The person behind the humanoid cheese avatar, aptly named “Cheese,” and the lightning-fast Super Mario 64 speedrunning is Allan Alvares: a young man hoping to break the conventions of what it means to be a content creator on Twitch. He rejects the label entirely. Instead, he opts for the term “influencer.” It’s a title he feels better suits his motivations.
What happens if you insult a speedrunner?
"I call myself an influencer because that's what I love to do. I don't really care what kind of content I create. I love to influence," Alvarez said in a phone interview with Lifewire. "I want to do something and show what I can do and hopefully inspire people to do it too. And I hear that a lot [from people who say I've influenced them], and I love it."
In addition to being an inspiration for speedrunners in gaming, Alvarez wants to help educate the gaming world. He wants to teach his audience about the realities of life in developing countries and give them some perspective. From Venezuela to island life in the archipelago of Trinidad and Tobago to finding peace in the historic city of Madrid, Alvarez has an unsung perspective that he brings to his 230,000 followers on YouTube and Twitch.
Alvarez has learned a lot about the world around him. He described life in Trinidad as particularly difficult because of gang violence, what he called "regressive attitudes," and a general lack of resources.
