the influencer industrial complex & manufactured personalities

Summary

Madison Brown discusses the intricacies of the influencer industrial complex, focusing on the evolving dynamics between influencers and brands, and how this relationship affects both the influencers and their audiences. She explores the concept of authenticity and the commodification of the self in the context of influencer culture. Madison examines how the influencer industry arose as a response to economic shifts post-2008, highlighting racial disparities and the nuanced role of authenticity in maintaining influence. Through this discussion, she delves into the impact of algorithmic biases and consumer expectations in shaping the influencer landscape.

Highlights

• Madison emphasizes the blurred lines between advertising and entertainment as influencers often monetize their daily lives. 📺
• The concept of 'authenticity' is a key driver of influence, setting successful influencers apart from those seen as mere performers. 🎭
• Influencer culture is heavily influenced by algorithmic biases that often favor white creators, leading to disparities in visibility and earnings. 📉
• The role of managers and agencies is highlighted, showcasing how influencer branding is meticulously crafted to appeal to specific audiences. 🕴️
• Madison discusses societal pressures on influencers to maintain a curated persona, often leading to a loss of genuine identity. 🌐

Key Takeaways

• The influencer industry emerged as a response to the 2008 financial crisis, providing an alternative career path in uncertain economic times. 📈
• Authenticity is crucial in maintaining influence, as people value genuine connections with influencers over shallow content. 🤝
• Racial disparities persist in the influencer industry, with black creators facing challenges in visibility and compensation compared to their white counterparts. ✊🏿
• Brands often prefer influencers who are seen as 'safe' and relatable, frequently prioritizing white influencers who fit mainstream norms. 🏷️
• Despite its glamorous appearance, the influencer industry involves significant behind-the-scenes work and strategizing to build and maintain a personal brand. 🛠️

Overview

Madison Brown takes a deep dive into the influencer world, analyzing how this modern career path shapes and is shaped by societal norms and expectations. She kicks off by discussing how the rapid evolution of social media has intertwined advertising with entertainment, leading audiences to consume ads under the guise of entertainment.

In exploring the historical rise of influencers, Madison highlights the 2008 financial crisis as a pivotal moment that spurred many into the blogosphere, laying the groundwork for today's influencer landscape. However, she notes that the path to becoming an influencer is not just about aesthetic value but also involves significant behind-the-scenes work and strategic brand partnerships.

Addressing current issues within the influencer industry, Madison tackles the authenticity paradox, questioning the role of performed identities in the digital age. She doesn't shy away from discussing racial disparities, elaborating on how algorithmic biases and societal expectations continue to impact the visibility and profitability of black creators compared to their white peers.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 01:00: Introduction and Overview In the introduction chapter, Madison, the host, welcomes viewers to her channel. She introduces herself as a video essayist focusing on trending topics and pop culture, and also mentions her career as a singer and songwriter. Madison promotes her music, which was featured in the intro, suggesting listeners can find it on popular streaming platforms. She sets the tone for the video by announcing that the topic will revolve around discussions happening on TikTok.
• 01:00 - 09:00: Understanding Influencer Culture This chapter explores the challenges of covering topics trending on TikTok, emphasizing the time gap between trends and publishing content. The author stresses the significance of comprehensive research and gaining a thorough understanding of the topic to provide valuable insights. The approach leans towards offering a broader perspective on influencer culture rather than immediate reactions to trends.
• 09:00 - 15:00: Influence and Authenticity The chapter "Influence and Authenticity" delves into the rapid evolution of influencing within the context of modern media. It highlights the fleeting nature of internet trends and user engagement while emphasizing the significant impact that influencers have had on blurring the lines between entertainment and advertising. The content discusses the broader implications of the 'influencer industrial complex,' and how it has transformed our perceptions and interactions with media content, essentially turning advertisements into forms of entertainment.
• 15:00 - 22:00: Economic Origins of Influencing This chapter delves into the multifaceted nature of the influencer industry, particularly its economic origins. It explores how influencers have not only impacted our identities but also how the aesthetics and rapid trend cycles contribute to the complexity and commercialization of identity formation. The chapter sets the stage for a deeper discussion on these topics, with a focus on understanding the economic factors underlying the influence of influencers.
• 22:00 - 30:00: Influencer Branding and Personal Commodification The chapter explores the concept of influencer branding and personal commodification. The narrator, who works in social media and resides in New York City, identifies as an influencer. However, they clarify their position, suggesting they don't fit the typical mold of influencers often discussed at the forefront of this topic. The chapter acknowledges the varying interpretations and definitions of what it means to be an influencer, indicating the complexity and multiplicity of this identity within the industrial complex. The narrator sets out to offer multiple descriptions and definitions of an influencer to provide a broader understanding of this multifaceted role.
• 30:00 - 41:00: Diversity and Economic Disparities in Influencing This chapter delves into the idea of diversity and economic disparities within the realm of influencers, using insights from the book 'The Influencer Factory: A Marxist Theory of Corporate Personhood on YouTube' by Grant Balmer and Katherine Guinness. Although the speaker hasn't read the entire book, they share valuable quotes from its preview and mention a podcast where the authors discuss these concepts further. The chapter starts to explore the commonly understood definitions of an influencer.
• 41:00 - 54:00: Homogeneity and Conformity in Influencer Culture The chapter titled 'Homogeneity and Conformity in Influencer Culture' explores the role of influencers in modern culture. It describes how this culture derives value from increasing brand interest, maintaining social connections among consumers, and cultivating attractive identities on social media. Influencers are noted for showcasing extreme wealth, conducting product unboxings, organizing elaborate events, and sharing personal lifestyle changes. The chapter places significant focus on YouTubers and their specific modes of influencing.
• 54:00 - 66:00: Racial Disparities in Influencing The chapter titled 'Racial Disparities in Influencing' delves into the topic of how racial differences affect social media influencing. Through references to well-known influencers like Jeffree Star and Mr Beast, it discusses the varying approaches to brand sponsorships and audience engagement. The narrator explains their strategy of not participating in unboxings or flaunting wealth, contrasting with common influencer practices. Overall, the chapter highlights the specific perceptions and strategies associated with influencing across different racial and cultural backgrounds.
• 66:00 - 72:00: Conclusion and Personal Reflection In this chapter, the concept and role of social media influencers is examined. The chapter starts with a reflection on the definition of an influencer, noting that at its core, influencers are individuals who use various digital platforms - such as blogs, Instagram, and Pinterest - to curate and deliver content to their audience. The chapter also discusses the socio-economic backdrop in which these influencers operate, highlighting the flux in economic and professional stability which has allowed this industry to flourish. This reflection may also include personal insights or conclusions drawn by the author regarding how influencers shape or are shaped by these dynamics.

