New To Vtubers? Here’s A Guide!
Hi! I’m Azalea, and I have been a fan of vtubers since 2021! Due to the sudden situation of a bunch of people on tumblr finding out who Gavis Bettel from Holostars EN due to a very fun and very silly poll, I figured that an introductory post to vtuber fandom etiquette may be helpful for those who are interested in checking him out, as well as his coworkers and collaborators!
As a disclaimer, I am mostly giving an explanation from the perspective of a fan in English speaking spaces. Other spaces that speak different languages might have different standards for appropriate behavior, so make sure to do your research and read the room when possible! Additionally, there is a lot to cover, and I might not get to everything. If you have any specific questions, please send me an ask, I’m willing to answer! However, just remember that I do not speak for all vtuber fans, I am just one person lol. Also for anything that requires a visual aide I will be using stuff from Bettel’s accounts lol.
First of all, what is a vtuber?
A vtuber is a content creator that utilizes motion tracking technology to record or livestream themselves using a virtual 2D or 3D avatar. They create content similar to most other content creators in a variety of different genres, though most commonly you will see them do live-streamed gaming content. Additionally, there are a decent number of creators in the space that branch out into voice acting, music, and more! From my perspective, no matter what kind of games or content you enjoy, there is a vtuber out there for anyone’s niche!
As for why someone may choose vtubing over facecam streaming, there are plenty of reasons, two notable ones being:
1. Privacy: Nowadays putting your face out there on public social media is riskier than ever, so being able to have an online persona that is unique to your brand while helping maintain your irl personal security is a huge plus to vtubing!
2. Creativity: A lot of vtubers have character lore and storytelling around their vtuber design, with a lot of them choosing to use vtubing as a way to tell interesting stories or express themselves.
Those two reasons aside, a lot of people choose vtubing simply because they find it fun, and at the end of the day that is all that matters!
So Wait What is Holostars?
Holostars is a branch of a vtubing talent agency! Holostars is part of Cover Corp, which also runs Hololive. Hololive is the branch for female talents and Holostars is the branch for male talents. For the record, a lot of agencies don’t really do gender segregation (as in they are usually either co-ed or only have male or female talents), it’s just that Cover has specifically marketed themselves as an idol agency. As a result, they follow a lot of the standards in the Japanese idol industry, including the separation of male and female talents. The branches are not strictly banned from interacting with each other, but they are often promoted separately and have different management teams.
So some context about Bettel and Holostars for tumblr users who are not filled in. Shortly before most of the Bettelion caught on to the fact that the polls were happening, on April 3, 2026 Starmin (fan name for all Holostars fans) received the news that the Japanese branch of Holostars would be downsized. The JP Holostars will no longer receive funding or management support for merchandise, music production, or renting studio space. This puts a big limit on what content the boys can create and release because all of these things that they were previously able to do with management support are incredibly expensive and difficult to do without it. This change does not affect Bettel’s branch (Holostars English), but it sets an unfortunate precedent. Part of why the Bettelion got so into the poll was that it was something fun that appeared during a rough time for the community.
That isn’t to say that a vtuber being part of an agency is totally bad, there are a lot of pros and cons!
Agency and Indie Vtubers!
Most vtubers fall into two categories: the aforementioned agency vtubers and indie (independent) vtubers! Agency vtubers are members of talent agencies while indie vtubers manage their content by themselves or with their own small team.
When talking about vtuber agencies, the main big names that you will hear in English speaking spaces are Hololive/Holostars (Cover) and Nijisanji (Anycolor). Both of these agencies provide different benefits and restrictions for their talents. I’m not going to go into comparing and contrasting them because this post is going to be long enough as is, if you have any questions try researching yourself or toss it into my ask box. Also, a fair warning, I DON’T FUCK WITH CORPO TRIBALISM. DO NOT GO INTO MY ASKBOX TO SHIT ON ONE COMPANY OVER THE OTHER.
Anyways-
There are pros and cons to both joining an agency and staying indie, but to summarize:
As an agency vtuber, you sacrifice some content creation freedoms in exchange for management support and funding for creating content.
As an indie vtuber, you have full creative freedom over your content, however you are also in charge of funding and organizing its creation.
Where Can I Find Vtubers and Their Content?
Most vtubers stream on YouTube and/or Twitch! A decent number also post short-form content on TikTok, Shorts, or Instagram! For most corpo vtubers, you will mostly find their streams on YouTube, however some will also stream on Twitch! You don’t always have to watch stuff live, usually the VOD will still be there eve after the stream is done (usually…why does something always have to fucking happen when Holostars plays Gartic Phone…?). VOD gang is always welcomed and appreciated in all vtuber communities! Additionally, and I am so fucking serious:
REGARDLESS OF WHOSE CHAT YOU ARE IN, ALWAYS READ THE CHAT RULES FIRST!!!! THEY ARE IN THE STREAM DESCRIPTION!!!! DO NOT BE RUDE IN CHAT!!!! THESE ARE SILLY ANIME CHARACTER STREAMERS BUT THEY ARE ALSO REAL HUMAN PEOPLE, A DECENT NUMBER OF WHICH DO THIS AS THEIR JOB!!!! FOLLOW THE RULES!!!! KEEP THINGS PLAYFUL!!!!
Bettel and the other Holostars mainly stream on YouTube! Here’s his channel!
Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce myself, I am Gavis Bettel! Please hold your applause until after the show. Full-time Fool of HO
Additionally, most vtubers will post updates to their stream schedules, going live announcements, and other silly things to Twitter and/or BlueSky! Here’s Bettel’s Twitter!
Common Vtuber Space Terminology!
These are just some key terms you may see in vtuber communities that will be helpful to know!
Oshi/Kamioshi: A term borrowed from Japanese idol spaces, someone’s oshi is one of that person’s favorite vtubers! By extension, someone’s kamioshi is that person’s number one favorite. (I, personally, am indecisive and can’t pick a kami, I have two lol.)
Oshi mark: an oshi mark is an emoji or set of emojis a vtuber chooses to represent themselves! They are often seen in their display names on social media platforms. Additionally, a lot of vtuber fans will put their oshi’s oshi marks in their bios or display names to show that they are fans. For example, Bettel’s is this top hat emoji! 🎩
Zatsudan: Due to vtubing’s origins in Japanese spaces, a lot of corpo vtubers will use Japanese terms for some things. A zatsudan is a just chatting stream.
Past Life: Refers to a vtuber’s previous persona/online identity. In general, basic vtuber fandom etiquette states that information about a vtuber’s past life or other persona is not to be discussed in public online spaces. It’s mainly an immersion thing, but there are a number of other reasons. Essentially, if that persona is no longer streaming, don’t bring it up in spaces surrounding where the person behind it reappeared. If you do want to ask about a past life, keep it between yourself and other fans in dms.
And that about does it! I may have missed some things, but if you have any questions just ask! Thanks for reading! NOW GO VOTE IN THE POLL, MAY THE BEST JESTER WIN!!!!!!!!!
