Maria Lopes (Born: May 22, 1994) is a popular Twitch streamer who plays Fortnite under the names ChicaLive and TSM Chica. She is a popular member of TSM and has earned a lot of money through gaming tournaments and sponsorships.
ChicaLive Early Beginnings
ChicaLive was born in New York. At a young age, she moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She has one known older sibling.
These formative years saw the future starlet play a lot of video games. This fascination stems back to her parents being into video games before Maria was born.
The young couple was playing all types of classic content in front of her. Video games are a significant part of Maria Lopes’ first memories.
Once the future Twitch star was able to grip a controller, she started to play for herself. Immediately, the girl we now know as ChicaLive was captivated.
ChicaLive Decides to Stream Full-Time
While she was in high school, ChicaLive started to toy with the idea of becoming a full-time gamer. She was already coming home to play video games after school anyway. It’s not like studies were going to be a priority in college either.
While Maria enrolled in a local college post-high school, she was forced to make a tough decision. Maria decided that a career in gaming was the way to go. She nervously dropped out of college and started her foray into a Twitch career.
ChicaLive Starts Twitch Career
ChicaLive’s favorite game is Fortnite. So, it was only natural for her to start her channel playing that game. Unsure of where to begin, she looked into different Fortnite tournaments. The future star decided to enter one and stream herself while playing.
Her first official Fortnite tournament was the Summer Skirmish. While she didn’t rate as high as she’d hope, ChicaLive already started to gain a following.
Seeing as her idea helped her Twitch channel gain initial traction, ChicaLive decided to enter another tournament. The rising star participated in KEEMSTAR.
She did even better and collected more followers. This tournament reassured ChicaLive she made the right decision about school. Maria Lopes was never turning back from streaming again!
ChicaLive Joins TSM and BushBandits
ChicaLive was really gaining steam in the gaming circles. Her Twitch page had reached over 210,000 people. People were drawn to her funny reactions and badass gameplay.
Eventually, ChicaLive caught the eye of large eSports teams. She was courted by BushBandits and TSM.
TSM was a big deal for her. She joined up with Team SoloMid members Reginald and Dan Dinh. They linked up with Kaysid and Cowboy.
ChicaLive was so excited to team up with Team SoloMid. The star released an official statement,
“Joining TSM is an absolute dream come true. It’s a blessing to be among some of the world’s most talented and passionate gaming competitors/entertainers. I have a deep respect and admiration for the individual members of TSM as well as the organization.”
“I look forward to bringing my own unique content to the table and I’m excited for the future with TSM. Last and most importantly, if you have supported me throughout my journey, I am eternally grateful to you and inspired by you every single day!”
On top of joining forces with TSM, ChicaLive also played for DooM Clan.
ChicaLive and Cowboy Controversy
Currently, ChicaLive is the only woman player on TSM. She stuck with the eSports group even after the let Cowboy go. Cowboy was fired for allegedly sending a lewd text message to a suspected underage fan.
President of Team SoloMid, Leena Xu, promptly released a statement via Twitter.
The stern tweet denoted,
“If he wants to defend himself publicly, that’s not my battle since we are terminated. I’m purely speaking about our contract resolution that fans seem to not believe is possible.”
Although ChicaLive and Cowboy broke into TSM together, she didn’t comment on the situation or support her friend. What he did earned the star a prompt termination. Nobody expected ChicaLive to end her career in support of someone doing something so appalling.
ChicaLive Popularity
ChicaLive has picked up a lot of followers on her Twitch page. Her channel has over 1.2 million followers and counting.
ChicaLive likes to switch things up on her page. People love to tune in just to see what she’s decided to queue up today.
The video games ChicaLive plays the most include:
- Among Us
- Fortnite
- Call of Duty: Black Ops III
- Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare
- Call of Duty: WWII
- PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
- Tom Clancy’s Rainbow: Six Siege
- VALORANT
While ChicaLive has a Puerto Rican heritage, she has lived most of her life in Canada. Still, her native people look at ChicaLive as an internet icon. She is regularly featured in commercial ads that are marketed in Hispanic markets.
ChicaLive Personal Life and Tournament Play
ChicaLive is very private about her personal life. We do know that she is married. She recently tweeted a picture of a brand new car.
In the tweet, the star noted that she purchase the ride as a gift for her mother-in-law. Maria also said that her mother-in-law cried when she received her present.
ChicaLive doesn’t speak much about her family. Her life centers around improving her gameplay, growing her channel, and winning money in tournaments.
ChicaLive Influence on Female Gaming
Maria doesn’t do any shocking videos or use clickbait titles. Instead, she let’s the gaming speak for itself. Even her TikToks are mostly centered around video games!
Her Twitch channel grew because people love to see her play. Plus, she plays a wide variety of games. While people love Fortnite and Call of Duty, watching people play and commentate over these games can be a bit fatiguing.
ChicaLive offers a bit of variety in titles. This eclectic catalog of games is what draws people in. However, her versatility in mastering these games is what makes them stay.
On a platform where a lot of gamers, like Tara Babcock or Amouranth, will flirt or act seductively, ChicaLive is just out to play video games. Her grounded attitude and dedication to the game is inspiring a new generation of female gamers.
