KSI told fans heartbreaking reason why he is leaving Sidemen before announcement
While some fans still think it might be a stunt or a forfeit, KSI’s departure from the Sidemen is looking pretty real.
The social media star’s team confirmed he was leaving the YouTube collective, which includes Vikkstar123 (Vikram 'Vik' Singh Bar), Zerkaa (Joshua Bradley), Miniminter (Simon Minter), TBJZL (Tobi 'Tobi' Brown), Wroetoshaw/W2S (Harry Lewis) and Behzinga (Ethan Payne).
KSI called the announcement the ‘hardest video I’ve ever had to make’.
Real name Olajide Olatunji, the 32-year-old explained he had spent ‘months trying to figure out what the right thing to do is’ before announcing his exit on Sunday (31 May).
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And fans have now tracked back a recent stream KSI did earlier in May when he appeared to reference reasons for stepping back.
The Britain’s Got Talent judge has made videos with the Sidemen since 2013, with tens of millions of viewers.
The group have pulled off crazy stunts, such as teaming up with Steve-O to break the world record for most lightbulbs broken with testicles. Other videos see them complete 24-hour endurance challenges, such as surviving handcuffed to each other and trapped on a raft.
But it seems KSI may have had too much going on to keep collaborating with the group.
In a stream earlier in May, KSI said he was ‘having the time of my life’ but said ‘time wise I’m struggling’.
“There’s a lot going on – obviously doing my channel, Sidemen, BGT, Baller League, then everything else,” he said. “You know, music, etc and yes, I’m working on music, guys, relax.
“And also then, still trying to find that work-life balance ‘cos, you know, I’ve got a missus, I’ve got a family and I need to find time for them.”
KSI called his calendar ‘disgusting’ as he said people would question where he has ‘time to live’ or ‘time to relax’ with no holiday this year until the end of September.
“What really hit me was when I went to my mum’s 60th birthday party,” the star continued. “And the fact that she’s 60 years of age and in the past 10 years, I can count how many times I’ve seen my parents. It just put a load of things into perspective.
“Because I can’t keep going on like this forever.”
KSI said things will ‘suffer’ if he does nothing but work.
“And I’ll look back, and be like, I did all this work, I made all this money but what do I have to show for it?” he said.
“So yeah, I’m just working on making changes in my life.”
Fans reckon this was KSI hinting at him leaving Sidemen
KSI’s exit
Announcing the news on YouTube, KSI said: “I've gone back and forth on this decision for a very long time.
“I've spent months trying to figure out what the right thing to do is.
“But after a lot of thought, I've decided that I will no longer be doing Sidemen videos. Today, 31 May, will be my final Sidemen video.”
He reflected on the early days and the group’s growth before adding that ‘nothing bad has happened’ between him and the others.
"This decision is completely my own," he said.
"Over the last few years, I've felt myself being pulled in a lot of directions than ever before. Between everything else in my life, I feel like I've been running at full speed, at 100mph."
Sidemen’s response
The group said they were ‘sad to share the news’ that he had ‘decided not to continue'.
"We had an amazing time on this journey with him and we wish him all the best with his future endeavours," they said.
"This came as a surprise to us and we know it will be an adjustment for you, but we've got lots of exciting stuff planned that we can't wait to share."
LADbible has contacted representatives for KSI for comment.
Topics: KSI, YouTube, Social Media, Entertainment
Jess Battison