---
titleBase64: RXhwZWRpYSB4IElTaG93U3BlZWQ6IFRoZSBCcmFuZCBEZWFsIFdlIERpZG4ndCBTZWUgQ29taW5n
date: 2026-05-02 17:09:55
published: true
slug: expedia-ishowspeed-gen-z-travel-brand-deal
tags:
  - "ishowspeed"
  - "expedia"
  - "brand-deals"
  - "creator-economy"
  - "gen-z"
  - "youtube"
  - "travel"
  - "influencer-marketing"
  - "streamers"
  - "viral"
excerpt: "Expedia's IShowSpeed partnership is either genius or insane — probably both. The chaotic YouTube megastar is now selling Gen Z on travel, and it might be the smartest brand play of 2026."
---

Hold up — did someone just put the most chaotic streamer on the internet in charge of selling vacations to Gen Z? Because that's exactly what Expedia just did, and honestly? It might be the smartest brand play of 2026.



![](/images/2026/05/expedia-ishowspeed-gen-z-travel-brand-deal-0.webp)



Let's set the scene. IShowSpeed — Darren Watkins Jr., the 19-year-old YouTube demon who went from screaming at FIFA in his bedroom to nearly dying in a fireworks accident on stream in Barbados (yes, that clip hit 11K upvotes on LivestreamFail and counting) — is now the face of Expedia's new Gen Z travel push. The kid who made his name by being the most unpredictable, unfiltered, un-brand-safe personality on the platform is now... a travel ambassador. For a Fortune 500 company. In this economy.

And you know what? I'm not mad at it.

Here's the thing about Speed that separates him from every other creator trying to secure the bag: he's *actually* global. While most American streamers are stuck in their gaming chairs in Austin or LA, Speed has been doing IRL streams from Brazil, Japan, the UK, India — anywhere and everywhere. He showed up to the 2024 Olympics in Paris essentially as a one-man content machine, and the internet ate it up. His YouTube channel sits at over 30 million subscribers, his streams regularly pull 100K+ concurrent viewers, and his clips dominate every platform from TikTok to Kuaishou.

When Expedia says they want to "reimagine Gen Z travel," they're not picking some curated, aesthetic Instagram influencer like they might have in 2019. They're picking the guy who embodies *how Gen Z actually experiences the world* — chaotically, authentically, with a phone camera and zero filter.

Let's be real for a second about the creator economy right now. Brand deals are getting weird. On one end of the spectrum, you've got Dong Yuhui (董宇辉) in China making $ billions for East Buy with his poetic livestream selling, and on the other, you've got creators like Chris Stuckmann catching heat for sketchy gambling sponsors. The middle ground — safe, boring, forgettable brand integrations — is dying. Expedia clearly looked at the landscape and said, "You know what? Let's go full chaos mode."

The timing is perfect. Speed just came off a massively viral Barbados stream where he had a near-death experience (the clip racked up nearly 12,000 upvotes on Reddit's LivestreamFail alone), raced against Jynxzi (and lost, also viral at 9K+ upvotes), and continues to be one of the most talked-about creators on the planet. He's in that rarefied air with MrBeast, Kai Cenat, and xQc where everything he does becomes content, whether he intends it to or not.

But here's where it gets interesting from a creator-economy mechanics perspective. Expedia isn't just slapping Speed's face on some banner ads. According to the Business Wire release, they're building an actual campaign around him — which suggests they understand something fundamental about how Gen Z consumes travel content.



![](/images/2026/05/expedia-ishowspeed-gen-z-travel-brand-deal-1.webp)



Think about it. When Khaby Lame (Senegal/Italy) rose to fame on TikTok by silently mocking life hacks, brands scrambled to work with him — but most of those deals felt forced. When Li Jiaqi (李佳琦 'Lipstick King') was moving $ billions in product on Douyin, it worked because makeup and livestream commerce were a natural fit. Speed and travel? That's actually *organic*. The kid has been doing IRL streams from foreign countries for two years now. His audience already follows him around the world. Expedia is just... formalizing what was already happening.

This is the playbook that's working in 2026. You don't hire a creator to sell your product. You hire a creator who's *already doing what your product enables* and amplify it. It's why Xiao Yang Ge (疯狂小杨哥) moved so much merchandise on Douyin — because his chaos comedy was already driving the purchases. It's why brands are increasingly going to VTubers and AI influencers for certain demographics — because authenticity in 2026 doesn't mean "polished and professional," it means "matches how I actually experience the world."

Now, will this work? The smart money says yes, but with caveats. Speed's audience is young — really young. Like, "probably can't book their own Expedia hotel room yet" young. But they're building brand affinity, and in five years when they're planning spring break trips, guess whose platform they'll remember? That's the long game.

There's also the brand risk. This is the same creator who's been swatted, who's had countless clips go viral for the wrong reasons, who exists in a perpetual state of near-disaster. One bad stream in partnership content could turn into a PR nightmare faster than you can say "demonetized." Expedia's legal team probably hasn't slept since they signed this deal.

But that's the point, isn't it? Safe is forgettable. Safe is the Kardashian-Jenner family doing yet another confusing crypto launch. Safe is another Doothi-style commentary drama where everyone's upset but nobody remembers why in a week. Expedia didn't want safe. They wanted eyeballs, engagement, and cultural relevance — and that's exactly what Speed delivers.

The creator economy has entered its brand deal era, and the rules are being rewritten in real-time. Forget polished testimonial videos. Forget sponsored Instagram posts that look like every other sponsored Instagram post. The future is chaos-as-a-service, and Expedia just bought themselves a premium subscription.

Watch this space. If this campaign works — and I suspect it will — expect every travel brand, food delivery app, and financial service to start courting the most unhinged streamers they can find. The age of the boring brand deal is over. Long live the chaos.
