After recent scandals, is it still worth it for a vtuber to join an agency?

These days, many streamers are aiming to break into the world of livestreaming by joining a vtuber agency, a sharp contrast from years prior. Once seen as a novelty suited only for anime fans, vtubers have quickly grown into a titan of digital pop culture. A massive part of that success comes courtesy of vtuber agencies, particularly the likes of Hololive and Nijisanji.

For much of the 2020s,  vtubers who joined up with agencies attracted and attained huge followings. Idols such as Hololive EN’s Gawr Gura would break multiple vtuber records in their path to popularity. And yet, these same success stories began to quit agencies en masse as controversy, scandal, and drama seemed to engulf agencies. Aspiring vtubers are now left wondering if joining up with an agency is still worth it at all, or if they’re better off focusing on an independent streaming career.

Should anyone still join a vtuber agency?

Vtubers must consider the pros and cons before committing to joining a vtuber agency, as such agencies aren’t going to be the right fit for every streamer. An agency can undoubtedly bring a previously obscure talent to new heights. The stories of talents such as Sakura Miko come easily to mind. When she was independent, Sakura Miko deeply considered leaving the streaming world behind for good. Even her initial year with Hololive did not immediately spark great success.

The Only Miko Fan That Went To This 2019 Meet & Greet

In one of her story times, she shared how in 2019, only a single fan came to her meet and greet event.  Years later, she’s easily among the most popular talents in Hololive JP. Joining Hololive’s ecosystem played an undeniable role in her rise in popularity, in addition to her talents as an entertainer.

ビビデバ / 星街すいせい(official)

An agency also provides talents with connections to major music labels. Hoshimachi Suisei and Mori Calliope have signed with such labels to massive success. Suisei’s song BIBBIDIBA is the most-viewed vtuber song on YouTube, sitting at over 144 million views as of this writing. These are the heights that agency-associated vtubers can potentially reach.

However, agencies are not without their potential difficulties.

Several popular vtubers chose independence over staying with an agency

Agencies such as Hololive, Nijisanji, and Vshojo have each experienced their share of controversy as well as the exits of high-profile talents.  As agencies grow larger, so too do many of the issues that face such organizations. The past year saw several talents leave Hololive due to creative disagreements. Gawr Gura, the most subscribed talent in all of Hololive, left the company in 2025 while citing creative disagreements and health issues. Other talents, such as Ceres Fauna and Nanashi Mumei, shared similar reasons for their own graduations and departures.

【Graduation 3D Mini Live – Gawr Gura】

Nijisanji EN’s biggest controversy involved Selen Tatsuki. The company terminated its contract with Selen, sparking backlash among her fans. As her independent persona, former Nijisanji talent Dokibird shared her own side of the story. Although Nijisanji denied many of the ensuing allegations, most fans of Selen moved on to follow her new and independent persona.

Most recently, Vshojo shut down after all of its major talents left in a massive purge that sent shockwaves through the vtuber space. Ironmouse alleged the company had withheld hundreds of thousands of dollars from her. This included $500,000 in charity funds that had been meant for the Immune Deficiency Foundation. Other high-profile talents also left the company as allegations of payments being late or not at all, such as Kson, Projekt Melody, and AmaLee.

Why I left VShojo

While Hololive and Nijisanji are still going strong, recent events have shown they these vtuber agencies are not always the stable landing spots they were once seen as, and they are not the only potential paths to success. Despite her association with Vshojo, Ironmouse attained popularity well before the agency’s existence, and she looks to be doing just fine after her departure.

Aspiring creators should weigh the advantages of joining an agency versus the potential problems that come with it. There’s no doubt that an agency can do much to promote a streaming talent who’s looking to break into the livestreaming world and build up a new following from scratch, or close to it.

But for vtubers who already have an established following, it may now be that these agencies no longer offer enough to outweigh their potential disadvantages. The idea of the vtuber has come a long way in just a short amount of time, and making it independently is more practical than it used to be.