Philza
Personal information
Born
Phillip Watson

(1988-03-01) 1 March 1988 (age 36)
OccupationTwitch Streamer · YouTuber
SpouseKristin Rosales (m. 2020)
Websiteph1lzamerch.com
Twitch information
Channels
Years active2009-Present
GenreGaming
GamesMinecraft, Rocket League, Various
Followers4.1 Million
Associated actsTommyInnit · Wilbur Soot · Technoblade
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2006-present
Genre(s)Gaming, Vlogging
Subscribers
  • 3.05 million (main)
  • 3.38 million (combined)[1]
Total views
  • 261.67 million (main)
  • 289.91 million (combined)[1]
100,000 subscribers2019
1,000,000 subscribers2020

Phillip Watson (born 1 March 1988), known online as Philza or simply Phil, is an English Twitch streamer and internet personality known for playing a single continuous Minecraft hardcore world for five years.[2][3]

Early Life

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Watson was born on 1 March 1988. His father passed away in 2009.[4] He has a mother and a sister.

Watson participated in Halo 2 competitive LAN events under the team Scar Tissue, the earliest event known being hosted by MatchBox360 which was held at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, England.

Matthew Adams, A friend of Watson, lost his life during Series 2.[5] Watson posthumously dedicated a modified ocean temple build to Adams.

He worked in retail until July 2019, which he quit due to support from his growing audience.

Blowup

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On 24 April 2019, Watson died in his 5 year Minecraft hardcore world run to a baby zombie and spider. The death was clipped and posted on the Reddit community r/LivestreamFail[6], which enabled the clip to be spread across the internet. News companies quickly picked up and reported on Watson's death, garnering further attention.[7][8] Interviewed by the BBC and Minecraft.[9][10]

A tribute to Watson's run -"Ph1LzA had a good run!"- was added into the Minecraft main menu as a splash screen.[11]

Career

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Twitch

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Watson actively streams on Twitch, where as of October 2022 has over 4.1 million followers, making him the 48th most-followed channel on the platform. He created his main channel on 11 January 2009. Watson primarily streams Minecraft, but occasionally streams other games such as Rocket League or Monster Hunter.

Watson participated in Keemstar's "Minecraft Monday", where he would later befriend Wilbur Soot and Technoblade. He actively participates in Minecraft Championship (MCC), a monthly Minecraft tournament hosted by Noxcrew.

On 14 November 2020, Watson joined the Dream SMP, a Minecraft roleplay-focused survival multiplayer server.

Watson's earnings from the platform was leaked in October 2021 in a large-scale information Twitch leak. [12][13]

YouTube

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Watson created his first channel, Ph1LzA, on 14 September 2006[14] and uploaded his first video on 9 December 2006.[15]

Watson uploaded various gaming clips and montages until he switched to primarily Minecraft-centered content, particularly around hardcore. Minecraft uploads would mainly consist of updates on the current hardcore run. He currently uploads Minecraft snapshot reviews, vlogs, and miscellaneous livestream moments. He has discontinued uploading updates on his current hardcore run, citing mental health concerns and a lack of motivation.[16]

Watson's most viewed video is a montage he created of his 5 year world, which as of October 2022 has amassed over 31 million views.[17]

Other Appearances

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In 2019, Watson appeared on the daytime gameshow (the show) as a question.

Watson was featured in Minecraft's YouTube series, Meet a Minecrafter in May 2019. In 2021, he would be referenced in Minecraft Celebrates the Community, a video for the game hitting 1 trillion views on YouTube, by way of his avatar being chased by a zombie, spider, and creeper.

In Episode 4 of the BBC documentary Scary Adult Things, Watson was interviewed on how video games brought him fame and love.[18]

In June 2022, Watson was interviewed by Anthony Padilla in his YouTube Series, I Spent a Day With.[19]

Charity Work

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Halothon[20]

Watson has participated in LoveTropics, a 48 hour charity Minecraft livestream focused on fighting climate change.

#SaveTheTrees

Minecrafters vs Cancer (Sarcoma Foundation of America).

In September 2022, Watson did a You Laugh You Lose charity stream and raised $6,000 for the Ali Forney Center, a LGBTQ+ homeless youth community center.[21]

Personal Life

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Watson proposed to Kristin Rosales on top of the Las Vegas High Roller. They got married at Old Orange County Courthouse in Santa Ana, California in March 2020 before the travel restrictions of the upcoming COVID-19 pandemic.[22] They did not take each other's last names.

References

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  1. ^ a b "About Ph1LzA". YouTube.
  2. ^ "Minecraft player loses five-year-long game". BBC News. 29 April 2019. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  3. ^ Good, Owen S. (27 April 2019). "Five-year run in Minecraft hardcore mode ends with a whimper". Polygon. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  4. ^ I spent a day with PHILZA, retrieved 20 January 2023
  5. ^ Dubuis, Anna (2 April 2015). "Gamers pay tribute to young marketing chief killed by bus in East". Evening Standard. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  6. ^ "Philza's 5 year long Minecraft hardcore survival world has just ended tragically".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. ^ "'Minecraft Hardcore' Streamer Philza Loses World Record". Newsweek. 30 April 2019. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  8. ^ published, Wes Fenlon (9 May 2019). "How it feels to die in a permadeath game after five years". PC Gamer. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  9. ^ "😱 It was like "a house of cards" #Philza built his #minecraft world for 5 years, without being killed. It all came to an end the he met a 👶, a🕷 and a 💀⬇". Twitter. 30 April 2019. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  10. ^ Meet a Minecrafter: Ph1LzA, retrieved 17 October 2022
  11. ^ I'M IN THE GAME!? THANK YOU!! :O, retrieved 14 October 2022
  12. ^ Miceli, Max; Tsiaoussidis, Alex (14 July 2022). "Full list of all Twitch payouts (Twitch leaks)". Dot Esports. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  13. ^ "The gross payouts of the top 100 highest-paid Twitch streamers from August 2019 until October 2021:". Twitter. 06 October 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2022. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ "Ph1LzA - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  15. ^ Ph1LzA Montage 4 PREVIEW, retrieved 3 July 2022
  16. ^ Why Phil stopped posting Hardcore episodes..., retrieved 20 January 2023
  17. ^ My 5 Years of Minecraft Hardcore (Montage), retrieved 14 October 2022
  18. ^ "BBC Scotland - Scary Adult Things, Series 1, Gaming the System". BBC. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  19. ^ I spent a day with PHILZA, retrieved 18 October 2022
  20. ^ "Halo-Thon - a Success!". halo.bungie.org. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  21. ^ Watson, Phillip (19 September 2022). "EYYYYYYY thanks for coming out to the stream guys! I didn't break the bank lmao @tomsimons". Twitter. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  22. ^ "Phil on Instagram: "We did the thing 💍🥰 #mawwaige"". Instagram. Retrieved 14 October 2022.