Oscar Hartzog
Contact Oscar Hartzog by Email View all posts by Oscar Hartzog June 29, 2026
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IShowSpeed is not slowing down — literally or figuratively.
The streamer, who topped Rolling Stone’s list of the most influential creators of 2025, has grown his following from around 135 million last year to more than 160 million as of this writing. One likely reason for this continued growth is Speed’s ramped-up travel content, which sees the Ohio native livestreaming massive (often chaotic) tours across the globe.
Speed tells Rolling Stone that his shift to travel all comes back to an unshakable inquisitiveness that he’s had since childhood. “I had just endless curiosity about the world and culture [as a kid], and just bringing joy, and just bringing happiness,” he says. “I’m just very curious. I’m like a kid in a new world… I mean, technically, that is what I am. So, I do such a good job of bringing people together and feeling that joy as well. And I’m glad that I’m able to do that now.”
For Speed’s most recent tour in the Caribbean, the streamer, whose real name is Darren Jason Watkins Jr., joined forces with Expedia for a five-country, 15-hour livestream to a reported 400 million fans. Today, Expedia announced the next phase of the partnership: A whirlwind film that sees Speed racing jet boats, grabbing an arepa, getting a massage, and more. “The energy on this trip was amazing. Having the Expedia mannequin ride shotgun with me while we were doing donuts and hitting the jet boat was crazy,” says Speed. “I just wanted to show my fans that they don’t have to just watch my stream, they can get out there and experience the world too.”
Everything seen in the film is also bookable on Exspeedia.com, a collaborative website “built for IShowSpeed’s community where fans can explore, shop, and book Speed’s latest adventures in real time.”
Why did this Expedia partnership feel like a good match? It goes back to the authenticity thing, you know. Expedia just makes sense because of who I am, who they are. They’ve been incredible partners, and I can’t be more happy to work with them. I’m happy to see how the partnership played out. It just worked great.
Did you travel much as a kid? Oh, no, I didn’t. I didn’t actually have the privilege to travel as much. As a kid, the most travel that I probably ever did was maybe like going to, like, Gatlinburg [in Tennessee] and going to Florida. But it wasn’t as intense as this. In 2022, I was able to go out of the country for the first time, at 17, and I feel like that kind of just sparked it.
Where was that first international trip, and what was it like? My first international trip was to London. And obviously, as somebody who never traveled to another country a day in their life, seeing everything different from whatever you’ve dealt with — how people talk, how they think — it’s just like, “Whoa, it’s a whole other world out there.” So obviously, I started doing content, and I started mixing that with my content and who I am, and it just became that.
What’s kind of the most difficult part of executing the kind of big tours that you’re doing all over the world? People don’t really understand how hard it is logistically. It’s such a hard thing to travel country to country at such a rapid pace, how I do it, and making content as well. But obviously, you gotta treat it like any tour. We have a great team in every department doing their job well, and they’re very motivated. It’s like more of a journey with them and me as well. Similar to the show One Piece. We’re a crew going over, and we’re making these things happen. This isn’t a one-man job.
How do you maintain your stamina when you’re on these long and intense trips? My whole lifestyle is built for this, so it’s kind of like I’m doing training, because I live an active lifestyle. I’m literally always moving. I probably get around 20,000 to 40,000 steps a day. I’m just a very energetic guy, and I guess that helps out a lot when it comes to me doing these tours and traveling. It’s a form of workout, it’s a form of cardio. So my lifestyle is already like that, and it just kind of makes it very flawless. It makes it… I’m not gonna say it’s easy, but it makes it way easier, just because I’m on my regular baseline lifestyle.
Are there any essential products that you pack when you’re on these big tours? Well, I make sure I 100 percent keep up my body and my figure, and still reach my goals at such a rapid pace. I bring protein powder, I bring three different flavors, because it’s really hard to eat at the time that you want to when you’re on tour, so that’s an easy thing I can use. Just pop it in some water, boom, get 40 grams of the protein. Honey — I need honey before my streams. I always pack honey with me, because it’s a great carb source, and it gives me energy. I either have honey or a banana with me, always, because it gives me the best energy. My laptop. My AirPods. My toothbrush, toothpaste. I wash my face. Stretching bands. That’s pretty much it. Those are like the essentials.
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Buy Now On AmazonHow’s your World Cup experience been so far? It’s been amazing. It’s just cool to see it in America, as somebody who was born in Ohio. It’s cool to see everybody come. Usually, I do my IRL streams in these other countries, and it’s cool to see all of the different cultures that I’ve been to come to America, and experience [my home]. When you bring two different types of people together, and all different types of people come together, it just brings a spark, and everybody in the whole world is in tune with it. The world’s coming together.
Everyone was hyped to see your reaction to Cristiano Ronaldo’s first World Cup goal. What was going through your head when you watched that? As a Ronaldo fan, I’m pretty sure like other Ronaldo fans, I literally almost cried. Because, like, we really needed that, you know. It was one of those moments where he had to really show up and execute and play well, and he did deliver.
If you had a full day where you could stream with Ronaldo, what would you do? A full day of streaming with Ronaldo… First of all, I’d play football with him, work out with him, swim in a pool with him, ask him some questions, play more football with him, work out with him more, talk to him more, and eat with him. Just like a cool little bro-to-bro day, you know.
