Twitch Updates: A Change in Priorities

Today marks four weeks since I last streamed on Twitch, and with three weeks to go before my next scheduled stream, I thought I'd share some of the changes I'm planning to make when I return.

For 18 months straight, I have worked hard to learn, refine, and be consistent at streaming on Twitch. I'd like to share with you some stats.

Show You The Money

As of the time I write this, I have streamed a total of 958 hours on the platform. That's an average of over 53 hours per month, or over 12 hours per week. I have 814 followers and 24 subscribers.

Since becoming a Twitch Affiliate on October 10, 2023, I have been paid out about $2400 from Twitch (after taking their cut and diverting more after that into the Twitch DJ program since its inception) and approximately another $275 in tips and merch (after processing fees, etc.), for a total of $2675. After taxes (37%), my actual pocketable income from Twitch has been about $1685 over 18 months of streaming.

$1685 / 958 Streaming Hours = $1.71/hr

And that's just actual streaming hours. I have easily logged well over another 985 hours off the air into Twitch in terms of thinking, planning, setting up, learning, research, social media, networking, and other activities related to the stream.

And I haven't yet mentioned how much money I have paid out-of-pocket for equipment, software, physical media, supporting other streamers, and other expenses. I haven't kept track of any of that. I'm afraid to. It's easily several thousands of dollars.

I am eternally grateful for the financial support I have received from Twitch viewers. But I obviously haven't done it for the money. I've done it for the love of sharing music and of the wonderful people I've been able to meet.

Early on I had hoped to be able to grow things to the point where I was making significant income from streaming. I focused a lot on the financial side of things – subs, bits, tips, etc.

But after what I have seen and experienced during my time as a streamer – and after taking some time to step away and really think about and evaluate my experience – I realize now that I don't even want to be a “career” streamer anymore. I've seen streamers that make a living on Twitch and I when I think about it, I don't want to do what they do. I don't want to be like them. To do so would require me to compromise some of my deepest values in pursuit of money. I will not do that.

I also don't want to be dependent on Twitch for my livelihood, to have to worry about making sub/bit/tip goals every month just so I can feed my family and pay the bills. That would almost certainly turn something I love into something I dread, and I would have to spend every waking moment streaming or working on something related to the stream. And if Twitch makes significant changes to subscription costs, payout rates, DJ Program costs, or anything else like that, it could drastically impact my ability to earn money on the platform.

I don't want to be an “influencer” or “content creator” with a “fan base” or anything resembling any of that, but that's what it takes to make it on Twitch. I tried some of that, and it never felt right. It never felt authentically me. I was trying to do those things because “that's what successful streamers do.”

But my definition of “success” is very different than that, and mostly incompatible with the way Twitch is set up. However, as Twitch is still one of the premiere streaming platforms on the Internet – and the only one that has a DJ Program – I'm going to try to be more intentional about using it in accordance with my values as much as possible.

To that end, I no longer care about making money as a streamer, and if I could demonetize my Twitch channel right now, I would.

However, Twitch is moving things in the opposite direction. They recently announced that they would soon allow some monetization features on streams that have not yet made Affiliate or Partner. I can only assume this means they will be running ads on all streams in the near future. In addition, because I am in the Twitch DJ Program, they will almost certainly require me to remain monetized in order to bring in revenue that will be paid towards the licensing costs of that program.

But I can still make some changes that will better align my streamer experience with my values. I've already done the following:

Here are more changes I will be making:

Format and Programming Changes

As for the actual content and format of the stream, I've been thinking about trying some different things. The core experience will remain the same: listening to records with friends. But I'd like to make it more like an actual radio program you might listen to on terrestrial radio, too.

So I've decided that I won't be talking over the music anymore. I will pause between tracks or album sides before I speak and will be a lot more active in chat.

I also want to try more intentional programming. Like shows focusing on certain themes or concepts. And I want to intersperse the music with more formalized spoken word content. Uplifting and inspirational thoughts and stories. Biographical sketches and stories about the artists and the music. Maybe even heartwarming and interesting news stories. I'll experiment with these ideas and others, but I really want to make this a more intentional experience for me and for the viewers rather than just trying to “get my hours” and putz around listening to random music all the time with no real purpose or direction. I'm not interested in quantity anymore. It's time to focus on quality.

Schedule

I'm trying to decide if I want to stick to my tried and true Tuesday & Thursday evening schedule or change to just one evening per week. I'll see how I'm feeling about that over the next few weeks.

I will not, however, be doing as many pop-ups as I used to. Probably almost none. I've been working on filling my free time with some other things that are important to me – reading, writing, family, church, etc. – and I need to make sure I maintain a healthy balance.

Conclusion

My time away from Twitch has been everything I hoped it would be so far. It's been a good time to reset and refocus on what matters to me and regain some perspective. I'm excited about these changes, as I can give my full attention to what I cherish most about streaming: sharing good music, connecting with good people, and bringing a little joy and hope into their lives.

Discuss...

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