Valkyrae Is Leveling Up In Real Time

If you ask Rae, gaming has always been her escape. She was already getting lost in digital worlds as a kid. "My earliest memory of playing video games is when I was introduced to a game called Bubble Bobble on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) when I was at my babysitter's house," Rae recalled.

In a way, her experience with gaming has always given her a sense of community—and could've been the source code for her eventual career in streaming. "The babysitter's daughter was playing it, and it's about these two little dragons that you can play with a friend. It was super cute and addictive! I just never stopped loving playing games ever since."

After she started showing interest in playing video games, Rae said she feels grateful to her mom who supported and encouraged this hobby. "When I was a kid, she'd always buy me video games, even though it wasn't the 'girliest' thing to do, and people thought it was a waste of time. I could've been playing sports outside, but she just wanted me to be happy, and I loved gaming so much."

That casual love for gaming led her to working at GameStop—her launchpad for a full immersion into the gaming world. Day in and day out, she'd interact with fellow game enthusiasts of all ages and even share recommendations on what they can buy. So when it came time to share her experience with games on social media, it only felt natural.

"I had this gaming Instagram account that hit around 15,000 followers. At the time, I was building a custom PC to start uploading YouTube videos, and I posted a few pics of it. Some people in the comments were like, 'Have you heard of Twitch? You should try streaming,'" she shared. 

It sounded appealing for many reasons, according to Rae. "It caught my attention because, one, I wouldn't have to edit videos—I could just go live—and two, I was pretty lonely and wanted to meet people who also loved gaming. The idea of playing a game and hanging out with chat sounded really fun."

At the time, Rae was living with her family in Moses Lake, a small Washington town. "I didn't have any close friends," she divulged. "And gaming wasn't exactly considered 'cool,' so I felt really lonely."

That's why finding a sense of community through gaming meant so much to her. It offered the connection she’d been missing—not just as a kid growing up in a small town, but also as someone navigating the layered identity of being a second-gen immigrant.

"Growing up mixed was pretty confusing for me," she confessed. "I didn't feel Filipino enough, and I didn't feel white enough... I didn't really know where I belonged."

As she became more comfortable straddling those two worlds, Rae also found comfort in her own skin. "As I got older, I started to feel more content in my own skin," she told Cosmo. "I stopped trying so hard to be white—I let myself tan, stopped wearing colored contacts, and stopped dyeing my hair blonde to try to fit in."

That self-confidence started showing through in the different content she eventually started creating. And she needed it, in fact.

As a streamer, she doesn't have the privilege of editing out bloopers and mistakes, so she had to be comfy in showing her viewers her authentic self. And it paid off.

I first started watching Rae's stream—like a lot of people—during the pandemic. I remember doomscrolling through my feed, looking up game reviews for anything I could buy to take my mind off the international health crisis. Then one video popped up in my recommendations: an Among Us playthrough with Rae and her streamer friends.

"I got really lucky with timing," Rae reflected. "Playing Fortnite was my first big blow up, and then Among Us during COVID took things to a whole new level." Before these milestones, though, she was already grinding through life. She was juggling three jobs: GameStop, bank telling, and a car washing gig. A lot of it was hard work, but Rae said it was also a matter of being careful and patient.

"I wanted to go to a four-year university, but since I wasn't sure what I wanted to do, I didn't want to waste money on a degree I might not end up using," she shared. "It took me four years to finish a two-year transfer degree from community college because I only took one or two classes a semester while working and saving." And just as she finished her degree, her streaming career started taking off.

"Over time, I started making more from streaming than all three jobs combined, and I thought, 'Wait…this is insane…'," she reminisced. "The day I finally quit GameStop, it hit me–I'm actually doing my hobby as a career, and it felt amazing."

But streaming was still a relatively new career at the time. As you'd expect, Rae's family also wasn't sure about what she did in front of the computer for hours. "My family didn't really understand what I was doing, but they saw I was paying my own bills and that was what mattered to them," she recalled.

Timing, luck, and patience—it's been Rae's tactic for navigating life and her streaming career. But to level up in her game, she also needed to have a plan. "I made sure I was financially stable enough that if it didn’t work out, I'd be okay, whether that meant quitting, finding a new job, or whatever," she told Cosmo.

"I know a lot of people dive in without a backup plan, and that can go badly," she added. "Streaming is super unpredictable, and it's a grind. You have to be consistent to keep an audience."

"I think the biggest misconception about being a full-time content creator or streamer is that people think they’ll automatically make it," Rae revealed. "What they don't realize is that even streamers with over 1,000 viewers are in the top 0.5%." There are a lot of factors that lead to a successful career in her field—including luck, playing the right game at the right time, churning out collabs with other creators regularly, or going viral.

Beyond the constant grind to stay at the top of your game, it also comes down to building a community that actually cares about what you’re putting out there. Over the years, Rae has relied on a mix of instinct, strategy, and, yes, overall vibes to decide which projects to take on and share with her followers.

"Over time, I've learned that my audience can tell when I’m not enjoying something, so it has to be genuine," she explained. "I've turned down high-paying deals because they didn't feel authentic or weren't a good fit. I only want to promote things I truly enjoy."

For Rae, authenticity is probably the biggest factor for her success. "I'll laugh, cry, and vent a little too much sometimes, but I think people resonate with that," she confessed. And that's the beauty of livestreaming, isn't it? You get to see someone become unfiltered in their reactions and actions—no editing involved.

