer with a subscriber count of 3.72 million. She has been passionate about gaming since she was young, using it as an escape from a challenging childhood marked by her parents’ constant fighting and bullying at school.
After finishing college, Valkyrae tried out various jobs, including a brief stint at GameStop. However, in 2014, at the age of 22, she decided to turn her passion for gaming into a career. She started gaining a following on Instagram by posting game-related content. Encouraged by her fans, she began streaming on Twitch in 2015 and also created a YouTube channel.
From Twitch to YouTube: Valkyrae Makes the Switch
Valkyrae’s popularity soared, and in 2018, she became the first female content creator to sign with 100 Thieves. This partnership continues to this day, with Valkyrae now a co-owner of the organization. In January 2020, she shocked the world by leaving Twitch and signing an exclusive deal with YouTube, a revolutionary move considering YouTube’s position in the streaming industry at that time.
At first, Valkyrae faced challenges in maintaining viewership on YouTube, but her numbers exploded when she started streaming “Among Us” with her friends. She quickly became the most-viewed female streamer of that year. Since then, she has consistently averaged more than 15,000 viewers per stream.
Exploring Valkyrae’s Gaming World
Valkyrae streams a variety of games, including popular titles like “Among Us,” “Fall Guys,” “Fortnite,” “GTA V,” and “VALORANT.” As a variety streamer, she also enjoys playing lesser-known indie games, particularly horror ones.
Valkyrae’s Setup and Earnings
Valkyrae utilizes a professional gaming setup, including peripherals like the BenQ Zowie XL2540 monitor, HyperX Pulsefire Surge–RGB mouse, HyperX Alloy Elite–RGB keyboard, and HyperX Cloud Alpha headset. Her gaming PC consists of an Intel Core i7-8700K CPU, EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 TI GPU, ASUS ROG Maximus X Hero motherboard, G.SKILL TridentZ RGB Series 32GB DDR4 RAM, Samsung 970 EVO 1TB SSD, SeaGate BarraCuda 4TB HDD, NZXT H500-i case, and NZKT Kraken X62 CPU Cooler.
In 2020, Valkyrae accidentally revealed that she earns around $172,908 per month from her YouTube channel alone. However, her income also comes from exclusivity contracts, sponsorship deals, merchandise sales, and her co-ownership of 100 Thieves.
From Washington to YouTube Stardom
Valkyrae was born and raised in Washington state before moving to Los Angeles, California, to pursue her streaming career. She completed an arts degree before focusing on gaming full-time.
Valkyrae’s Charm and Collaborations
Valkyrae’s vibrant and entertaining personality draws in viewers, making her streams enjoyable to watch regardless of the game she’s playing. She also has a network of friends, including popular streamers like Pokimane, Disguised Toast, Sykkuno, and Corpse Husband, with whom she collaborates, creating engaging and captivating content.
Highlights and Future Plans
Valkyrae’s most popular YouTube video features her playing “Among Us” with friends using a voice-proximity chat mod, which added an extra layer of suspense to the game. As for the future, Valkyrae intends to continue streaming and creating content for a long time. While gaming will remain her foundation, she also plans to explore other areas, such as travel vlogging and Q&A streams.