Meet Dalaanii Cochrane | Dalaanii Cochrane | The #1 Caster-Vok”

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dalaanii Cochrane and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dalaanii, how do you think about risk?
I’ve put a lot on the line when it comes to my esports career. The one org I had “joined”, Aquatik Esports, went completely bust, leaving me and over hundreds of other people with little more than scraps to deal with. Other opportunities have paid off, leading me to where I am now.

I think the biggest risk would’ve had to have been with shoutcasting in general. I practiced casting over game footage of Guilty Gear and Tekken, and even tried out some League of Legends in my junior year of high school. A tip from a friend at the time led me to Apex Legends.

I would play sporadically, but never even considered shoutcasting in the scene. At that time, ALGS had yet to even hit the scene, and, at least from my perspective, most of the tourney scene was gatekept to all high hell. I took the risk, bought myself a $30 microphone off Amazon, and got to work. One thing to know: there’s no guarantee that you’re going to succeed at all. Knowing how cutthroat the industry is, chances of you losing money rather than making it is almost absolute.

I’ll admit, my ALGS debut was more than lackluster. It was a huge risk, a definite fumble, and almost led me to quitting casting entirely. When the opportunity with Celes Cup came calling, I had a full college schedule and two jobs at the time. I was afraid that if I went back into casting, it’d be a failure all over again. I was 100% panicking over it.

I forced most of that anxiety down, dove headfirst back into Apex Legends, and even made a gamble on expanding into Overwatch, Call of Duty. I even jumped into a scene I’d swore I wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole: Valorant. Hell, I even quit ONE job (not the second though, I enjoy some financial stability). I put a lot on the line to get to where I am now, and can only hope things go up from here.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
It wasn’t easy to get to where I’m at now, and it’s still a struggle to this day. Outside of casting, I’ve been struggling to keep afloat when it comes to college; COVID-19 wiped me out financially, putting me in student loan and credit card debt to make sure my “household” was stable.

Being labeled the ‘family disappointment’, I kid you not, kept me going. I was persisting out of legitimate, pure spite.

Esports has been that one place to escape to, and shoutcasting puts me in a headspace where I can temporarily forget everything going on outside of that. Of course, it was no where close to being easy to get here. Esports can be vicious. You’re going to encounter gatekeeping, racism, and, god forbid, people may go as far as to dox your location and have you hurt. I’ve learned that the only way to keep the hate from getting to you is to just ignore it, even develop a thicker-skin, and that the power of positivity will keep you on your feet.

If anything, I don’t have a set brand. Still working on that one! I like to have fun with things, really. The #1 “Caster-Vok”, Ashurvok, likes to wing it. Ashurvok also likes to mix in wrestling promos with casting like an absolute nerd. Ashurvok has also, admittedly, taken to using “YEAH!” whenever nobody else is at home.

Alright, I’ll stop.

Story-wise, best way to describe it is I’m just a college-student looking to make a name in the scene, while also trying to major in art. Second-generation American, Afro-Latino and Samoan, one child out of eleven other half-siblings, and overall nerd.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Ooh, week-long trip? I’m going to have to condense this one.

First off, we’re starting by going to Jerry’s Pizza. Best pizza place here in San Fernando Valley, guaranteed. Sure, it may look a little rough on the outside, especially with a closed pool hall and run-down pub next door, but trust that it just makes the pizza that much better.

After that, it’s a Dodgers game. The best ones 100% involve the Giants, Padres or the Astros. Would I recommend buying food in Dodger Stadium? Eh, probably not. We’re doing things my mom’s way by sneaking food in “creatively”.

Indie Wrestling here in LA is wild to watch. MPW over in Chatsworth has some good shows, and Lucha VaVOOM is also fire. If we’re lucky, NXT or WWE could roll into town and then it’d be an absolute blast. If you’re unfamiliar with wrestling, you’ll definitely get familiar with it.

Olvera Street is definitely on the list. Not only is it historic, but has a lot to offer when it comes to the food, culture and plenty more. Cielito Lindo is to die for, too, you won’t want to miss out on grabbing their taquitos.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Definitely have to give props to the Apex Legends community, especially with fellow casters and community members like Zephyr, DiA, Falloutt, Reezie, and plenty of others. They’ve definitely been keeping me motivated and giving me the energy to keep on going. If anything, I’ll find a way to pay them back some day in the near future.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashurvok/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ashurvok