Internet celebrity KSI and his YouTube collective, The Sidemen, have recently made headlines for racial slur controversy.
But despite the recent backlash at the clip, in which they took on a ‘Countdown Challenge’ inspired by the Channel 4 show, the group have been online royalty for years, with girlfriends and fiancées of the influencers being equally as loved and revered by the fans.
The septet have produced a host of comedy sketches and online challenges since launching their video channel in 2015, earning them more than 18 million subscribers.
The collective is made up of KSI, real name Olajide ‘JJ’ Olatunji; Simon Minter, known online as Miniminter; Joshua Bradley, known online as Zerkaa; Tobi Brown, known online as TBJZL; Ethan Payne, known online as Behzinga; Vikram Barn, known as Vikkstar123 and Harry Lewis, known as W2S.
Four of the seven are in serious relationships, whereas KSI, Tobi and Harry Lewis are understood to currently be single.
Here, FEMAIL takes a look at the very glamorous girlfriends and fiancées of the influencer troupe, and what they do…
TALIA MAR
Simon Minter (Miniminter) last summer announced his engagement to British singer Talia Mar (pictured in July)
According to The Tab, the pair have been dating since 2017, after meeting at Wireless Festival, but only went public with their relationship in 2018. The couple pictured in June
Simon Minter (Miniminter) last summer announced his engagement to British singer Talia Mar.
According to The Tab, the pair have been dating since 2017, after meeting at Wireless Festival, but only went public with their relationship in 2018.
Talia is perhaps best known for her 2022 hit Stay the Night, with Sigala and has 2.3 million monthly listeners on Spotify.
An influencer in her own right, the 26-year-old has a million YouTube subscribers and 1.2 million followers on Instagram.
She also has some 738,000 Twitch followers, where she posts singing videos, as well as clips of herself playing video games.
Talia uses her social media to promote her music, show off her glamorous style and post wholesome snaps of her life with Simon and their Chow Chow Mushu.
Talia uses her social media to promote her music, show off her glamorous style and post wholesome snaps of her life with Simon and their Chow Chow Mushu. Pictured in January
Simon – who is KSI’s fellow Berkhamsted alumnus, 30, left university when tuition fees rocketed and went to work in a warehouse, before being taken on by his old school friend to run his clothing line. The couple pictured in November
Alongside her music career, the social media star has also in past been involved with fashion – and at one point had her own clothing line, The Martian Club (although this no longer appears to be active) – and make-up.
Her latest single, called Self-Portrait, came out last month.
Simon – who is KSI’s fellow Berkhamsted alumnus, 30, left university when tuition fees rocketed and went to work in a warehouse, before being taken on by his old school friend to run his clothing line.
At the same time, he began creating his own YouTube content, primarily videos about FIFA and football more generally, while also recreating famous Vine clips. Since then he has amassed more than 10 million subscribers on the video sharing platform.
Not much is known about his family, but his father is believed to own a small business.
Simon also owns a property company and had a reported net worth of £9m as of last year.
FREYA NIGHTINGALE
Freya Nightingale – often dubbed ‘Merch Queen’ by the fans – is the girlfriend of Joshua Bradley (Zerkaa). Pictured in March
She also boasts 96,4000 TikTok followers and 429,000 Instagram followers, often showing off her extremely fashionable outfits with followers. Pictured in February
Born in Bermondsey, Joshua, 30, attended Bexley Grammar School as a teenager before achieving a 2:1 degree in digital film production at Ravensbourne University. The couple pictured in December
Freya Nightingale – often dubbed ‘Merch Queen’ by the fans – is the girlfriend of Joshua Bradley (Zerkaa) and, true to her moniker, used to run the Sidemen clothing range.
According to The Sun, the influencer, 29, has been with Joshua since 2010 but the pair aren’t engaged or married.
Freya has her own YouTube channel – where she games, and often collaborates with her boyfriend – which has 271,000 subscribers.
She also boasts 96,4000 TikTok followers and 429,000 Instagram followers, often showing off her extremely fashionable outfits with followers.
She also has 276,000 followers on Twitch.
Her most recent posts picture the couple’s sun-soaked getaway to the Maldives.
Born in Bermondsey, Joshua, 30, attended Bexley Grammar School as a teenager before achieving a 2:1 degree in digital film production at Ravensbourne University.
He created his first YouTube channel in 2009, mainly uploading video game content of FIFA and Call of Duty, before co-founding the Sidemen, with whom he lived for four years, until moving into an apartment with Freya.
Cousin of the British grime MC Jme, he has also launched his own personal clothing line named ZRK.
He had a reported net worth of £3m as of last year.
FAITH KELLY
The new mother, 23, is also an influencer with 733,000 Instagram followers and 1.4 million followers on TikTok. Pictured in December
Last September the couple announced the birth of their son Olive Ottilie Payne. Ellie and Olive pictured in March
According to The Tab , it is not known when the pair first started dating but Faith began to feature in his Instagram in June 2021. The couple pictured in October
Ethan Payne (Behzinga) has recently welcomed a child with his girlfriend Faith Kelly.
According to The Tab, it is not known when the pair first started dating but Faith began to feature on his Instagram in June 2021.
The new mother, 23, is also an influencer with 733,000 Instagram followers and 1.4 million followers on TikTok.
She shares vlog-style videos and lifestyle features on her social media. Last September the couple announced the birth of their son Olive Ottilie Payne.
‘My heart couldn’t be more full, I am beyond proud of @Faithlouisak for everything. Women are super heroes,’ Ethan wrote on Twitter.
‘Forever loving my little family.’
Ethan, 27 – who attended a comprehensive school in Romford and dropped out of a criminal studies course at Hull – endured a difficult childhood and says the Sidemen ‘saved my life, 100 per cent’.
His biological father disappeared before he was born and the man he had been allowed to assume was his father left when he was 13, while his mother struggled with cancer.
As he began uploading videos on YouTube, primarily commentaries of FIFA and Call of Duty, viewers trolled him over his weight, which eventually inspired him to get fit, charting his journey to shed 4st to his fanbase of nearly five million subscribers.
He had a reported net worth of £3m as of last year.
ELLIE HARLOW
Vikram Barn (Vikkstar123) is engaged to Ellie Harlow – having proposed to her in 2021, in front of the iconic Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai
Ellie – who is also understood to be UK based – is very private on her social media and it’s not known how long the pair have been together for. The couple pictured in 2021
Vikram Barn (Vikkstar123) is engaged to Ellie Harlow – having proposed to her in 2021, in front of the iconic Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai – and often posts loved up snaps with his fiancée on Instagram.
However Ellie – who is also understood to be UK based – is very private on her social media and it’s not known how long the pair have been together for.
In a previous video, Vikram has expressed that he enjoys her lack of online presence.
‘She’s not really interested in having lots of followers,’ he told viewers. ‘I quite like it as well because I like that there’s some part of me that isn’t on YouTube.’
Born in Guildford, Surrey, Vikram moved to Sheffield when he was eight to attend Silverdale School.
He then turned down a place to study natural sciences at University College London to pursue his YouTube career – which includes videos on Call of Duty and Minecraft – full-time.
He often jokes that his parents, British nationals of Indian heritage, are ‘disappointed’ that he did not become a doctor.
Vikram caused a stir by announcing he would quit Call of Duty if hackers allegedly cheating continued to go unpunished and has invested in esports teams.
He had a reported net worth of £8m as of last year.
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk