Virtual YouTubers, or VTubers, might seem like a niche interest, but there were approximately 16,000 VTubers worldwide as of October 2021. These content creators, who create a virtual avatar using real-time motion capture software, have amassed millions of followers online. The phenomenon has become so popular that even Sonic and Tails have become VTubers. And one of the leading VTubers is Uruha Rushia, a Japanese content creator who signed with Hololive Production in July 2019. She is currently the highest YouTube Superchat earner and has over 1.5 million subscribers on the platform.
Owned by Japanese company Cover Corporation, Hololive Production is a talent agency that runs multiple VTuber channels on YouTube, Twitch, Chinese video sharing website Bilibili, and others. Content creators interested in working with the company must sign a contract with Hololive. At the end of 2021, there were 62 VTubers working with the company, totaling over 43 million subscribers on YouTube alone.
Uruha Rushia, whose Hololive profile describes her as a “necromancer from the Underworld Academy,” is no longer affiliated with the company. Hololive made the official announcement on February 24, stating that Rushia has been “distributing false information to third parties and has been leaking information, including communications regarding business matters.” This has resulted in the company “suffer[ing] reputational damage.” Hololive maintains that it has been aware of Rushia’s activities for some time and decided that it “has become difficult to continue managing and supporting her.”
It is not clear what Rushia specifically did, what type of information was leaked, or to whom. A Japanese YouTube channel stated during a livestream on February 11 that it had information leaked directly from Rushia but did not clarify what it was. Yet as recently as February 14, Hololive defended the content creator, stating that it would take action against harassment aimed at Rushia regarding another matter. In the same statement, however, the company revealed that it was deciding how to deal with an issue involving Rushia that included “an outburst of misleading information to third parties, as well as leakage of information including those of fellow business correspondents.”
As of February 24, Hololive has already begun the process of distancing itself from the content creator. Any orders from the official Hololive online shop for Rushia’s birthday merchandise have been canceled and purchases will be refunded. Additionally, Rushia’s YouTube channel will be shut down by the end of March and all 453 videos deleted. This step shows how seriously Hololive is taking the situation, considering that the channel currently has 150 million lifetime views and is undoubtedly a large money earner for the company. In the past, when VTubers have retired from Hololive, their YouTube channel has been archived but not deleted and monetization turned off.
Uruha Rushia has not yet made a statement about the termination of her contract with Hololive, and the content creator’s last Twitter post was on February 14 about a different matter. She also hasn’t livestreamed on YouTube in nearly three weeks. Understandably, the VTuber’s fans are upset by the news and have taken to social media to express their consternation.
Sources: Anime News Network, Cover Corporation 1, 2