Character or Caricature?

We've all had breakups. It's a process of life, and while that may be true, no matter who you are, when is enough, enough? Streamer Kai Cenat has been going viral due to his current rebrand. Some may ask what's wrong with wanting to be a better person, especially with New Year's coming through, time for New Year's resolutions. 

The thing is, this isn't Kai's first time doing something like this. Multiple people have noticed on multiple occasions that Kai tends to do things that come off as performative. One clip from two years ago shows Kai admitting to liking Anime, but his friend later calls him out for lying. While this can be seen as Kai having a case of FOMO, why does this matter, and what is the bigger picture here?

In the past few weeks, Kai has appeared on social media and announced that he is going to quit streaming. Most people know the Bronx-oriented man for being loud, funny, and authentic, while inviting people to his home to game, rap, and even participate in games with him. Kai has built a community around these interactions and streams, which has gained him millions of followers and notoriety from some of the biggest names in Hollywood, but why does the shift in Kai's mindset and current aspect of content make fans feel like this is just another act of performatism? 

Kai's statements about certain things have led some of his fans to take a step back from what he has to say. For example, last year, Kai came out and said that Black Americans have no culture. While this was a complete shock to his fans, it came as no suprise espically because Kai has pandered and leveraged his whole platform off of Black American culture. This led fans to an uproar, stating that although Kai is of Caribbean descent, he has used this lack of culture for his platform. From the use of slang, preferably AAVE (African American Vernacular English), from the fashion he chooses to wear, but what makes this mistake so harmful? When Kai states that this demographic that he profits from doesn't have culture, it only adds to the stereotype that Black Americans are just loud, annoying, and entertaining, rather than just the historic lineage that follows them. 

With this being said, you are probably still wondering where this comes in with his new rebrand of being more mature. Kai has been reading for 20 minutes a day and documenting himself doing so, along with learning how to sew. Kai will get these big words and learn how to pronounce them and look up their meaning. People are stating that this is performative because this funny and loud character that Kai is known as is now trying to be a serious business mogul, and people are now saying this is only an instance of the streamer being recently broken up with. Others are applauding the streamer for being raw and vulnerable, showing that, although he can have all this money, there is nothing wrong with searching for higher education, and it's never too late to educate yourself. 

Why is this the issue? Often, when women try to show their hobbies or new goals off, they are met with harsh criticism of who and why they are doing this. Some make the assumption that they are doing it for the male gaze, anything that will get their male demographic talking and more interested. Others may think that the "money" is running low and the only way women can succecced it to do something to appease others. Of course, the original one being that they are a pick me, and also only doing this for a certain aspect of their platform. 

Even with the social media aspect, when a woman does something on stream, like make a mistake or somethi, ng it is known as an "L clip" or she is doing it intentionally to be funny which comes off as not comedic but when Kai does it, it comes off as brave and heroic and even if it was an "L clip" its funny because thats Kai's brand. 

Unfortunately, this is very common. Kai is allowed to evolve and grow because he's been streaming for years and has a lot of money, and even though it's been years, he still can grow because outside of the average boys will be boys seeing men grow and become good people, even if it is performative, it shows growth, unlike when women streamers tap into something that they enjoy it's seen as doing something for the male gaze or even trying to make a quick cash grab.