Virtual YouTubers are a real modern trend in Japanese pop culture that you couldn’t have missed. And the VTubers from Nijisanji are some of the most recognizable characters in the world of virtual streaming. Why are they so popular, and how did the Nijisanji agency win the hearts of viewers around the world? Find out in our engaging overview.
Virtual YouTubers (or VTubers for short) are a phenomenon in Japanese pop culture that has, without exaggeration, taken the world by storm. Streamers entertaining viewers on YouTube as anime characters with their own stories and personalities have become incredibly popular not only in Japan but far beyond its borders. Millions of subscribers, an active online audience, and massive viewer support have made many VTubers just as famous as popular anime characters.
And it’s also a very profitable business — after all, the most famous virtual YouTubers are often members of large VTuber agencies, like Nijisanji. This is one of the largest and most popular companies of its kind in Japan, and we’ll tell you everything you wanted to know about the history of its success.
What is Nijisanji?
At the end of 2016, pop culture split into before and after. It was then that Kizuna Ai debuted, and her success marked the beginning of the VTuber era. She is the one who popularized the term "virtual YouTuber" and, for a long time, was the most famous and recognizable virtual streamer, gaining over 3 million subscribers on YouTube.
Many immediately saw great potential in VTubers, including producer Riku Tazumi, who in 2017 founded the company Ichikara (now ANYCOLOR). A year later, it launched Nijisanji – a virtual YouTuber agency, which became one of the largest in Japan.
In 2025, Nijisanji has 187 active members, also known as livers, and is divided into two branches. The main Nijisanji branch includes 139 Japanese, 7 Indonesian, and 12 Korean VTubers, while the English-speaking Nijisanji EN has an additional 26 virtual streamers.
The agency is one of the most popular in Japan, with a total subscriber count across all Nijisanji channels exceeding 60 million. Nijisanji features not only female but also male VTuber characters, making it the most popular agency in Japan among female audiences – 74.9% of Japanese women watch Nijisanji.
Additionally, the agency’s most popular VTuber, Kuzuha, is the most-viewed virtual YouTuber in the world for 2024, accumulating 40.4 million hours of watch time, despite not being the leader in subscriber count.
Interesting fact! The name Nijisanji is a play on words that can mean several things. Niji (二時) and sanji (三時) translate from Japanese as "two o'clock" and "three o'clock," and the word niji (虹) also means "rainbow." This is why Nijisanji fans often represent the agency’s name using rainbow and clock emojis. Additionally, they frequently donate 2,434 yen to their favorite VTubers, as these numbers in Japanese can also be read as ni (二, 2) ji (四, 4) san (三, 3) ji (四, 4). But that's not all – the name also hints at the Japanese words 2D and 3D, ni jigen (二次元) and san jigen (三次元).
Why Are Virtual YouTubers So Popular?
If you have a favorite seiyuu who voices anime characters, you’ve probably thought about how great it would be to chat with them. VTubers make this dream a reality for many anime fans — not only can you send a message to your favorite VTuber in the chat or send a donation, but you can even ask them to say your name on stream. This makes virtual YouTubers much closer to the audience compared to regular anime characters. And to make your favorite VTubers even closer, choose Nijisanji merchandise on Lashinbang through ZenMarket!
On their streams, virtual YouTubers create a wide variety of entertaining content in character: they play video games, record ASMR audio, cover anime songs, and engage in different creative activities. They also simply chat with the audience, joke around, and discuss various topics.
It's common to see collaborations with other virtual YouTubers, where they play games together or just talk. Each VTuber has a main character design and additional outfits that they change from time to time. The funniest moments from streams often end up in highlight clips and sometimes become memes.
Virtual YouTubers even hold live concerts as their virtual avatars, dancing and singing on stage with the help of augmented reality technology. They perform their songs live, but from behind the scenes, while the audience sees only their anime-style characters to preserve their anonymity.
