Fortnite streamer Daequan reveals 2020 plans, opens up on hardship

Olivia Richman Published 08/12/2019

For a while, it was starting to look like Fortnite pro Daequan “Daequan” Loco was leaving the streaming scene. His once daily YouTube uploads had ceased and it was hard to catch one of his sporatic live streams.

This weekend, Daequan revealed that he’d be coming back with more content in 2020.

“I’m slowly getting back into the swing of things as 2019 winds down. I will be in 100% full swing of things in January 2020, and that year is gonna be MY YEAR,” Daequan said in a TwitLonger.

He went on to say that he’s currently focusing on himself and his content, telling his fans that he has “so so so many plans and it’s going to be wild, entertaining, and fun for all of us.”

The Team SoloMid Fortnite star also opened up about his absense from the scene. While Daequan has said in the past that he dislikes the game’s competitive scene and “can’t wait for this battle royale and RNG game craze to be over,” the streamer’s real reasons for slowing down on content creation were much more personal.

Published in September, Daequan’s video, “WHERE I HAVE BEEN…” currently has over 3 million views. In the video, he opened up about the physical and mental pain he’d been in from streaming. Sitting for 16 hours a day every day of the week combined with his past playing high school sports had “jacked up his back.”

Leading up to turning 19, Daequan explained that he had been very active. But the chronic back pain had started to mess with his health, leading to vomiting, fatigue, and blurry vision. After six years of misery, Daequan went to a chiropractor to end his ongoing suffering.

“While grinding doing Twitch, YouTube, and Instagram, I was dealing with all those health issues, even through those 16 hour days,” Daequan said. “Finding out what was wrong with me was my top priority this year, which led to my original break.”

On top of that, Daequan has had four lung collapses, leading to lung surgery.

While dealing with health issues, Daequan stated that he also lost two grandmothers, an aunt, and two friends who had passed away from gun violence.

“I wasn’t there this time, but last time we were all together… I know how it feels to be in that type of situation. I think about what was going through their mind when they got hit… It’s just tragic, bro,” Daequan opened up.

At first, he blocked it out of his mind to focus on being a Fortnite pro. He was determined to take advantage of the opportunity in front of him. He was so focused, in fact, that he didn’t even grieve.

“I’ve always been a hustler to an extreme extent,” he said. “I’ve went through so much B.S. This year and I learned so much from it all but I hate how this year went for me. Not only because of all the unfortunate things that happened, but disappointed in myself in terms of how mcuh I streamed. I hate that I haven’t posted much to YouTube,” he said.

Daequan said the absence from the Fortnite and streaming community had “eaten at him” every day. Now, Daequan said he wants to use that hate he’d built up for himself for not being there for his fans as motivation for 2020. ‘

“I just want to thank all of you for being so patient and waiting on me to get my shit together. You guys are a blessing to me that words can’t express how genuinely appreciative I am. I love you,” Daequan said to his fans, ending the TwitLonger.

Through it all, Daequan still has over 3.7 million followers on Twitch. In the last month he streamed for 47 total hours.

Olivia Richman

About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

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