The Shady Side Of FaZe Clan
Over the last few years, FaZe Clan has become one of the most successful and recognizable esports organizations in history, and it's easy to see why. The group actively seeks out some of the most talented and outgoing personalities in competitive gaming. FaZe Clan began its reign by rising to the top of the Call of Duty competitive scene, but quickly set its sights on other games like Overwatch, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and Fortnite. The team has seen continued success in the esports world, culminating in Spring 2020 when the team moved into an impressive $30 million dollar mansion together.
However, the last few years haven't just been a time of successes for FaZe Clan. There have been some strange strange lows mixed in with FaZe Clan's exciting highs. Despite the team's popularity and dominance in the field of competitive gaming, some of its members have been called out for behavior that wasn't exactly on the up and up. Let's explore the shady side of FaZe Clan.
Rain's public meltdown
FaZe Rain has seemingly had a rather difficult go of things in the last few years. In 2018, he told fans that he had spent time in the hospital while he struggled with his anxiety and depression. In late 2019, he worried fans again with a series of tweets on those very subjects. Though this bout seemed to blow over, it appears as though things got worse in the summer of 2020.
In early June, FaZe Rain told his fans on Twitter that he was being treated unfairly by FaZe Clan. He claimed that he had not been paid properly by the organization in years and had recently been asked to leave the FaZe house. He also said that he had not received any of the support he needed from FaZe Clan.
In response, FaZe Banks tweeted that these accusations weren't true. Banks said that FaZe Clan had offered to help Rain out with a "sober buddy," who in turn expressed that he didn't feel he should have to go to a rehab clinic. Overall, it was a nasty public blowup that left fans worried about Rain's well-being and confused about FaZe Clan's overall response.
Dubs has a controversial 2020
In the early part of 2020, FaZe Dubs shocked fans and his streaming partner alike when he dropped a racial slur while streaming a game of Fortnite. The person he was streaming with could be heard shouting to Dubs that they were live, but the damage had already been done. FaZe Dubs issued a public apology for his choice of words, but several people in the gaming community — including Fortnite superstar Ninja — were unimpressed.
FaZe Clan quickly announced that Dubs had been suspended from the team indefinitely. It was also made very clear that Dubs and the rest of the team would be undergoing mandatory sensitivity training.
A mere two months after that incident, Dubs was accused of cheating during a Fortnite Solo Cash Cup. Video clips were posted that appeared to show Dubs teaming up with another player. This led to immediate calls for Dubs to be banned from competitive play. Although Dubs has maintained his innocence in future streams, he was issued a 30-day suspension from playing Fortnite.
Serious allegations against Barker
FaZe Barker was a longtime editor for FaZe Clan, known especially for creating flashy montages of team wins and events. However, Barker's tenure with FaZe Clan came to an abrupt end in June 2020 when several women came forward with serious allegations against him.
According to multiple accounts, Barker had exhibited predatory and aggressive behavior on many occasions. Some claimed that he had sent inappropriate and explicit videos to people who had not asked for them, while at least one woman said that Barker had threatened self-harm as a form of emotional manipulation. Once the first few people had come forward with their stories, several others added that they had experienced similar run-ins with Barker in the past.
When this information came to light, FaZe Clan chose to take a stand and believe those who came forward. In a statement posted on Twitter, FaZe Clan announced, "We have ended our relationship with Barker, one of our former team editors. He no longer has any association with FaZe Clan."
Jarvis gets "Banned 4 Life"
In November 2019, FaZe Jarvis received a lifetime ban from Fortnite after uploading a video in which he used aimbots during a match. It's worth noting that he uploaded this video to an alternate account from his normal one. However, Epic Games quickly found out and dropped the ban hammer on FaZe Jarvis.
He addressed the situation in an emotional video that unfortunately attracted quite a bit of ridicule on the internet. Not too much longer after that, Jarvis was asked to move out of FaZe Clan's mansion. However, FaZe Clan has reportedly contacted Epic on at least one occasion to try to get Jarvis' ban lifted.
FaZe Jarvis clapped back at the haters when he dropped the bizarre diss track and accompanying music video for "Banned 4 Life." In the video, Jarvis is seen engaging in a bit of real world battle royale combat. It's something to behold, but it didn't exactly change anyone's minds about whether or not he'd cheated. If anything, it seemed to some folks like Jarvis was making light of the whole situation.
Blaze was left behind
FaZe Blaze surprised fans with the revelation that he was not asked to join FaZe Clan in their new mansion. Blaze said he wasn't given a solid reason why this happened. Apparently FaZe Clan's Head of Digital Marketing just told him that we would no longer be living with the team. After five years with FaZe Clan, it seemed that his time with them was coming to an end.
Though Blaze was initially very disappointed with the change, he has been trying to look at it in a more positive light. According to Blaze, it was a conversation with former FaZe Clan member Apex that helped put things in perspective. Apex told him that moving away from FaZe gave him more of a handle on following his own happiness, rather than worrying about the organization as a whole.
