YouTube star Felix ‘PewDiePie‘ Kjellberg had an emotional response to a fan message after learning he had helped him get through a bout of depression.
PewDiePie has a fan-run subreddit called PewDiePie Submissions, where fans will post memes and messages for the star to feature in his LWIAY (Last Week I Asked You) episodes.
During his video on September 20, he scoured through the subreddit in search of content, and after looking through several memes, he came across a particularly emotional submission.
The video is titled “This Reddit post got me teared up…” – and while he doesn’t actually get that post until the end of the video, he does have a surprisingly emotional reaction to the post from a long-time fan at the 21:20 mark.
This fan explained that they first started watching PewDiePie videos in 2014, and said his content helped with their self-harm and eating disorder issues.
PewDiePie’s own struggles in school gave the viewer something to relate to, and they explained how these hardships helped them feel less alone in the world.
The YouTube star responded to the heartwarming post with a sincere message and motivation for the viewer to keep going.
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“That’s so sweet,” he replied, fighting back tears. “The feels out of nowhere. Keep staying strong, I’m proud of you.”
It was an unexpected moment in an otherwise upbeat and funny video, but it goes to show how much impact a content creator can have on another person’s life.
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Many viewers use streamers and YouTubers as an outlet, and you’ll oftentimes see donations or messages like this that thank them for doing what they do.
Sometimes, people go to streamers when they believe they have exhausted all of their options, such as when Jaryd ‘summit1g‘ Lazar received a suicidal donation and immediately let the viewer know he could stick around with him and his chat.
While people like PewDiePie might seem like they have a pretty simple job, there’s a whole lot more on their plate than some might expect.