LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Adin Ross, a Kick broadcaster, recently expressed his support for Twitch content producer Nicholas "Nickmercs" during the backlash over his statements on Pride Month. Nickmercs is a popular Twitch streamer, attracting over 20,000 viewers on any stream. He is known for playing shooter and battle royale games like Call of Duty and Apex Legends. His popularity was boosted by a controversial tweet on June 7.
Andrew Tate responded to Ross on Twitter by naming him a "bigot" and noting the LGBT community's official account. Without a clear answer, the dialogue left followers wondering if Ross is homophobic.
'You stand up for what's right'
Ross was reading through his Discord contributions during a live stream on July 26, 2023, when he stumbled across a recording in which Nickmercs lambasted viewers who voiced disdain for the Florida native, "Chat, you guys are f**king haters. Adin Ross is lit. I don't care what you say. I f**k with that guy. Yeah, right?"
Ross was ecstatic to hear Nickmercs' words. He stated in his Twitter direct messages that he received death threats after backing the FaZe Clan co-owner after he wrote contentious tweets about the LGBTQ+ community and Pride Month.
Ross referred to the 32-year-old as a "great American," saying, "Nickmercs, you are a part of the reason why you make me a proud American, bro. You stand up for what's right! Nickmercs is a great American! W America. W Nick. Great f**king guy. Okay? He did nothing wrong, chat. Call of Duty is soft as s**t."
Ross was around two hours into his livestream when he came across a tape of Nickmercs yelling at his audience for mocking the Kick caster. Ross exclaimed after hearing what the Twitch celebrity said, "Oh, my god! Bro, this is why I love Nickmercs, bro. I always stand up for you, man. Yo, Nick, I got death threats in my DMs from, you know, the blue-hair community after I defended you. (In a mocking tone) 'How could you defend that bigot?' Man, f**k them! Let them go to hell."
The Kick ambassador stated he used to express himself in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 lobbies with "no filter," adding, "I used to be able to go into the Black Ops 2 lobby and say whatever the f**k I want to, with no filter. Nowadays, you call somebody a f**king... you say some crazy s**t, you get banned from the game. You get your skins taken out. It's crazy, bro! We love Nick. We stand for Nick, bro! I love Nickmercs, bro. We love Nickmercs."
What is Nickmercs Pride Month controversy?
Nickmercs responded to a tweet about Pride Month being honored in a school, which resulted in a melee and three arrests, saying, “They should leave the little kids out of it. That’s the real issue.”
The response to this remark was fast, with many in the gaming industry labeling him a "bigot" and the tweet "anti-LGBTQ." Their point is that Pride is vital in schools and that Nickmercs was repeating dangerous rhetoric implying that teaching children about sexuality is equivalent to grooming.
Many others, however, sided with Nickmerc, citing his recent childbirth and reasoning that it is up to parents, not instructors, to decide how and when to have those conversations with their children.
Nickmercs took a few minutes on his stream the next day to address his tweet. He said that he had not planned to hurt anyone, but that he had. He did not, however, apologize for the remark and stated that he stood by what he said. He stated, “I don’t have any quarrel with people on the internet. It wasn’t an anti — I guess — gay tweet. That wasn’t what it was. If you think that I hate you because you’re a certain way, you couldn’t be any more wrong.”
However, Nickmercs did apologize to esports caster Puckett. Puckett's tweet was the one to which Nickmercs had initially responded, and he felt horrible for causing turmoil in his replies and having those who supported Nickmercs attack him.
