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Boogie2988

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Steven Williams
Boogie2988 2018.jpg
Williams in 2018
Personal information
BornSteven Jay Williams
(1974-07-24) July 24, 1974 (age 47)[1][2]
St. Paul, Virginia, U.S.[3]
OccupationYouTuber
Spouse(s)
Desiree Williams
​
​
(m. 2013; div. 2018)​
[4][5]
YouTube information
Also known asBoogie, boogie2988
Channel
Years active2006–present
GenreGaming, comedy
Subscribers4.18 million[6]
Total views914 million[6]
Associated actsAngry Joe
YouTube Silver Play Button 2.svg 100,000 subscribers 2012
YouTube Gold Play Button 2.svg 1,000,000 subscribers 2014
Updated: December 19, 2021

Steven Jay Williams (born July 24, 1974), better known by his online alias Boogie2988 or just Boogie,[7] is an American YouTuber best known for his video rants about video games and nerd culture as a character named "Francis".[8][9]

Early life and education

Williams grew up in St. Paul, Virginia. His father was a coal miner, and his mother was a teacher. He has two older siblings.[3]

Williams described his childhood as a "sad" time period in his life, due to dealing with obesity, lack of friends, and suffering verbal and physical abuse from his mother.[3] Williams had gastric bypass surgery due to morbid obesity on August 1, 2017.[10]

Williams graduated from St. Paul High School in Virginia[11] and attended University of Virginia's College at Wise, but didn't graduate.[3] He later moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas, where his life improved momentarily but soon worsened, and he did not leave his home for 7 years and was supported by his friend. It was then that he discovered YouTube and started to create videos,[3] which he said gave his life a meaning.[12]

YouTube career

The Francis character is based on stereotypes of nerdy video game players and often parodies trending video game news, reaction, and culture.

Williams based the character on his early life experiences and has said that he wants viewers to hate the character for embodying gamer stereotypes.[13] Boogie2988 videos range from absurd rants to serious discussions on daily life,[14] such as the ethics of paid promotion on YouTube channels, and his experiences with mental health.[7][15]

He won the Trending Gamer award at The Game Awards 2016.[16]

In June 2016, Boogie's YouTube account was temporarily closed due to an anonymous hacker. The unidentified person got hold of his phone number via Verizon during his time at VidCon and was able to gain access to his accounts associated with it, including his YouTube channel. His channel was restored less than a week later.[17][18][19]

Controversies

In October 2018, Boogie faced scrutiny due to his relationship with the controversial counseling service BetterHelp. He and other YouTubers sponsored by the service were accused of profiting from mental illness, which led to Boogie publicly terminating his partnership with the company.[20]

Later in October 2018, Boogie was removed from a Dungeons & Dragons charity event due to concerns from LGBT activists over his support of Gamergate.[21]

In February 2019, Boogie joked that he would "make a better team leader" over another player due to their parents' divorce and correlated it with anger issues during a live stream of the game Apex Legends. He became the subject of criticism following these comments.[22]

In April 2019, Boogie admitted to potentially committing tax fraud. He stated that he purchases Magic: The Gathering cards for his channel, writes them off as a business expense, and then resells them without claiming the income on his taxes. The IRS states that income above $400 from self-employment must be reported.[23]

In June 2019, Boogie faced criticism after clips from older live streams of him making racially charged comments resurfaced. He commented during one live stream, "That's a lot of money, I guess, for a person of color, or is it not?" after receiving a $3 donation from a follower who frequently donated to him on his stream with the message "I am a black person".[24]

On June 27, 2019, Boogie announced on Twitter that he had purchased a new Tesla automobile.[25] Following his announcement, Boogie held a live stream in early July in which he sarcastically asked for money to help pay for the new car, upsetting some of his viewers who took his comments seriously.[26] Boogie subsequently received harsh criticism for his live stream, prompting him to clarify that he did not actually purchase the car, but rather only put a down payment on it, and that he had cancelled the order as a result of the backlash against him, among other things.

