Today we’d like to introduce you to Victoria Chandler.
Hi Victoria, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Well, I got started by never watching twitch at first. Then a friend showed me this guy streaming difficult games and I was like well I could do that. I normally play games on the hardest difficulty and prefer a big challenge-I also come from a bigger family and as the oldest sibling people always watched me play games. So I felt I could be a natural.
Turns out, I was a natural. I love streaming, imagine playing a game at home and there are hundreds of people sitting behind you cheering you on. It is an amazing feeling. I don’t only love streaming for that reason though, I love helping people. I love finding new people on twitch trying to make their way and taking them under my wing in hopes that they don’t make the same mistakes I did when I first started my journey.
I am at my core, a variety of LGBTQ+ streamers. I will bring up the hard topics because I feel if you have a platform you need to use it, not to influence people to bend to your will but to show them how to think for themselves. My family kicked me out when I came out of the closet as a lesbian and I am determined to give as much love and kindness as I can.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
This has not been a smooth journey by any means. Being a femme presenting streamer much less a lesbian in this world brings grief from a certain undesirable area of the gaming community.
I would be lying if I said words that didn’t hurt me or the completely dismissive attitude about my skill in games didn’t bother me. It takes a great support system which I have, I have an amazing partner that is always there for me and a fantastic community that I have built up from nothing that would do anything for me and each other.
The advice I can give to anyone wanting to start streaming and in a similar situation as I was, is don’t let words get to you. They’re just someone on the internet having a bad day. The best thing you can do is move on and be happy.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in difficult games, speedrunning, and completing challenges.
Most people know me for completing Dark Souls as a level 1 armorless character, or maybe for being ranked in the top 10 globally for speedrunning certain games. I have to say even with all these accomplishments I am most proud of the community that I have built up.
I am so proud of taking this huge group of people that would have otherwise never known each other and having a space for them. Nothing makes my heart warmer than to see them interact with each other and just be like a family.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up I was the typical “tomboy” girl in the ’90s.
I adored video games from the first time I picked up a controller at the age of 3 with my dad’s NES. I come from a broken home so my dad would pick me up for his weekend and we would have what he called “dad and tori date night” where we got some pizza and went straight to Blockbuster to get a game for the weekend.
We would take turns to try to finish the game or play together. My dad created my love of video games and I think he made me better at them just by encouraging me to never give up.
Contact Info:
- Email: redsonja575@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.twitch.tv/redsonja
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/redsonja_twitch/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/redsonja575
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@redsonjattv
