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Kai Cenat

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Kai Cenat
Cenat in 2023
Personal information
Born
Kai Carlo Cenat III[1]

(2001-12-16) December 16, 2001 (age 22)
New York City, U.S.
EducationState University of New York at Morrisville (dropped out)
Occupations
Twitch information
Also known asKC3
Channel
Years active2021–present
Genres
  • Gaming
  • Just Chatting
GamesGTA Online[2]
Followers13.5 million
Associated acts
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2018–present
GenreComedy
Subscribers6.71 million[3]
Total views402 million[3]
Associated actsAMP
100,000 subscribers
1,000,000 subscribers
Last updated: November 19, 2024

Kai Carlo Cenat III (/ˈkaɪ sɪˈnæt/ KY sih-NAT; born December 16, 2001) is an American online streamer and YouTuber who specializes in comedic live streams and videos. As of 2024, he is the fifth most-followed Twitch streamer with 13 million followers and most-subscribed Twitch streamer of all time, surpassing Ironmouse's record during a November 2024 subathon.[a][4][5] He was named "Streamer of the Year" at the 2022 and 2023 streamer awards.[6]

Early life and education

Cenat was born to parents from the Caribbean. His mother is from Trinidad and Tobago and his father is from Haiti.[7][8] Cenat was raised by his mother along with his three other siblings, a twin sister named Kaiya,[9] an older brother named Devonte,[10] and a younger brother named Kaleel.[8][11]

Cenat attended Frederick Douglass Academy for his secondary education. He graduated high school in 2019[12] and attended the State University of New York at Morrisville shortly after,[13][14] to study business administration. He dropped out in 2020[15] after struggling to keep up with both schoolwork and content creation.[16][17]

Career

2018–2021: Early career

Cenat uploaded his first YouTube video on January 13, 2018,[18] and began making videos surrounding pranks and challenges.[19] He joined the YouTube group AMP after being discovered by fellow Bronx-born YouTuber Fanum. He started regularly appearing in the channel's videos. He began streaming on Twitch in February 2021 after migrating from YouTube, broadcasting gaming and reaction content.[20][21]

2022: Initial popularity

In 2022, Cenat began including celebrity guests on his streams, including Bobby Shmurda in April,[22] Lil Baby in October, and 21 Savage in November, who helped him receive his highest viewership at the time with 283,245 concurrent viewers at its peak.[23]

On May 8, 2022, Cenat released his debut single "Bustdown Rollie Avalanche" with NLE Choppa. Cenat had an acting role in the trailer for Polo G's June 2022 single "Distraction".[24]

In October 2022, Cenat was nominated for the 12th Streamy Awards in the "Streamer of the Year" and "Breakout Streamer" categories,[25][26][27] winning the former in December. [28]

2023: Mafiathon and controversy

On January 31, 2023, Cenat began a month-long subathon, titled Mafiathon, which featured guests such as NLE Choppa and Skai Jackson. On February 28, 2023, he became the most-subscribed Twitch streamer of all time at the time, reaching 306,621 subscribers at its peak.[29] His record lasted until September 2024, when it was broken by Ironmouse.[30]

In March 2023, Cenat was reported to be making approximately $23,280 per month from his sleep streams, resulting in an annual income of $285,480. According to Streams Charts, his sleeping broadcasts have amassed over 5.6 million hours watched, showcasing the significant viewer engagement during these streams.[31] On March 11, 2023, Cenat won "Streamer of the Year" at the 2023 Streamer Awards.[32]

On April 17, 2023, Cenat was temporarily suspended on Twitch for reasons undisclosed, though he eventually returned, with him initially noting it as a permanent ban in error.[33] In May 2023, Cenat announced a livestreamed show with IShowSpeed exclusively on Rumble, titled the Kai 'N Speed Show.[34]

In September 2023, Cenat was featured on the music video for Offset's single "Fan" alongside Fanum.[35][36] In the following month, he made his music video directorial debut with American rapper a Boogie wit da Hoodie.[37] On December 14, 2023 Nicki Minaj appeared on Cenat's stream which broke his previous peak viewership record by 40,000 resulting in 348,593 concurrent viewers.[38][39]