In August 2019, Boogie made a controversial statement against his internet trolls where he claimed "I think that there are rapists and Nazis out there who... are more redeemable than you because at least they're doing something they believe in."[27]

In August 2020, Boogie announced on Twitter that he was teaming up with Palangi Studios co-founders, Matt Murphy & Joe Boyajian, for an upcoming project. After no other details were announced regarding this project, Boogie tweeted about two guys who tried to hustle him into receiving a Playstation 5 before the release date was verified by Sony. There was significant backlash from the Palangi Studios community who felt that Boogie was blatantly insinuating the co-founders had been behind the scheme. Boogie eventually ended up removing the tweet and apologizing for the situation during a livestream, later blaming a recent panic attack for the accusations.[28]

Personal life

Shortly after his mother's death in 2009, he met Desiree "Dez" and she moved to Arkansas to live with him. She later became known in his content as Dez2988, taking on his numerical suffix and occasionally portraying the unseen character of Francis' sister. In October 2013, Williams and Desiree got married. On December 19, 2017, Williams announced that Desiree filed for divorce and had planned to for a while, but waited until he sufficiently recovered from his gastric bypass surgery.[5] The divorce was finalized on February 13, 2018.[29] He is theist.[30]

Aggravated assault charge

In September 2020, Boogie began trending on Twitter after news broke out of an ongoing conflict between him and Frank Hassle, a YouTuber who over the course of several months, began harassing him after suspecting he was the cause of his channels' termination. After Hassle had made his way down to Boogie's hometown in Abingdon, Virginia, the two were interviewed by Keemstar. During the interview, Boogie threatened to kill Hassle if he stepped on his property. The next day after Hassle showed up at his house wearing a GoPro, Boogie, pulled out a gun and unknowingly while in a school zone, fired a warning shot into the air. Hassle eventually left and the entire incident was caught on camera. A police investigation was launched shortly afterwards. On May 7, 2021 a warrant was issued for Boogie's arrest on a charge of aggravated assault with a $5,000 bond by the Washington County, Arkansas sheriff's department.[31][32] Boogie personally turned himself in on May 12, was processed over the course of three and a half hours and posted for bail. He pleaded for "Not Guilty" during his court session.[33] He currently has a trial scheduled for sometime in 2022.[34]

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2014 Supersize vs Superskinny Himself 1 episode

Web

Year Title Role Notes
2014 Did You Know Gaming? Himself Episode: Skyrim
2015 Your Grammer Sucks Himself 2 episodes
2016 Super Planet Dolan Himself Episode: What Are Earthquakes Called On Mars?
2016 Crash Zoom Mancis Episode: Sky Scam
2018–2019 Youtubers React Himself 5 episodes