How Does Nijisanji Work
The Nijisanji agency is a large company whose producers handle the following:
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They look for talented streamers who want to stream as anime characters;
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They provide them with an animated avatar created by professional illustrators;
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They fully manage the promotion of their YouTube channels and social media, ensuring rapid growth in popularity. Even newcomers quickly gain many subscribers thanks to the Nijisanji name;
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They organize all events: streams, concerts, collaborations with other VTubers, and promotional campaigns;
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They assist in content creation: writing songs, drawing illustrations, and producing themes for videos.
Virtual YouTubers working with Nijisanji sign a strict contract that requires them to follow specific rules. The main ones are to behave properly, maintain anonymity, and get video topics approved by producers. All active VTubers remain anonymous — and in most cases, you’ll never know who is behind the anime avatar. However, there are exceptions — some streamers reveal their faces, such as Kson, who was previously known as the VTuber Kiryu Coco from Hololive.
Nijisanji earns profit from donations to VTubers and advertising, paying its members a salary. VTubers who leave the agency are called graduates (similar to a school graduation), and they can no longer stream as their characters — all rights to the anime avatar belong to the agency. Some VTubers have already ended their careers, some are just getting started, and others have been streaming since the very beginning. As for us, we’ll tell you about the most popular Nijisanji virtual YouTubers who are currently active.
The Most Popular Nijisanji VTubers
Subscribers: 1.96 million
Kuzuha is the most popular VTuber in Nijisanji and the second most subscribed male VTuber in the world. He’s a charming silver-haired vampire with red eyes who lives the life of a hikikomori. Kuzuha rarely leaves his home and spends a lot of time playing computer games: on his streams, he passionately plays League of Legends, Street Fighter, and other titles. He has a selfish and even bratty personality, loves money, and viewers enjoy his laid-back and entertaining way of speaking.
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Subscribers: 1.81 million
A naive and cheerful girl whose dream is to become a real rich lady. According to the storyline, Salome is not of noble birth, but she strives to resemble a refined lady at all costs. This archetype is called ojou-sama (お嬢様) in Japan, and such characters have their own way of speaking, for example, ending sentences with the phrase desu wa. However, since Salome is only trying to appear as a lady, she often uses grandiose speech inappropriately, which adds a comedic touch to her character. Salome is not only the most popular female VTuber in Nijisanji, but also the first virtual YouTuber in the world to reach 1 million subscribers in just 13 days.
Browse Salome Merchandise on MediaWorld
Subscribers: 1.42 million
A sweet and sociable guy with a soft voice who loves playing games. Kanae is one of the first VTubers of Nijisanji, starting in 2018 with gaming streams, and later became one of the main and most popular virtual YouTubers in the agency. His recognizable feature is a plush cat toy, which Kanae always keeps at hand. He’s great at playing games, such as Apex Legends, and even streams with professional gamers. Kanae is simple and friendly, which is what makes him so appealing to his viewers.
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Subscribers: 1.38 million
Like Kanae, Tsukino Mito started streaming in 2018 as part of the first generation of Nijisanji VTubers. She is one of the most popular female virtual YouTubers in the agency, earning her the title of "Queen of Nijisanji".
Tsukino Mito is a second-year high school student and the class representative. She will appeal to fans of tsundere characters — cold and sharp personalities who occasionally soften. She enjoys playing poorly made games and has a unique sense of humor for her character type, which is why the audience loves her.
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Subscribers: 1.12 million
A virtual YouTuber from the second generation of Nijisanji, a tall guy with a serious personality. Toya is a high school student and practices fencing in the kendo club. On his streams, he often behaves in a cheerful and friendly manner, loves teasing fellow VTubers, and playing horror games. He sings well, and on his channel, you can find covers of popular Japanese songs and even rap battles, such as against Kuzuha.
