We often think of internet celebrities as fresh-faced teenagers, but one man who has bucked that trend in the best possible way is 40-something Steven Jay Williams, better known to his 4.3 million YouTube fans as “Boogie2988”. Over the course of his 15 years on the site, Williams has become incredibly popular for playing a character called Francis, a very post-modern parody of stereotypes of the archetypal gamer, who delivers rants on video games and nerd culture that are as hilarious as they are absurdist and angry. His success has spread to other platforms too, and he has over half a million followers on Twitter and over 435,000 followers on Twitch, a platform that allows gamers to live-stream their gameplay.

Williams was born in Abingdon, Virginia in 1974. His early years were troubled, as he was plagued by loneliness, weight issues, bullying, and a poor home life. At one point, things became so bad that he didn’t leave his house for seven years. He credits discovering YouTube and uploading videos to it with giving his life a purpose. Over the years, his videos have come to address many issues beyond gaming, including his struggles with mental health. Ten years after he uploaded his first video, he won the Trending Gamer award at The Game Awards 2016, cementing his reputation. Shortly after that, he underwent surgery to help with his weight issues. With views of his content now well on the way to passing the billion mark, Williams remains as prominent a presence on the internet as ever.