2023 Union Square riot

Main article: 2023 Union Square riot

On August 4, 2023, Cenat announced a giveaway of PlayStation 5 consoles and gift cards, in Union Square, Manhattan with Twitch streamer Fanum. Thousands of his followers appeared at the impromptu event, which soon spiraled out of control and devolved into a riot. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) mobilized forces in the area as a large group swarmed a Best Buy and other businesses in the area.[40] Cenat was arrested by the NYPD for inciting civil unrest; police also made 65 other arrests.[41][42][43] He was later charged by the NYPD with first-degree rioting, inciting a riot, and unlawful assembly.[43] Later in May 2024, Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg dropped charges against Cenat, Denzel Dennis, and Muktar Din, in exchange for an apology and US$57,000 in restitution.[44]

2024–present: Continued growth, Mafiathon 2, and Max Major controversy

Cenat in 2024

On February 8, 2024 during a livestream Cenat announced that he has officially partnered with Nike stating, "I would like to announce that we are officially a part of the Nike family". He became the first streamer to get signed with the company.[45][46] Later on February 17, 2024, Cenat won "Streamer of the Year" and "Best Just Chatting Streamer" at the 2024 Streamer Awards. He was also nominated for "Best Streamed Event" at the same ceremony.[47] On July 13, 2024, he appeared and participated in a MrBeast video titled "50 YouTubers Fight for $1,000,000".[48] In October 2024, McDonald's announced that they had teamed up with Cenat to promote the launch of chicken Big Macs in the US.[49] On November 1, Cenat began his second month-long subathon, titled Mafiathon 2, with 20% of the proceeds made from subscriptions going towards building a school in Nigeria. The subathon has featured numerous guests such as Lil Uzi Vert, Miranda Cosgrove, Snoop Dogg, Quavo, GloRilla, members of the cast from the Disney Channel sitcom Good Luck Charlie, Kodak Black, Denzel Curry, Serena Williams, Marshmello, the Jabbawockeez, Soulja Boy, Bill Nye, Andre Iguodala, Lil Dicky, Ibai Llanos, Benny Blanco, Chris Brown, Lizzo, SZA, Ludwig Ahgren, Lil Yachty, Travis Barker, Mark Rober, and Sexyy Red. On November 11, Cenat reclaimed the record of being the most-subscribed Twitch streamer.[4][5] On November 22, Cenat became the first Twitch streamer to reach half a million subs.[50] On November 26, Cenat drew major backlash after showing magician Max Major hanging himself as a stunt on his stream. Cenat claims that Major had lied to him and his production team on the details behind the stunt and Major refused to return to the stream to explain himself.

Cultural impact

Cenat is credited with popularizing viral internet slang words such as rizz, which is derived from "charisma" and defined as "style, charm, or attractiveness";[51][52] and gyat, a permutation of "Goddamn" that is used in reference to a person with prominent buttocks. Oxford University Press named Rizz its word of the year for 2023,[53] and Gyat was nominated for the American Dialect Society's 2023 Word of The Year.[54][55]

Awards and nominations

Awards and nominations for Cenat
Year Ceremony Category Nominated Work Result Ref.
2022 12th Streamy Awards Streamer of the Year Himself Won [27]
Breakout Streamer Nominated
2023 The Streamer Awards Streamer of the Year Won [56]
The Esports Awards Nominated [57]
Feb 2024 The Streamer Awards Won [47]
Best Just Chatting Streamer Won
Best Streamed Event 7 Days In Nominated
2024 Kids' Choice Awards Favorite Gamer Himself Won [58]
Dec 2024 The Streamer Awards Best Streamed Collab Sleepover Stream with Kevin Hart & Druski Pending [59]
Best Marathon Stream Mafiathon 2 Pending
Gamer of the Year Himself Pending
Streamer of the Year Pending

Discography

Singles

List of singles
Title Year Album
"Bustdown Rollie Avalanche"
(featuring NLE Choppa) 		2022 Non-album single
"Dogs"[60]
(with IShowSpeed) 		2023 Non-album single

Guest appearances

List of non-single guest appearances, with other performing artists
Title Year Other artist(s) Album
"The End of the Road Begins - Intro"[61] 2023 — Fast X (Official Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2023 Good Burger 2 Disgruntled Customer Guest appearance

Music Videos

Year Title Artist(s) Role
2020 "Shoot" Adot Himself
2022 "Distraction" Polo G
"Just Wanna Rock" Lil Uzi Vert
"Plenty" FaZe Kaysan feat. Nardo Wick, G Herbo, Babyface Ray & BIG30
2023 "Fan" Offset

See also

Notes

  1. ^ A subathon is a type of stream where the broadcast continues so long as viewer donations are made.