References

  1. ^ @Boogie2988 (July 24, 2016). "Birthday stream on Twitch in about an hour and a half! See you there!" (Tweet). Retrieved December 25, 2019 – via Twitter.
  2. ^ "ITS MY BIRTHDAY! WOOHOO!!". YouTube. July 27, 2014. Archived from the original on August 20, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Draw My Life - Boogie2988 (Aka Francis)". YouTube. Archived from the original on March 16, 2017. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
  4. ^ "Desiree Williams' Wiki: Facts to Know about Boogie2988's Ex-Wife". www.earnthenecklace.com. December 20, 2017. Archived from the original on December 13, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  5. ^ a b "It's true, wife and I are getting a divorce. Here's whats next for us". youtube.com. Archived from the original on February 28, 2020. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  6. ^ a b "About boogie2988". YouTube.
  7. ^ a b Grayson, Nathan (October 8, 2014). "The Messy Story Behind YouTubers Taking Money For Game Coverage". Kotaku. Archived from the original on October 18, 2014. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  8. ^ Sam Machkovech (March 25, 2015). ""That life is over": Zoe Quinn looks beyond GamerGate". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on May 1, 2017. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  9. ^ Amini, Tina (December 14, 2013). "A Note To Everyone Who Says YouTubers Should 'Get A Real Job'". Kotaku. Archived from the original on December 3, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  10. ^ "Boogie2988 Surgery Update". Heavy.com. August 2017. Archived from the original on August 2, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
  11. ^ My Origin Story: Where I Grew Up In Small Town Southwest Virginia..., archived from the original on July 10, 2019, retrieved August 24, 2019
  12. ^ "The Meaning Of Life" Archived May 12, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, YouTube, December 15, 2008
  13. ^ Narcisse, Evan (December 1, 2013). "The Bittersweet Story of Francis, YouTube's Biggest Video Game Nerd". Kotaku. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  14. ^ Writer/Director/Producer, Alex Koenig; Koenig", Host of "Point Blank With Alex (March 18, 2014). "Four Years Ago, Boogie2988 Was on Disability -- Now He's a YouTube Star". HuffPost. Archived from the original on November 23, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  15. ^ Jessica Conditt (January 23, 2014). "YouTuber boogie2988 on Microsoft contracts: 'It is the norm'". Engadget. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  16. ^ Stark, Chelsea (December 1, 2016). "The Game Awards: Here's the full winners list". Polygon. Archived from the original on December 2, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  17. ^ Adame, Dennis (June 27, 2016). "YouTube Gamer Boogie2988 has his channel hacked and closed". www.gameskinny.com. Archived from the original on August 3, 2016. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  18. ^ HOW I GOT HACKED!, archived from the original on June 30, 2016, retrieved August 14, 2019
  19. ^ "What Boogie2988's Hacking Can Teach Creators About Cybersecurity". What's Trending. July 1, 2016. Retrieved August 14, 2019.[permanent dead link]
  20. ^ Lorenz, Taylor (October 12, 2018). "YouTube Stars Are Being Accused of Profiting Off Fans' Depression". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on December 14, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  21. ^ "Alt-right gamers are lying to you on YouTube". The Daily Dot. October 26, 2018. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  22. ^ "Boogie2988 Under Fire For Joke Made While Streaming 'Apex Legends'". WWG. Archived from the original on August 20, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  23. ^ "Boogie May Have Admitted To Committing Tax Fraud During A Livestream". TheGamer. April 4, 2019. Archived from the original on August 20, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  24. ^ "Controversial YouTuber Boogie2988 under fire for racist comments on stream". Dexerto.com. June 27, 2019. Archived from the original on November 29, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  25. ^ @Boogie2988 (June 27, 2019). "I legit just bought a tesla. This is my first new car in my lifetime. I am shaking baked so excited!!!!" (Tweet). Retrieved January 17, 2020 – via Twitter.
  26. ^ "Fans outraged after Boogie2988 "begs" for money following $100k Tesla purchase". Dexerto.com. July 2, 2019. Archived from the original on August 20, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  27. ^ Sant, Sam (August 29, 2019). "Boogie2988 says 'rapists and Nazis' are more redeemable than his trolls". Game Revolution. Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  28. ^ @Boogie2988 (August 27, 2020). "So I guess I just signed up for a CHANCE to pre-order a ps5?" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  29. ^ "Desiree Williams' Wiki: Facts to Know about Boogie2988's Ex-Wife". earnthenecklace.com. December 20, 2017. Archived from the original on December 13, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
  30. ^ Steven Jay Williams [@Boogie2988] (February 4, 2021). "Grew up Christian. Spent a long time atheist and nihilist. Became agnostic for a while and now consider myself a theist" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  31. ^ "What happened between Boogie2988 and Frank Hassle? YouTuber fires gun over harassment". GameRevolution. September 29, 2020. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  32. ^ Trobaugh, Justin (May 11, 2021). "Popular YouTuber 'Boogie2988' has warrant out for his arrest". KNWA-TV. Nexstar Media. Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  33. ^ "Popular YouTube personality faces charge of aggravated assault in Washington County". Arkansas Online. May 13, 2021. Retrieved September 13, 2021.
  34. ^ @Boogie2988 (September 17, 2021). "Nothing I can share. Trial sometime next year looks like. Really hoping it doesn't have to go to trial" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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