While it's nice to see that Blaze is rolling with the punches, the lack of an explanation regarding his departure from FaZe Clan is extra strange. It's also worth pointing out that Blaze was one of the many members of FaZe Clan who openly complained about their contract with the org.
Cloakzy wants out
It seems as though Dennis "Cloak" Lepore, a.k.a. "Cloakzy," has also had some major issues with FaZe Clan since signing with them three years ago. When asked whether or not he belonged to an organization during a stream, Cloakzy explained some of his frustrations with FaZe Clan. Though Cloakzy didn't get into any specifics, he told his viewers that he realized his contract was no good shortly after signing it. He also said the organization frequently ignored his calls when he reached out, resulting in further frustration.
Much like Tfue before him, Cloakzy has apparently spent a bit of time trying to leave the organization, but has been unsuccessful. He's still technically signed to FaZe Clan, whether he likes it or not.
His current plan is to simply try to wait it out. He said that he had signed a four-year contract and was just waiting for "one more year," when he could truly put some distance between himself and FaZe Clan. To Cloakzy's credit, he didn't name any names when discussing his problems. However, he did hint that he was worried about FaZe Clan resorting to shady measures when his contract neared its end.
Tfue strikes back
Tfue has been one of the more vocal critics of FaZe Clan. In 2019, he filed a lawsuit against the organization, contesting what he called an "oppressive" contract. Tfue and his attorneys expressed their belief that he had been taken advantage of by FaZe Clan, who did not compensate him fairly for his time and talents.
Other accusations were lobbied at FaZe Clan in Tfue's suit. According to Tfue, he was pressured into drinking underage on multiple occasions and was made to perform dangerous stunts in videos produced by FaZe Clan.
In response, FaZe Clan filed a countersuit against Tfue. In FaZe Clan's suit, the organization claimed that Tfue had lost the company millions of dollars. FaZe Clan furthermore expressed that the group felt "betrayed" by Tfue's lawsuit and ensuing allegations, as it was the group's stance that Tfue's career took off thanks to a push from FaZe Clan. The most awkward part of all of this is that, since his contract still isn't up, Tfue legally remains a member of FaZe Clan while the lawsuits play out.
H1ghsky1 was signed underage
In Tfue's lawsuit against FaZe Clan, he also claimed that FaZe member H1ghsky1 was signed to the organization when he was only 11 years old. This made him too young to stream on Twitch or play Fortnite competitively. Because of this, Tfue claims that FaZe Clan pressured H1ghsky1 and his parents to lie about the young gamer's age.
When H1ghsky1's actual age came to light through the lawsuit, his Twitch channel was removed and he was temporarily suspended from Twitter. He eventually returned to social media and streaming on YouTube, this time under the supervision of his mother.
In a super weird postscript, H1ghsky1 and FaZe Clan released a diss track and music video in which the young streamer fired back at Tfue. In the track, H1ghsky1 made some unflattering jokes about Tfue's girlfriend, Corinna Kopf. Also, Logan Paul was there for some reason. Much like "Banned 4 Life," this video hasn't exactly been seen as a high point for hip-hop.
Mongraal accused of cheating
Mongraal is another one of the youngest professional esports players in history, becoming a Twitch partner in at the age of 13. He joined FaZe Clan in 2019, and it seemed as though he was all set to dominate the Fortnite competitive scene.
Unfortunately, things took a turn when Mongraal was accused in late 2019 of cheating during a Fortnite Champion Series tournament. Along with teammates Wolfiez, NRG benjyfishy, and LeStream NAYTE, Mongraal was accused of "stream sniping." According to some witnesses, the team's coach was feeding them kills by watching other players' streams and telling the team their locations. Even worse, a video clip surfaced that appeared to show the coach talking to Mongraal and company about that very subject.
It's worth noting that Mongraal and his teammates did have a defender in Ninja. When asked about players cheating during Championship Series games, Ninja actually used them as an example of people who he didn't think would do such a thing. Ninja said, "I respect Mongraal and Benjyfishy and those guys, man ... I don't think they would do this. They're too talented ... They don't need to."
Banks wrecked a hotel room
FaZe Clan co-owner FaZe Banks likes to party. Unfortunately, one of his raucous shindigs ended up causing a big headache for one Las Vegas hotel. In November 2019, Las Vegas police officers responded to a call from Encore at Wynn Las Vegas. When they arrived, they found "an absolute disaster zone," according to TMZ. It was estimated that more than $30,000 in damages were done to the hotel room, including a busted television and multiple smashed potted plants.
FaZe Banks could have served up to five years in prison for this offense, but it appears as though the issue was resolved in private. Banks apparently covered the costs of the damages, which may have been more than originally estimated. A report from Dexerto indicated that Banks wasn't sure how much it eventually cost him altogether. Not only that, but Banks revealed that he was not "banned forever" from the hotel.