the influencer industrial complex & manufactured personalities Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 life that you choose Hello everyone welcome back to my channel or welcome if you are new here My name is Madison I make video essays about trending topics and pop culture and I'm also a singer and a songwriter So if you liked that intro music that's my song and you can listen to it on Spotify Apple Music or anywhere you stream your music Links are in the description So today I wanted to talk about some Tik Tok discourse as I tend
• 00:30 - 01:00 to do on this channel Covering topics that are trending on Tik Tok can feel kind of frustrating sometimes because this was like at peak popularity maybe like a week or two ago And as you know I do a lot of like research and stuff for my videos So it takes a while to put everything together and kind of get good understanding of the topic at hand You know the good thing is you can have a more kind of pulled back perspective on the topic which is how I try to approach most of my videos It's kind of like zoom
• 01:00 - 01:30 out and see the bigger picture But I also know that the internet moves fast and people's attention spans They kind of are fleeting But I hope this video is still interesting to you cuz I think there's actually a lot to discuss here not just about our New York City influencers boring but the bigger picture of the influencer industrial complex and how influencing has really changed the way we view and interact with entertainment and advertising The two just keep getting closer and closer together to the point where in a way we are watching advertisements as our
• 01:30 - 02:00 entertainment I think there are so many layers to the influencer industry that can be peeled back because even in previous videos videos I've talked about how influencers have affected the way that we identify I've talked about how aesthetics and the rapid trend cycle has made the art of finding an identity more complicated and more commercialized But all that to be said there's a lot that I want to talk about today So I'm really excited to talk about the influencer
• 02:00 - 02:30 industrial complex As someone who does social media for a living it's almost kind of a meta topic in a way because I also live in New York City and I am technically an influencer although I'm not really the kind of influencer that is at the center of this discussion That being said being an influencer can mean a lot of different things It seems like everyone has like their own kind of definition of an influencer or an idea in their head of what an influencer is So I wanted to give a couple of descriptions definitions of an
• 02:30 - 03:00 influencer to kind of paint the picture here So a really interesting source I came across doing the research for this video is a book called The Influencer Factory: A Marxist Theory of Corporate Personhood on YouTube by Grant Balmer and Katherine Guinness and in their book Although I haven't read the whole thing I did manage to get some interesting quotes from the preview pages on Google and they also have an interesting podcast episode where they discuss their book This is how they describe an influencer An influencer and most popular understandings of influencer
• 03:00 - 03:30 culture is one whose value derives from gathering interest for brands maintaining social bonds between consumers and cultivating identities that attract attention on social media They go on to say that influencers are revealing extreme wealth unboxing large halls of products organizing elaborate games and events remodeling their homes driving their cars cleaning out their closet etc I thought that was an interesting description because you know this is like a very specific perspective on influencing right and and their book they talk a lot about YouTubers like
• 03:30 - 04:00 Jeffree Star and they talked about Mr Beast and that one podcast episode I mentioned Of course I'm someone who utilizes brand sponsorships for income and I have a social bond between you my audience people watching and I cultivate attention on social media You're watching this video I've gotten your attention right but I don't do unboxings and large hauls I don't flaunt any sort of wealth or anything like that And so this definition just shows that there is a very specific perception of what an
• 04:00 - 04:30 influencer is And I think most accurately the first half of that description is what an influencer is Um I guess in a broader sense Another source that I found which is a dissertation all about the influencer industry of course describes influencers and in their words they say the digital influencer industry vernacular for the bloggers Instagrammers pinners and other social media users who again the backdrop of widespread economic and professional instability deliver curated content to audiences on social media and
• 04:30 - 05:00 earn income by collaborating with major brands We'll talk more about the economic aspect that was introdu to be and how it was like a result of the 2008 economic crisis But I'm getting ahead of myself I think this definition is pretty accurate you know it's really emphasizing the brand partnership aspect of being an influencer which is essentially what being an influencer is in a lot of ways But obviously there's so much more that goes into being an influencer or a