References

  1. ^ Shanahan, Ed; Parnell, Wesley (August 4, 2023). "YouTube Streamer Faces Riot Charge After Union Square Park Erupts in Chaos". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 4, 2023. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  2. ^ Miceli, Max (September 28, 2022). "A streamer you may not have heard of is quickly rising up Twitch's subscription rankings". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "About Kai Cenat". YouTube.
  4. ^ a b "Kai Cenat Mafiathon 2 explained: Everything you need to know, guests and updates". Dexerto. November 4, 2024. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Twitch All-time Streamers With Most Active Subscribers". TwitchTracker. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  6. ^ {{Cite web https://thestreamerawards.com/winners https://thestreamerawards.com/vote%7C}}
  7. ^ LW, ed. (July 8, 2023). "Kai Cenat Net Worth: How much money is the streamer making from Twitch?". Marca. Archived from the original on March 24, 2024. Retrieved March 24, 2024.
  8. ^ a b Zungu, Akhona, ed. (August 9, 2023). "Kai Cenat's Dad: The One Thing He 'Failed to Do' Was Be There for His Son". AmoMama. Archived from the original on March 24, 2024. Retrieved March 24, 2024.
  9. ^ CALLING MY TWIN SISTER THE "B" WORD PRANK!! *GONE WRONG*, April 5, 2020, archived from the original on February 13, 2023, retrieved February 13, 2023
  10. ^ DESTROYING MY OLDER BROTHERS TV PRANK!! *GETS HEATED*, April 17, 2020, archived from the original on February 13, 2023, retrieved February 13, 2023
  11. ^ CUTTING MY LITTLE BROTHERS HAIR OFF PRANK!!! *GONE WRONG*, April 15, 2020, archived from the original on February 13, 2023, retrieved February 13, 2023
  12. ^ THINGS WE HATE ABOUT SCHOOL!!(DOMINO'S MUKBANG!), May 5, 2019, archived from the original on February 13, 2023, retrieved February 13, 2023
  13. ^ I FINALLY MOVED INTO COLLEGE!!! *ROOM TOUR*, August 27, 2019, archived from the original on February 13, 2023, retrieved February 13, 2023
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  15. ^ Kai Cenat | Before They Were Famous | YouTube Legend from The Bronx, January 27, 2022, archived from the original on February 13, 2023, retrieved February 13, 2023
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  24. ^ Williams, Aaron (May 26, 2022). "Polo G Announces His New Single 'Distraction' With A Comedic Trailer". Uproxx. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  25. ^ Hipes, Patrick (October 27, 2022). "Streamy Awards Nominations: MrBeast Tops List Again". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 6, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
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  29. ^ "Twitch Streamer Kai Cenat Breaks Platform's Subscription Record". Bloomberg.com. March 1, 2023. Archived from the original on March 1, 2023. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
  30. ^ "Ironmouse becomes most-subscribed Twitch streamer ever after flying past Kai Cenat". Dexerto. September 30, 2024. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  31. ^ "Kai Cenat makes over $23,000 a month from sleeping on stream". New Pittsburgh Courier. March 26, 2023. Archived from the original on May 14, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  32. ^ Shaukat, Rahman (March 12, 2023). "Kai Cenat Wins Streamer of the Year Award". Game Rant. Archived from the original on March 14, 2023. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  33. ^ "Twitch: Kai Cenat banned from streaming platform". BBC News. April 18, 2023. Archived from the original on April 20, 2023. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  34. ^ "Kai Cenat And IShowSpeed Announce New Livestream Show On Rumble". Blavity. May 17, 2023. Archived from the original on June 5, 2023. Retrieved August 5, 2023 – via Yahoo.
  35. ^ Zemler, Emily (September 15, 2023). "Offset Announces New Album 'Set It Off,' Drops Music Video for 'Fan'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
  36. ^ Denis, Kyle (September 15, 2023). "Watch Offset Pay Tribute to Michael Jackson With New 'Thriller'-Inspired Music Video for 'Fan'". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 5, 2024. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
