Los reyes y reinas del internet en español
TikTokers, streamers and influencers shaping youth culture in the Spanish-speaking world.
Spain and Latin America produce some of the world's biggest internet stars — yet most British students have never heard of them. Knowing the names Ibai, El Rubius, Lola Lolita, Yuya and being able to describe them in Spanish is a quick way to add cultural depth to any exam answer.
Throughout the article, the useful Spanish words and phrases are highlighted (with their meaning in brackets). Tap the on any phrase to hear it.
Ibai Llanos is a Basque streamer with over fifteen million followers on Twitch.
Ibai Llanos es el streamer más popular del mundo hispanohablante.
Ibai Llanos is the most popular streamer in the Spanish-speaking world.
Hace directos sobre videojuegos, deportes y entrevistas con famosos.
He does livestreams about video games, sports and celebrity interviews.
He has interviewed Leo Messi, Bad Bunny, Piqué and many more. What makes Ibai special is how cercano (down-to-earth) he is — totally different from polished Instagram influencers.
Before Ibai, there was El Rubius — a Spanish-Norwegian YouTuber with nearly 40 million subscribers. He pioneered Spanish-language gaming and comedy content.
El Rubius fue uno de los primeros youtubers españoles de éxito mundial.
El Rubius was one of the first Spanish YouTubers to succeed worldwide.
Other names worth mentioning: Vegetta777 (gaming), AuronPlay (comedy then streaming), Willyrex (gaming).
The TikTok generation in Spain is led by young women like Lola Lolita (over 9 million followers), María Pombo and the influencer twins las Pombo.
Lola Lolita tiene más de nueve millones de seguidores en TikTok.
Lola Lolita has more than nine million followers on TikTok.
Muchas chicas jóvenes ven a estas influencers como modelos a seguir.
Many young girls see these influencers as role models.
From Latin America: Yuya (Mexico, beauty), Lele Pons (Venezuela, comedy), Domelipa (Mexico, dance).
Talking about Spanish creators
Mi influencer favorito es Ibai porque me parece muy divertido y natural.
My favourite influencer is Ibai because I find him really funny and natural.
Lola Lolita es una de las TikTokers más seguidas de España.
Lola Lolita is one of the most followed TikTokers in Spain.
Adding an opinion (Higher)
Me parece interesante cómo Ibai mantiene una imagen normal a pesar de su fama.
I find it interesting how Ibai keeps a normal image despite his fame.
Sin embargo, me preocupa que muchas chicas jóvenes se comparen con las influencers.
However, I'm worried that many young girls compare themselves with influencers.
En el mundo hispanohablante hay muchos creadores de contenido famosos. Mi favorito es Ibai Llanos, un streamer vasco que tiene más de quince millones de seguidores en Twitch. Hace directos sobre videojuegos y deportes, y ha entrevistado a famosos como Messi y Bad Bunny. Me parece muy gracioso y mantiene una imagen normal y cercana. Sin embargo, también me preocupa que muchas chicas jóvenes sigan a influencers como Lola Lolita y se comparen con su vida perfecta. Esto puede afectar a su salud mental.
Names two real Spanish-language creators, gives a personal opinion, then pivots to a balanced concern — exactly the structure GCSE examiners reward.

