Pokimane With No Makeup - What Is The Story Behind The Meme? (2024)

• Tasha
• April 21, 2022

Pokimane no makeup is a photo, or better-said meme of Twitch streamer Pokimane without makeup. The photo was taken from an October 2018 stream and sparked outrage online. Some people and fans called Pokimane an unattractive girl. They suggested she is tricking people into watching her streams and donating money by using makeup.

At the same time, many users came to the rescue and defended Pokimane, calling those who judge the popular streamer incels. Just for info, an incel is “a member of an online subculture of people who define themselves as unable to get a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one”.

The image of Pokimane with no makeup has been used over the years as a meme. Mostly, critics of Pokimane use it to paint her as a con artist and call her unattractive. Pokimane herself posted the image to Twitter in February 2022 in a viral tweet.

With that in mind, let’s talk about the story behind this Pokimane meme.

Origin Of The Photo

As we said before, this Pokimane photo appeared on the internet in October 2018. To be more precise, on October 23, 2018, Pokimane streamed on Twitch without any makeup on.

It was quite noticeable since she usually wears makeup on stream. Clips from the stream were uploaded to YouTube two months later and gained millions of views.

At the beginning of the famous no makeup stream, Pokimane said, “I think it’s good to not always just be promoting. I look like this naturally. Because girls just don’t. When you have makeup on, you look like you have makeup on”.

There is no precise data on who took the photo of the stream and uploaded the viral screenshot.

Born as Imane Anys, Pokimane is a Moroccan-Canadian internet personality. Famous for her live streams on Twitch, she broadcasts video game content mostly from League of Legends and Fortnite.

Following the Pokimane screenshot, negative comments, criticism and support spread across Twitter. Some of her fans, including streamer @sjokz, wrote, “Just wanna say Pokimanelol is one of the most beautiful people I know inside and out, and people giving her sh*t for putting herself out there streaming barefaced should check themselves. We love you Poki”.

Some of the memes included one of the YouTuber Twomad, who posted, “for all you dudes who have never had a girlfriend this is what Pokimane looks like without makeup”.

It is worth noting that Imane “Pokimane” Anys herself took it to Twitter to react. On October 24, one of the most famous female streamers posted a collection of other photos without makeup on Twitter as a reaction to the harassment on social media.

Pokimane wrote, “To conclude yesterday’s drama, here are some no makeup selfies but from regular/cute angles and with natural lighting. No one looks good 24/7, and a lot of different things can affect someone’s appearance! We’re all only human, so let’s be kind to one another”.

To conclude yesterday’s drama, here are some no make-up selfies but from regular/cute angles and with natural lighting 😌🌸

no one looks good 24/7, and a lot of different things can affect someone’s appearance! We’re all only human, so let’s be kind to one another ❤️ pic.twitter.com/uPhU0hHZbv

— pokimane (@pokimanelol) October 24, 2018

Gloom, a popular YouTube creator and fellow streamer posted a video reacting to the negative comments about Pokemane on October 24 as well. It gained more than 1.5 million views.

Many people applauded Pokimane for highlighting the image and standing up for herself. But others have questioned her decision to bring up money as part of the discussion.

After all, she posted to Twitter, “This face makes more money than you’ll ever see in your life”. Bringing money to the discussion is never a good idea.

this face makes more money than you’ll ever see in your life pic.twitter.com/ZB1dtKexr8

— pokimane (@pokimanelol) February 15, 2022

In one of the replies to the discussion, the popular Twitch streamer said, “yes I would, and I’m going to continue being against shaming others for how they look w/o makeup, and no amount of spamming a “bad photo” of me will ever change that”.

yes I would, and I’m going to continue being against shaming others for how they look w/o makeup, and no amount of spamming a “bad photo” of me will ever change that.

— pokimane (@pokimanelol) January 4, 2021

It All Started As A Dare

What many people do not know is that the Pokimane no makeup picture started out as a dare. It came after her much-anticipated collaboration with fellow streamer Jidion, a popular content creator and YouTuber.

The two came together to squash their beef. They answered tough questions about themselves while enjoying some fast food.

In that session, Jidion revealed he was drunk when he set Pokimane’s no makeup photo as his display picture on Twitter. He then urged her to share it on her profile with his given caption.

Then Pokimane uploaded the photo as part of the dare and the picture went viral.

More Pokimane No Makeup Photos

School Girl Pokimane

One thing Pokimane fans love is her ability to put on different outfits and look amazing in them. As a content creator and part of the gaming community, Pokimane often wears cosplay costumes. But in this case, she went with a schoolgirl outfit. Men will tell you, it is one of the biggest fantasies.

Hey There

This photo might not be a true Pokimane no makeup photo. But it is one with just a little bit of makeup. It shows that the Twitch personality does not go overboard with her use of makeup. She likes to keep things minimal.

Selfie Time

Even Pokimane posted selfies on her Twitter account to show fans and followers more pictures of her without makeup. This bare face didn’t make that Twitter post. But we want to share it with you.