• 05:00 - 05:30 content creator which there is actually a distinction between I'm technically an influencer but I fit more into the content creator box And so when we're talking about New York City influencers who we are really talking about are mostly women a lot of them white which is another part of the conversation who make lifestyle content and do a lot of brand partnerships whether it's through affiliate links or sponsored posts Lifestyle content is very lucrative because there is so much room for brand
• 05:30 - 06:00 partnership It's also more brand safe and you can essentially monetize almost every aspect of your life down to the lattes you drink the workouts you do the gyms you go to the brand events you attend etc But like I said there's more to being an influencer than just brand deals There's a reason why you have an audience in the first place that got you the brand deals You have something that has gotten people's attention online people that you are influencing At its most bare bones what it means to be an
• 06:00 - 06:30 influencer is to be someone who influences other people Now what you're influencing depends on your content and who you are But at the end of the day you're meant to be influential right and I want to get into the nitty-gritty of what it means to be influential But before I do that maybe I can influence you to check out Calm Today's video is sponsored by Calm As someone who prioritizes both their physical and mental health Calm is an amazing app that helps me stay grounded and well-rested Calm is the number one app for sleep and meditation giving you the
• 06:30 - 07:00 power to calm your mind and change your life Dealing with stress anxiety or sleep troubles can be really challenging but you don't have to do it alone Calm provides meditations grounding exercises sleep meditations sleep stories and calming music Personally I like to meditate after I get out of the sauna as a part of my post-workout ritual So calm has fit in perfectly into my daily routine I've really been enjoying the tune into the- moment meditation by Jeff Warren And if I'm not doing that I like to listen to the mindful walking
• 07:00 - 07:30 meditation by Tamara Levit when I'm walking home So if you'd like to add some more mindfulness into your daily routine then check out Calm Stress less sleep more and live better with Calm And for those who watch my videos Cal is offering an exclusive offer of 40% off a COM premium subscription at calm.com/madison Thank you again Cal for sponsoring today's video So now let's get back to the scheduled programming Thank you All right guys I'm just going to say it I hate all of the New York influencers I think that they're boring as and they're all carbon copies of one
• 07:30 - 08:00 another They all wear the same exact bracelet They all have the same exacting hand chain that someone else influenced them to get They all look like they shop on Revolve They're all just like basic ass skinny but but they're skinny and pretty so stuff looks cute on them but boring So I think the most controversial part of the New York City influencers are a boring conversation is the fact that like I said earlier there are so many different kinds of influencers or content creators The kinds of influencers at the center of this conversation are all very similar Yes
• 08:00 - 08:30 they're all young female and white And to assume that every influencer who lives in New York is the same just isn't true and also maybe reveals something about your for you page and what you choose to consume and interact with because the algorithm although can be biased at times and more on that later You do choose who shows up on your for you page to a certain extent based on who you engage with I kind of have two different opinions about this whole topic because on one side there is a
• 08:30 - 09:00 homogyny within the influencer industry The same kind of creators get invited to the same events and the same kinds of creators get promoted by the algorithm more than others And peeling back the layers of the influencer industry will allow us to understand that more Also the influencer industry has completely shifted the way we look at entertainment and consumerism and how we even look at ourselves And so that kind of takes me to my other opinion which is maybe influencers aren't boring maybe we're
• 09:00 - 09:30 just boring And we have completely lost the plot when it comes to how we view entertainment and what we use influencers for Because influencers at the end of the day are people They're not necessarily meant to entertain us 24/7 But we are entertained 24/7 because we're constantly being spoonfed an endless stream of content And so we kind of view influencers as like Sims in a way who are just meant to fill this void and give us dopamine hits And we've kind of lost the plot with influencers and the role they play in our lives
• 09:30 - 10:00 Influencers aren't meant to entertain us 24/7 We do have to live our lives at the end of the day Can't sit on TikTok all day complaining that you're bored after watching 30 recipe videos without trying a single one in your own kitchen Does that make sense so with all that being said and kind of laid out let's really dig deep into the influencer industrial complex First to understand influencers and the
• 10:00 - 10:30 industry surrounding them we have to understand influence What does it really mean to be influential the concept of influence has been studied for decades and our society has always had influencers You know before social media existed people have always been influenced by others Whether it's religious leaders political leaders prolific writers musicians etc There have always been figures in our in our world who have influenced us as a society Understanding how influential figures of the past obtained influence can help us understand why social media
