Inside the Backlash Against Valkyrae—and the Hasan Rumors Fueling It

Valkyrae got called the 'Female Hasan' on stream, and yeah, that went over about as well as you would expect. It also opened the door to a bunch of recent drama, a fresh round of 'are they or aren't they' questions about her and HasanAbi, and one truly messy dog-collar controversy. So let's pull the thread.

'Female Hasan' shows up in chat, Rae recoils

During a recent livestream, someone in chat labeled Valkyrae the 'Female Hasan.' She looked genuinely stung by it and pushed back, saying she just plays games and does not do politics like Hasan. A clip of the moment went around on Oct 29, 2025, via user @Awk20000.

'Damn, is that what you heard? And I cannot change the way you perceive me, and I accept that, although it hurts.'

For anyone new here: Valkyrae (real name Rachel Marie Hofstetter) is a co-owner of 100 Thieves and has The Game Award for Content Creator of the Year and a Streamy for best live streamer. The comparison to Hasan isn't random though — if you have been following the last few months, you can see why certain viewers made the leap.

Why some viewers are lumping Rae in with Hasan

• Her co-host QTCinderella got hit with racism and homophobia allegations. Rae weighed in on their podcast, saying QT's tone often reads as angry and, as she put it, being very 'white' does not help how it lands. That clip bounced around on Oct 27, 2025 (via @it_zzzy).
• She sought advice from commentary streamer Asmongold on handling backlash, which brought its own wave of criticism because, well, it is Asmongold.
• On top of that, Rae called Twitch streaming 'gross' after recent platform drama and said a part of her wanted to quit Twitch and only stream on YouTube again. That moment circulated on Oct 26, 2025 (via @yoxics).

Put it together and she has become an easy target lately. Being compared to a lightning rod like Hasan does not exactly cool things down.

So, are Rae and HasanAbi actually dating?

There has been a ton of speculation, zero official confirmation, and plenty of coyness. Then Ethan Klein basically said the quiet part out loud. On episode 201 of the H3 Podcast, he described talking to Hasan about why he keeps the alleged relationship under wraps — and he pretty much confirmed it.

'He is the type of guy that keeps his girlfriend a secret. You know why, right? ... I asked, I said, "Why do you keep your relationship with Valkyrae a secret? Who cares? Just you guys are dating, be together." And it was his decision because he says he does not want people harassing her. I am like, "She is already like a huge internet personality."'

Ethan's wife and co-host Hila Klein added her read on it, arguing that 34-year-old Hasan also enjoys the attention that comes with ambiguity:

'I can guess why. He likes everybody dreaming of being with him. He also baits gay guys, like, all the time. So he just wants to leave all of your dreams open. Does not want to close the door.'

Fair to say those are some pointed claims, but it lines up with the whole 'hard launch/soft launch/never launch' dance we have watched for months.

The dog-collar clip that blew up, and Rae stepping in

Hasan and controversy are never far apart. Depending on who you ask, he is either a smart, forceful political streamer or, as one detractor put it (via VLR), a 'close-minded dips*it who believes he is above all when it comes to political stuff.' The mess that arguably got the loudest this month was about his dog, Kaya.

After a clip from his stream went viral on Oct 7, 2025 (via @DramaAlert), Hasan was accused of using a shock collar on Kaya. You can see a collar in the video; some viewers insisted it could be a GPS tracker instead. Either way, people were angry about how he spoke to her during the moment, and even PETA weighed in to The Hollywood Reporter, saying they hoped the allegations were false because shock collars put 'dogs at risk of burn wounds, chronic anxiety, and displaced aggression.'

Hasan pushed back hard, via Forbes, with his trademark sarcasm and a specific explanation of the yelp people heard:

'Yes, I am incredibly abusive, to the not only best trained, but also the best behaving and most spoiled dog on the planet. She yelped because she f**king clipped herself on something when she was getting off the bed. I gave her the place command while she was getting off, and then she yelped. She had broken the previous bed. I suspect it is coming from some crazy haters. She yelped when she was getting off the bed, because I assume she either stepped funny, or clipped her foot on something.'

Rae also backed him publicly on stream a few days later, calling Kaya the 'most loved and spoiled' dog and stressing how careful Hasan is with her. A clip of that defense circulated on Oct 10, 2025, via @zzaavii.

Where this leaves Rae

Rae has been catching heat from multiple directions — some of it brought on by her own comments, some of it blowback from being tied to Hasan, and some of it just the endless churn of streamer discourse. Whether you think the 'Female Hasan' tag is fair or lazy, it clearly hit a nerve. She is not trying to be a political commentator; she is trying to stream games. But the internet is going to do what it does, labels and all.