IShowSpeed, a 21-year-old African-American influencer, has raced a cheetah, leapt with Maasai warriors and drawn huge crowds in a month-long tour of Africa that has also busted cliches about the continent. IShowSpeed – born Darren Jason Watkins Jnr in Cincinnati, in the US state of Ohio – is one of the most followed influencers on the planet. AdvertisementWatkins went viral in China in March 2025 after live-streaming his visits to Beijing and Shanghai nonstop for six hours in the two major cities. He hit 50 million YouTube subscribers this month, while Rolling Stone magazine named him the most influential creator of 2025. Forbes estimates his net worth to be US$20 million.