And while she does feel thankful for her followers, Rae also acknowledged that she had to set boundaries to protect her peace. "I sometimes just turn off social media for a while. Being myself loudly means some people will hate me, but I try not to focus on negative comments while streaming, focusing on the positive instead. I also have a great team around me, like my mods (moderators), who handle inappropriate comments."

It's something she’s had to build up a resistance to. "I remind people that everyone is human, everyone makes mistakes, and being online, whether you’re a content creator or not, can really affect your mental health if you're not prepared for it," she said.

But this didn't stop her from streaming, nor did it reduce her love for her craft. If anything, it became her fuel to continue. "Anything that makes you happy, anything you’re passionate about, is worth a shot," she asserted. "Don't listen to anyone else. Hate will come in all forms, whether it's jealousy or envy. Don't let it stop you. If I hadn't, I wouldn't be where I am today."

Rae has always been open about her personal life during her streams. Major life events were eventually shared—if not often witnessed in real time. One of these moments was when Rae had to care for her late father, who passed away after a battle with cancer. "I had to move back to my hometown in California to take care of him during his last six months while he was in hospice," she shared.

"Because of streaming, I was able to stay home with him, something other families or relatives couldn't do because they had to work. I'll always be grateful that I could take care of him while streaming, being there for him until he passed away."

The change in her streaming setup was visible to her viewers, and she couldn’t really hide it. "Being live made it so public that I was home taking care of him, and I’d have to take breaks to give him his medicine," she recalled. In a way, her community also supported her during this deeply personal and challenging time.

When I asked her why she still chose to share that chapter of her life to the world, her answer was simple yet profound. "I was open about it because I knew many others were going through similar struggles, and I wanted to show that even someone people look up to can face challenges like loss," she said. "I wanted to prove that things can be okay if you persevere."

You can say that she succeeded in that aspect. "My vulnerability has turned into strength, especially when I hear from fans who tell me I changed their lives and was there for them during tough times," she shared. "It makes me want to keep doing this even more."

Still, she had to find the balance in being open with her followers while setting boundaries—and it took her years to learn before she found the sweet spot. "I had a very public relationship and breakup, along with family issues that became public as well. I realized not everything needs to be shared online, especially when it comes to relationships and personal life," she reflected. "Now, I set boundaries by only showing what I want to share, and my community respects that."

A decade into the game and Valkyrae is still just getting started. She has collaborated with several known personalities, from American politician Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to rapper Lil Nas X, and was named Content Creator of the Year during The Game Awards 2020. She's also a co-owner of esports organization and lifestyle brand 100 Thieves, along with rapper Drake.

But her most recent achievement is one she's most proud of.

"HiHi Studios is my pride and joy right now," she declared, adding that it's been her dream project for quite some time. "It took about two years behind the scenes to get it started. We can't say too much publicly yet, but we have two amazing projects in the works, aside from our comic series (APOLLYON) coming out with GlobalComix." She also teased there may be some short animations or a TV series down the line.

"HiHi Studios is a media company, so we have the freedom to take on all kinds of fun projects and collaborate with incredible artists and companies," she added. "I'm really excited."

More than her career wins, Rae has also been acing being the dutiful daughter. Rae candidly shared that her biggest achievement to date–aside from establishing her own media company—is being able to financially take care of her family and allowed her mom to focus on staying healthy. "Seeing her happy and proud makes me so happy," Rae told Cosmo. Rae also revealed that she's purchased several properties for her mother—an achievement that a lot of young FIlipinos want to give back to their parents.

"It all started with me getting her a little home in Washington, and then she wanted to go back to the Philippines. So, I remodeled her home in Calbayog, and when she wanted to be in Manila, I got her a condo there to be closer to relatives," Rae explained.

"She's always been so grateful and proud of me—even in Calbayog, she has a banner of my face on the front of her house, which is the most Filipino thing ever," she laughed. "She's always surprised and thankful, and she always has my stream on in the background."

While Rae is still trying to create a deeper connection with her heritage, including learning Tagalog and Filipino traditions, her work has allowed her to find ways of doing so. "I've been visiting the Philippines more. My mom lives there, and I have family there," she shared. "I uploaded a vlog of me visiting Calbayog, her hometown, and it was amazing to see so many fans relate to it. I'd love to do more Filipino content and hopefully learn the language, but I know it’ll take time and dedication."

She also looks up to her fellow Filipino-American content creators, Bretman Rock and Bella Poarch. "I love how proud [Bretman] is to be Filipino, and it made me realize, 'Wow, I want to have that effect on people too,'" she acknowledged. "Seeing people like Bretman Rock and Bella Poarch become so successful while staying true to who they are and proudly embracing their Filipino heritage really inspired me. It made me want to be even more proud of being Filipino myself. I want to represent the Filipino-American girlies out there, too!"

Rae's also determined to inspire a lot of aspiring professional gamers and content creators to follow in her footsteps. "I'm proud of the positive impact I've had on little girls and Filipinos, knowing I've changed their lives," she said.

"When fans come up and tell me how much I've impacted them, it's mind-boggling. I never realized how just being myself and playing games on stream could help people," Rae reflected. "I'm really proud of that."

Rae's fully aware of her influence on her viewers who relate to her content and lifestyle. She knows she's changed the game—for everyone. "I wanted to inspire other girls and show that you can turn your hobby into a career and have fun doing it. As my career grew, it became more intentional—I wanted to succeed not just for myself, but to inspire others."

Every gamer knows the thrill of a new character unlocked. For Rae, it was realizing she could connect with people and create space where others feel seen—all while giving back to her family. It's not just growth—it's her next level. And for Rae, the game's not over yet.