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Subscribers: 1.11 million
One of the brightest female VTubers from Nijisanji, Hoshikawa Sara is a true genki (a lively, energetic character). On her fun and entertaining streams, she always brings positivity to her viewers, no matter what she's doing — singing, playing games, or hosting collaborative streams with other VTubers. Sara is half Japanese, half British — she was born in England and later moved to Japan.
She stands out from others by referring to herself in the third person, which makes her character even more childishly naive and straightforward. She loves singing, playing Japanese mobile games like Fate/Grand Order, and watching streams of other virtual YouTubers.
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Subscribers: 1.09 million
An attractive host who will provide an unforgettable experience for his female fans. Minato wins people over with his open and friendly personality, sings exceptionally well, and loves streaming. His broadcasts can last over 10 hours straight – that's how much energy and love he has for what he does. He has a funny personality – the guy loves to jokingly say meaningless things and hum to himself. His goal is to bring smiles to all his fans.
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Subscribers: 914 thousand
A high school student who is part of the same group as Tsukino Mito called JK gumi – “The High School Girls Squad.” Kaede is a tall girl with silvery hair and a long ponytail who loves music and sings very well. She even plays the trumpet in an orchestra. Kaede is determined and strong-willed, and her voice has a pleasant, deep tone. She’s from the Kansai region, so her speech often includes words from the local dialect, which makes her stand out among other virtual YouTubers.
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Subscribers: 912 thousand
A princess of the Kingdom of Helesta, Lize is a calm and intelligent girl with good manners. Her fellow Nijisanji VTubers jokingly say that the Kingdom of Helesta is actually Shizuoka Prefecture, where she’s from. As a proper heir to the throne, she’s well-versed in law, literature, and the arts. But her talents don’t stop there — Lize also plays guitar in the band Ever Green Nerd alongside other Nijisanji members.
When she plays games, she becomes more energetic than usual. She even has her own mascot — a yellow chick named Sebas, whom she considers her butler. Despite her kindness and openness, Lize is an introvert who dislikes crowds and is easily moved to tears.
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Subscribers: 889 thousand
Ange Katrina is a red-haired girl with a strong personality and a charming, deep,low voice who can host talk and gaming streams for up to 6 hours straight without getting tired. In real life, she is the best friend of Lize Helesta, whom she has known for over 10 years. Ange is sure to appeal to fans of tomboys — girls with some masculine traits. She enjoys flirting with other VTubers and acting cool, though she’s also a bit clumsy and very kind.
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What to Buy for Nijisanji Fans from Japan
Watching the fun streams of your favorite virtual YouTubers is great, but even better is adding wonderful original Nijisanji merchandise from Japan to your collection, which you can easily find in our recommended stores – MediaWorld and Lashinbang.
Figurines
Virtual YouTubers are just as popular today as regular anime characters, so it’s no surprise that a lot of different figurines are also released. By visiting ZenMarket, you can buy real figurines from Japan from almost anywhere in the world: complete figures, Nendoroids, and prize figures from Nijisanji are waiting for you!
Buy Nijisanji Figurines on MediaWorld
Merchandise
Great news for Nijisanji fans – in Japan, you'll find a huge variety of merchandise featuring your favorite virtual YouTubers! There's something for everyone:
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Pins;
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Acrylic figures;
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Keychains;
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Posters;
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Cards;
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Clothing and much more.
In the recommended store Lashinbang, you'll find a wide range of Nijisanji virtual YouTuber merchandise at the best prices!
Browse Nijisanji Merchandise on Lashinbang
CDs
Music is another key element of the success of virtual YouTubers. They not only record covers but also perform their own songs. And, of course, the best of their repertoire can be found on CDs in excellent quality!
Look for your favorite Vtuber's songs with us!
Conclusion
The secret to the success of virtual YouTubers is simple: anyone can watch their streams on YouTube and follow the characters they like. What makes it even more appealing is the chance to interact with them, as behind every anime avatar is a real person. Among the participants of Nijisanji, you're sure to find virtual YouTubers you’ll enjoy – let’s follow them together!