State Farm’s gaming reality competition series Gamerhood is returning for its fifth season, premiering July 31 at 6:00 p.m. ET on the brand’s Twitch and YouTube channels, with new episodes streaming every Friday in August.
Season 5 features a lineup of top creators, including IShowSpeed, PlaqueBoyMax, Cinna, Marlon, JasonTheWeen, Emiru, and Jake from State Farm. The competition returns to its original free-for-all format, challenging contestants in popular video games and physical arena events as they compete for a prize pool of 100,000 gifted subscriptions.
After generating more than 53 million views across its first four seasons, Gamerhood is introducing new fan experiences, including Jake’s Neighborhood Swarm, a playable game where participants can compete for weekly prizes, including a custom State Farm-themed Secretlab TITAN Evo chair. Fans can also win limited-edition Gamerhood apparel created in collaboration with 100 Thieves.
Jake from State Farm will guide competitors throughout the season while presenting “Good Neighbor” awards to contestants who demonstrate sportsmanship.
Speaking with The Source, Marlon highlighted what he is looking for in this new season.
Marlon, you’re used to holding it down and bringing incredible energy with the 3LG crew. But for Gamerhood, you’re stepping into a high-stakes head-to-head competition. What was it like shifting from your usual streaming routine to go up against heavyweights like iShowSpeed, BlackBoy Max, and Jason the Wien?
Marlon: It was good going up against them, especially competing on all the levels that we did. They’re all competitors and we’re all trying to win, whether that’s gaming or sports, anytime, any day. So it was a lot of fun.
This season is promising a lot of drama, over-the-top physical challenges, and shifting alliances. Without giving too much away, can you tease a moment or a rivalry this season where things got unexpectedly intense or hilarious for you?
I would say the last two days—the final stretch—it was getting a little tight with the leaderboard regarding who was in first and who wasn’t. Everybody was just going at each other; it became an “enemy vibe” for a few days there instead of us all just being friends. At the end of the day, it was all good, but at that time, it was a lot in a good way. I think people will definitely enjoy seeing it.
Many brands struggle to connect with gaming and streaming communities, but State Farm has really found a groove with this series. From an insider’s perspective, what do you think makes Gamerhood feel authentic to Gen Z and younger streaming audiences, rather than just another traditional ad campaign?
What Gamerhood does really well, which I noticed doing it for the first time, is just bringing different people together who do different things. Everyone from me, Speed, Jason, Max, to Emer—we all do so many different things and it’s a very random mix of people. Bringing us all together and seeing that dynamic is a great way to portray the show and everything included. They did a great job on that. To be honest, it doesn’t feel like an ad at all.
Your fans love you and your charisma, humor, and unpredictable content. How much of the real Marlon will we see in these physical challenges? And did you have to tap into a different or more competitive side of yourself to survive this season?
I feel like I’m always myself, but when it comes to the competitive side of things and knowing there was something at stake, it definitely made me tap into my full self since I’ve always played sports. The second I heard that we were competing, I knew I had to go full-on. People will see a little bit of a different side, though I feel like most have seen it before.
If you had to pick one fellow cast member from the season who completely surprised you, either by being a low-key gaming prodigy or surprisingly ruthless in challenges, who would it be and why?
I’m going to say myself. People don’t really see me as a gamer, so being at Gamerhood, I don’t think a lot of people had any expectations. But you know what? I’m just going to leave it up to the people who watch the show to see how I surprise them.
State Farm has fully leaned into streaming culture with Gamerhood, even bringing Jake from State Farm right into the mix of creators. What was it like sharing a set and interacting with an iconic brand figure like Jake? And did he give you any good neighbor advice for surviving the challenges?
It’s actually pretty crazy. I’m not even from the States, but even I know Jake is an icon. So he was amazing. I got to spend some time with him, and he definitely gave me some advice—both for Gamerhood and for real life. It was amazing.
A lot of times when major brands try to partner with streamers, it can feel a bit forced or corporate. State Farm, however, seems to be totally getting the humor and the chaos of your community. How did it feel working with a brand that actually lets you guys be your authentic selves and be unfiltered?
Not just saying it to say it, but working with Gamerhood and State Farm in general was great because they really did let us be ourselves. They didn’t have a lot of specific things that we had to say or do; they just told us to go be ourselves and have fun. I think that’s the best way to do things, and a lot of other brands should definitely learn from it. It was a really good experience.
