Which Rumble streamer could be nominated for an award?

The 2025 Rumble Creator Program: A Bold New Direction or a Step Too Far?

For years, Rumble has built its reputation on being the free speech alternative to YouTube and Twitch, providing creators with multiple ways to monetize their content without fear of censorship. But in 2025, Rumble is rolling out its longterm creator program, and while it promises new opportunities, it also comes with some major changes that are stirring up controversy within the community.

A Look Back: How Rumble’s Creator Programs Have Evolved

Rumble’s first major push to support smaller creators came in early 2023 with the introduction of the Small Creator Partnership Program (SCPP). This program required streamers to broadcast for at least 2 hours a day, five days a week, have a following between 50 and 2,000 followers, and promote their streams on social media. Those who met the requirements had a chance to earn $500 within 30 days. With only 50 slots available, competition was fierce, raising concerns about favoritism in the selection process.

By 2024, Rumble had expanded the program into multiple rounds. Round 2 introduced several key changes compared to Round 1. First, the number of available slots doubled from 50 to 100, allowing more creators to participate. The follower range expanded as well, now requiring between 100 and 5,000 followers instead of the previous 50 to 2,000 range. The most significant change, however, was the introduction of an exclusivity clause, mandating that creators stream solely on Rumble. Additionally, Round 2 allowed previous participants from Round 1 to reapply and had a dedicated "Partners" section on Rumble’s homepage for increased visibility. While these changes offered more opportunities, many creators felt the lack of structure still left them without a clear path to recognition.

The 2025 Creator Program: A New Monetization Model

Rumble’s 2025 Creator Program shakes things up significantly by introducing a Premium Content Requirement. This means that to qualify for payouts, creators must produce at least five hours of Premium-only content per month—content that is locked behind Rumble’s Premium subscription paywall.

On the surface, this looks like a game-changer. Up until now, Rumble’s monetization strategy has been mostly ad-based, alongside subscriptions to individual creators. But this shift forces creators to think beyond just live streaming or standard uploads. It creates an ecosystem where Rumble Premium subscribers gain access to a growing library of exclusive content from multiple creators, not just one.

The Controversy: Forcing Creators into Paywalled Content

While some see this as an exciting opportunity, others view it as a double-edged sword. Many small creators have built their followings on free content, relying on ad revenue, tips, and direct support from their audience. Now, they’re being asked to create content that only Premium subscribers can access, effectively putting a barrier between them and their community.

The most common criticisms include:

• Paywall Fatigue: Some users feel that locking content behind a paywall makes it harder for new viewers to discover creators.

• Pressure on Small Creators: Smaller creators may struggle to balance free content (to attract new viewers) with premium content (to maintain eligibility for payouts).

• OnlyFans Comparisons: While Rumble is clearly not a platform for adult content, the model is undeniably similar—paying for access to exclusive creator content. This raises the question: Will creators be able to deliver content compelling enough to justify the paywall?

What This Means for Rumble’s Future

Despite the controversy, this shift could be Rumble’s most strategic move yet. Unlike Twitch, which locks premium features behind a single creator’s subscription, Rumble is creating a network of cross-access premium content. Viewers who subscribe to Rumble Premium will not just support one creator, but gain access to a variety of exclusive videos, streams, and podcasts across the platform.

This model encourages viewers to see value in a Rumble Premium subscription, rather than just subscribing to individual channels. If executed well, it could create a self-sustaining ecosystem where premium content attracts paying subscribers, leading to higher revenue for both Rumble and its creators.

The Responsibility is on Creators

The success of this program ultimately depends on the creators. If creators provide high-quality, exclusive content, it will make Rumble Premium a must-have subscription. But if creators treat this as an obligation rather than an opportunity, the program could fall flat, with viewers unwilling to pay for content they don’t find valuable.

So, the big question remains: Will Rumble creators rise to the challenge and make Premium content worth it? Or will this new requirement push away small creators who can’t justify the effort?

Let me know what you think in the comments. Will you be creating premium content? Do you think this model will work?

I want to start by saying this article is full of speculation and opinion. My concern isn’t necessarily about any individual creator, but rather about the system as a whole.

If you still receive the Rumble Newsletter ([email protected]), you may have noticed they recently promoted gaming—great, right? Well, if you scroll all the way to the bottom of the email, you’d see the "Top 5 Trending Creators | Gaming." I didn’t catch it in my inbox; I saw it via an X post. While it’s awesome that Rumble is promoting gaming, the list of creators has me scratching my head.

Rumble’s Top 5 List: Favoritism at Play?

When I saw LumpyPotatoX2 on the list, I immediately expected to see other familiar names like SilverFox, Missesmaam, and the usual suspects. Many people have issues with these creators, mainly because it feels like they’ve been shown a lot of favor by Rumble over the last year. As someone who has received a fair amount of promotion from both Rumble and Locals, I understand why this happens. These creators have solid presentations, engaging brands, and actively interact with their viewers. They’re great content creators for the platform. Personally, I don’t find Lumpy particularly genuine, and while SilverFox is more authentic, his content is too vulgar for my taste.

Now, let’s break down the top 5 list:

• #5: StutteringCraig was listed, but it should’ve linked to his Side Scrollers Podcast channel, which has 8.51K followers and pulls 3-4k views per video without being featured.

• #4: RoanokeGaming, who pulls 1-2k views per video without homepage features.

• #3: Manyodgaming, which should’ve linked to ManyoD Gaming’s channel with 11.4K followers and averages 800-1200 views per video.

• #2: GeeksandGamers, which should’ve been linked to their main Geeks + Gamers channel with 84.1K followers and averages 6-10k views per video.

• #1: LumpyPotatoX2, with 2.48K followers and an average of 400-1000 views per video.

This list is baffling. Lumpy being placed at #1 clearly indicates that someone at Rumble is pushing his content harder than others. While he’s a decent entertainer with a good brand, his continual promotion on the homepage and now this top spot in the email doesn’t quite add up.

My Experience with Rumble’s Promotion Strategy

In my last article, I talked about my deal with Locals and Rumble. We know about the failed big-name creators like Sneako and SteveWillDoIt who were brought on with deals to expand Rumble’s user base and promote the platform through other media. For the larger creators, the benefit to Rumble is obvious—more eyes on the platform. In my case, it was an hourly contract, but I also worked to help grow the platform by reaching out to creators and keeping a community active, which did not count towards my hourly rate. I also provided honest feedback about the platform’s flaws and what creators needed.

Recently, SilverFox posted a video on X discussing the direction of gaming on Rumble. Aside from the language, I agreed with his points. It seemed like Rumble had lost focus on gaming in favor of the usual political content. Chris Pavlovski, Rumble’s CEO, responded to SilverFox, acknowledging the issue and saying they wanted to do better for the gaming community. The very next morning, Rumble launched the @gamingonrumble account on X.

Where Rumble Needs to Improve

Since then, Rumble has featured a variety of gaming creators on the homepage, which is a positive step. Being featured on the homepage can increase your views by 30K-100K, depending on the time of day. As someone who’s been featured multiple times, I can tell you that it also gives a small bump in follower count. Unfortunately, it doesn’t lead to long-term success, but it’s definitely a morale booster. However, even with a homepage boost, you still have to create engaging content to keep people coming back.

The point of this article is to highlight Rumble’s favoritism toward certain creators, while also acknowledging that they are making an effort to do better for the gaming community. At the end of the day, it’s not Rumble’s job to boost your ego by promoting your content. Their job is to build a platform that gets your content in front of users who will enjoy it. They should focus on improving the app and homepage algorithms, rather than handpicking creators to promote. If they do choose to boost certain creators, they need to rotate in fresh faces or move on from those who haven’t shown significant growth over the last year.

One concrete step Rumble can take is creating a transparent and merit-based system for featuring creators. A more dynamic rotation of gaming creators on the homepage would also ensure newer or smaller channels get a fair shot at exposure. Additionally, Rumble could improve its recommendation algorithm to prioritize content quality and engagement, rather than simply favoring familiar faces. This would ultimately help the platform grow organically and reduce the appearance of bias.

Rumble’s focus should be on developing a thriving gaming community, and that starts with a fairer promotion system that benefits more creators—not just a select few.

When talking about Rumble gaming, it's important to note that it barely existed before 2022. A few names come to mind—PeculiarPineTreePlays, SuperSight, R3KONT3K, BlackBox, and others—but they were outliers in a space that was just starting to form. Back then, Rumble required streamers to pay $25 a month to even stream. That was eventually lowered to $10, but it meant that people who streamed on Rumble were essentially paying to be there. They truly believed in the platform and its goal of being a real alternative to YouTube.

