keeping chat alive when the game dies?

when i’m playing something super intense like a sweaty valorant match or a full clash in league, chat is totally vibing, popping off, making jokes, backseating a lil too much (lol), all that. but as soon as things slow down, you know, queuing, loading screens, dead rounds, it just kinda.. dies? and it makes me feel like i have to be a clown every second or i’ll lose everyone.

i try to ask questions, talk about anime or random stuff, but it starts to feel forced when it’s clear nobody’s really responding. i’m confident when the game gives me momentum but i’m struggling to carry it during the downtime. do you guys prep topics before streams? or is there a way to build community where they’ll chat even when you’re not ‘on fire’?