VTuber Kenji reacts to Ironmouse's video announcing her departure from VShojo. Ironmouse claims she was misled and is owed a significant amount of funds, including over $500,000 in charity donations for the Immune Deficiency Foundation. She details her struggle with Common Variable Immune Deficiency (CVID), which led her to streaming, and how VShojo initially handled payments for privacy. Other VTubers like Zentreya and Buffpup expressed support, and community speculation points to potential legal action. Kenji emphasizes the importance of supporting individual talents over companies, especially given the seriousness of the allegations and the potential fraud involving charity funds.
Ironmouse's video "Why I left VShojo"
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Kenji references a tweet he made in 2021 where he expressed interest in joining VShojo, then re-posted it with "never mind," indicating a change in his stance following the news about Ironmouse.
Kenji's original 2021 tweet expressing interest in joining VShojo.
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Kenji's updated tweet with "nvm" after the Ironmouse announcement.
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Ironmouse stated that she had been "misled" by VShojo for several months.
She believes she is owed a "significant amount of funds" that have not been paid to her.
Most importantly, the Immune Deficiency Foundation, a charity deeply important to her and her reason for being a VTuber, is owed over $500,000 from VShojo.
She is currently unable to disclose full details due to legal instructions from her attorney, but promises to share the full story when possible.
Despite this, she confirmed that she will "no longer be a part of VShojo."
Zach Bussey's tweet highlighting Ironmouse's claim of being owed a significant amount of funds.
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Zach Bussey's tweet highlighting Ironmouse's claim of over $500,000 owed to the Immune Deficiency Foundation.
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Ironmouse's Backstory and Rise to VTuber Stardom [1:50]
Ironmouse shared her personal journey, revealing she has Primary Immune Deficiency Disease (CVID) [2:33].
CVID is a condition where her immune system is "low to near non-functioning," making her susceptible to frequent illness and requiring her to remain isolated.
This isolation led her to start streaming to make friends and connect with others, as she "couldn't ever leave my room."
A definition of Common Variable Immune Deficiency (CVID), the disease Ironmouse suffers from.
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She used an app called FaceRig to stream with an anime avatar because she was "too scared to stream with my face" [3:31].
Initially, she didn't expect to grow an audience or make it a career, only hoping to stream to a small group of people.
Her perspective shifted when VShojo approached her in 2020 to join the agency [4:00].
She was hesitant to become a "corporate VTuber" due to feeling "unhireable" and valuing the freedom of independent streaming with "no boss, no strict rules, no hours, no expectations."
A significant benefit of VShojo was their handling of her payments, which meant she never had to give out personal information, a "blessing" given her privacy concerns stemming from past "scary experiences" [7:13].
Ironmouse eventually wanted to take over her finances and began trying to withdraw her remaining funds from VShojo.
She, along with her collaborator Connor, has raised approximately $4 million for the Immune Deficiency Foundation through various events like Subathons and charity auctions [7:50].
She had pledged to donate half the earnings from her subsequent two Subathons to the foundation.
The first instance raised over $329,350 for the foundation [8:25].
The second major Subathon raised $515,000, breaking the all-time sub record [9:20].
However, despite these efforts and requests, VShojo "still a year later has not paid the charity" [9:50].
The Immune Deficiency Foundation is "the most important charity to me," as it helped her immensely during a time when she was "terrified," "lonely," and "confused" [10:58].
An infographic detailing the impact metrics of the Immune Deficiency Foundation.
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Ironmouse expresses deep sadness and confusion, apologizing to the Immune Deficiency Foundation and her community for the situation [13:17].
She pledges that all money earned from her video announcing her departure will go directly to the Immune Deficiency Foundation [13:30].
Mujin tweeted, "Vshojo, as we know it, just ended its life once and for all Holy shit," emphasizing the severity of the situation for the agency.
Mujin's tweet suggesting the end of VShojo as it was known.
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A viewer noted that other VShojo talents like Matarakan and Geega have also left or been terminated, which is "crazy" considering how quickly it happened. [15:15]
A community comment noting the rapid departure of other VShojo talents.
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He highlights the severity of VShojo allegedly withholding funds from Ironmouse and, more critically, from a charity.
He questions why VShojo would "play around with one of their biggest talents" and with a charity that is so close to the talent.
Kenji states there's "zero reason for any payments to be delayed that long" and calls a year-long delay "crazy," suggesting it could be fraud.
He notes that it's unheard of for a company not to immediately donate charity money once it's received.
He questions the company's business practices and contracts if they are not transparent with funds.
Kenji also highlights a previous tweet from Ironmouse in June 2024 (a month prior to her announcement) where she said, "I stood up for myself recently and it was really scary but I'm glad I did it in the end," speculating it might be related to this situation [19:10].
Ironmouse's earlier tweet about standing up for herself.
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A viewer's comment suggests that lawsuits take time, potentially aligning the timing of her announcement with legal proceedings. [19:50]
A viewer comment noting that lawsuits take time, suggesting the timing of Ironmouse's announcement aligns with legal procedures.
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Another viewer notes the irony of VShojo being seen as "better than other companies" because they let talents keep their IP. [18:50]
A comment from a viewer stating that VShojo letting talents keep their IP made them seem superior to other companies.
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One viewer expresses that there is "no excuse" for VShojo's actions. [19:00]
A community comment expressing that there is no excuse for VShojo's actions.
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The community rallied behind Ironmouse, showing strong support and empathy. [20:00]
Community comments in support of Ironmouse after her announcement.
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