  37. ^ "A Boogie Wit da Hoodie - Did Me Wrong [Official Music Video]". YouTube. October 24, 2023. Archived from the original on October 24, 2023. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
  38. ^ Price, Joe. "Nicki Minaj GIves Kai Cenat His Props After Joining Him for Stream: 'You Have Created a Dope Lane for Yourself'". Complex. Archived from the original on January 13, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  39. ^ Shaukat, Rahman (December 15, 2023). "Nicki Minaj Guest Appearance Breaks Kai Cenat's Twitch Viewership Record". Game Rant. Archived from the original on December 16, 2023. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  40. ^ Shanahan, Ed; Parnell, Wesley (August 4, 2023). "YouTubers' PlayStation Giveaway Causes Chaos in Union Square Park". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 4, 2023. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  41. ^ "Twitch streamer's giveaway event sparks chaos in Manhattan; police try to contain thousands". WNBC. August 4, 2023. Archived from the original on August 4, 2023. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  42. ^ "Twitch streamer Kai Cenat in custody after NYC console giveaway causes chaos at Union Square park". NBC News. August 4, 2023. Archived from the original on August 4, 2023. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  43. ^ a b Mayorquin, Orlando; Medina, Eduardo (August 6, 2023). "What We Know About the Chaos Caused by a Twitch Star's Giveaway". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 6, 2023. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  44. ^ Shanahan, Ed (May 7, 2024). "Kai Cenat Resolves Union Square Melee Charges With Apology, Officials Say". The New York Times. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
  45. ^ Deng, Victor. "Kai Cenat Confirms Partnership With Nike". Complex. Archived from the original on February 14, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  46. ^ "Kai Cenat Confirms Nike Partnership". Hypebeast. February 9, 2024. Archived from the original on February 12, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
  47. ^ a b Michael, Cale; Taifalos, Nicholas (February 18, 2024). "Streamer Awards 2024: All results and winners for every category". Dot Esports. Gamurs. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
  48. ^ Brigstock, Jake (June 6, 2024). "Who are all the influencers in MrBeast's 'biggest video ever'?". Indy100. Archived from the original on June 7, 2024. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
  49. ^ Velásquez Vargas, Diana (October 9, 2024). "McDonald's is Introducing a New Kind of Big Mac". Game Rant. Retrieved October 17, 2024. McDonald's is introducing the Chicken Big Mac in the United States for a limited time and has teamed up with Twitch star Kai Cenat for its release.
  50. ^ Horetski, Dylan. "Kai Cenat shatters his own Twitch sub record in yet another 'Mafiathon' achievement". Dexerto. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  51. ^ "Rizz – What does rizz mean?". slang.net. Archived from the original on July 2, 2023. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  52. ^ Ihaza, Jeff (December 7, 2023). "Kai Cenat, Twitch, and 'Rizz': How the Rap Internet Ruled 2023". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 17, 2024. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  53. ^ "Rizz named word of the year 2023 by Oxford University Press". BBC News. December 4, 2023. Archived from the original on December 4, 2023. Retrieved December 4, 2023.
  54. ^ Solé, Elise (January 10, 2024). "The kids are saying 'GYAT': What does it mean?". TODAY.com. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
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  58. ^ Petski, Denise (June 4, 2024). "Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Beyoncé, Timothée Chalamet, Ayo Edebiri Among 2024 Kids' Choice Awards Nominees – Full List". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 4, 2024.
  59. ^ "The 2024 Streamer Awards: All Nominations". Esports Illustrated On SI. November 12, 2024. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  60. ^ Dogs - Single by IShowSpeed & Kai Cenat, April 27, 2023, archived from the original on April 28, 2023, retrieved April 29, 2023
  61. ^ The End of the Road Begins - Intro, May 19, 2023, archived from the original on May 19, 2023, retrieved May 19, 2023
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