I say YouTube and not Twitch because, up until recently, Rumble’s main objective was to compete with YouTube. The shift to focus on platforms like Twitch and Kick only came within the last year or so. For a long time, Rumble’s development was centered on video on demand, not livestreaming. But in 2022, things started to change—and that’s when I believe the golden era of gaming on Rumble really began.

In March 2022, I created the WhatUpIan channel on Rumble. It all started because a friend at work had begun streaming on Twitch. I saw Rumble as an opportunity and figured that, with so few gamers on the platform, I had a better shot at growing faster than I would on Twitch’s crowded stage. At the time, I wasn’t sure what direction my content would take, so I was just streaming with some good friends. Back then, my streams didn’t have the family-friendly tone I prefer now, but eventually, I adopted that style for my channel.

After a few weeks, I realized that someone needed to talk about the features Rumble was missing. That’s when I launched “The State of Rumble,” a monthly stream that addressed the platform’s lack of features and the slow rollout of new ones. Around this time, I connected with Behizy and launched my WhatUpIan.Locals.com community. That’s where my channel really started to grow beyond just gaming. Locals was a great place to share the code I had created for displaying chat on screen—a video that still draws in views. To this day, people are looking for an easy solution for on-screen chat, though my code is outdated now.

Things really took off in July 2022. That’s when Locals had Schuyler Winters as their head of gaming, and he was actively seeking creators who shared the vision of growing the gaming community on Rumble and Locals.

Here’s what most people don’t know: Schuyler actually set up a call with me to discuss launching the gaming.locals.com community. He asked if I could help moderate and how they could get me to stream more. At the time, I was working full-time with a wife and a 5-year-old son. Streaming more than one night a week meant sacrificing family time, so it was a tough ask.

In August 2022, Locals contracted me to help grow the gaming community by streaming at least 50 hours a month and providing support on gaming.locals.com. Some people might criticize Rumble or me for being “paid to game,” but it was about much more than that. I was helping to build support for a platform I believed in. While some might call me a sellout, I was never told to censor my opinions—good or bad—and I frequently voiced both. I know other streamers were also paid, though I don’t know how much or who exactly. My contract paid enough for me to stream 3-4 times a week, but not enough to quit my job.

That first contract lasted three months, from September to November, and then we renewed it through February. August 2022 was the true birth of Rumble Gaming. Over 250 members joined the Locals Gaming community that month, and Schuyler was giving free streaming access to any gamers who asked for it. I was even featured on the homepage while playing Rumbleverse (RIP). It was an exciting time, and it felt like the beginning of something big for Rumble.

The State of Rumble show continued to grow as Rumble and Locals introduced more changes. I was featured on the homepage multiple times, and Rumble’s CEO, Chris Pavloski, even stopped by one of my streams to drop a $100 Rumble Rant.

By the start of 2023, Schuyler had left Locals, and in February, I was offered a new contract with Rumble and Locals. This time, it was more demanding but also offered better compensation, though still not enough to quit my full-time job. We had over 600 members in the gaming community on Locals by then, and the Rumble gaming scene was growing fast. But Rumble was also making moves that some found controversial, like signing creators such as SteveWillDoit and Jidion, who had been banned from other platforms. They brought attention to Rumble but also stirred up drama.

By May 2023, I was exhausted, balancing my full-time job and the demands of my Rumble contract. I wanted to pitch going full-time as a content creator but needed Rumble or Locals to back me financially. Ultimately, the leadership at Locals didn’t go for it, and I wasn’t offered another contract. That was a hard hit, both financially and mentally. I had worked hard to grow the community, and it felt like rejection.

Looking back, I sometimes wonder if I pushed too hard for a full-time deal. Could I have kept going on a smaller contract? Maybe. But in the end, it forced me to take a step back and focus on my family and a new job. We moved to a place we’d always wanted to live, and while the new job isn’t perfect, I trust that God has a plan for us.

As for Rumble, I set content creation aside while transitioning to my new job, but I’ve kept up with the gaming community and the platform’s development. There have been great improvements, but Rumble still has a long way to go. Many people see it as a “game changer,” but it’s not there yet. Rumble is still viewed as a politically leaning site, despite their claims, and the gaming community will have to rebuild from the ground up with creators who are truly committed to helping the platform and community grow.

I might write another article on the "then to now" timeline becuase a lot has happened since May of 2023, such as the Rumble Raids and the partnership program. So until next time, thank you to all of you that have supported me in the past and still care about The State of Rumble.