• 10:30 - 11:00 influencers rose to popularity A word that has consistently shown up in my research for this video is authenticity Now I'm sure you're used to hearing people talk about the concept of authenticity in relation to celebrities and influencers It seems like whenever someone is really good at being authentic they become popular And if someone is really bad at being authentic or comes off as fake their popularity plummets and they are met with a lot of criticism and backlash Max Weber's
• 11:00 - 11:30 writings on charismatic authority for example conceptualized influence as a socially and culturally constructed phenomenon Weber focused on the political and economic circumstances out of which influential leaders arise arguing that in times of psychic physical economic ethical religious or political distress leaders who seem to have exceptional qualities tend to become influential Yet what enables these leaders to thrive is their perceived authenticity Crucial too is an interpersonal relationship between the
• 11:30 - 12:00 leader and followers who tend to create communities with each other around the leader and help to encourage continual reasscertations of authenticity And that basically explains why you know pop stars become famous and create fandoms There's the talent mixed with the authenticity that creates an audience and then the audience creates a community around this influential person The power that comes with authenticity is the reason why brands have tried so hard to create this distinct human-like
• 12:00 - 12:30 voice for themselves A good example of that is like Dolingo The Duolingo bird is always commenting and tweeting and it has a life of its own I think it actually died at some point Like brands have tried really hard to kind of have their own voice And so influencers are the perfect tool to create a distinct brand voice And brands can use influencers as a mouthpiece to create almost like a persona for themselves The idea that in the contemporary media environment social influence is not just a process but a commodity It is
• 12:30 - 13:00 something that can be assessed and assigned material value by interested stakeholders In the influencer industry authenticity is the means by which influence is valued Influencers brands marketers and various other parties cultivate authenticity through a range of tactics and assesses others authenticity as a means of judging whether they are or could be influential For example as many of my interviewees pointed out if an influencer meets traditional metrics benchmarks of influence such as having a high follower
• 13:00 - 13:30 count but her social media feeds contains the wrong balance of sponsored and organic content then her authenticity and therefore her potential for social and financial gain suffers And that might explain also why people find influencers boring is because like I said there's a line being blurred between entertainment and advertising And we have gotten used to influencer marketing now as a society So if you're watching someone's content and you feel like most of it is just advertising and you're constantly being sold to without genuine quality content or entertainment
• 13:30 - 14:00 you lose that connection and it doesn't feel authentic anymore So I briefly mentioned before that influencing really came about due to the 2008 financial crisis Bloggers were essentially the original influencers and really laid the groundwork for the career path that is being an influencer In the late 2000s millions of Americans were a drift having lost jobs and homes in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis For a subset of aspiring and established
• 14:00 - 14:30 creative professionals the internet and its many budding social media platforms seem to offer a chance to move forward in a time marked by inertia and uncertainty Using blogs and social media sites like Twitter Tumblr and Facebook to showcase a digital resume express oneself and connect with others also enabled a sense of control over an unclear and precarious professional situation They go on to talk about how the word of mouth strategy to marketing and the entrepreneurial make your dreams come true aspect of blogging and
• 14:30 - 15:00 influencing Those two things coming together created this new path and that is the beauty of influencing right a normal average person can create an audience for themselves to showcase their work and share their talents or their passions with the world And it's a really incredible tool for creatives You know the entertainment industry is notoriously very hard to break into I mean it's so gatekept but there's really no gatekeeping in social media And this
• 15:00 - 15:30 kind of make your dreams come true entrepreneurial aspect of it I think is also why people connect to influencers they still can come off as like normal people unlike a celebrity You have more access to them You feel closer to them and you root for them maybe a little bit more at some in some ways And of course brands know this right so if you follow someone who you really like you develop this parasocial relationship with them And so if they are recommending a product or a service to you you're more likely to trust them and maybe even
• 15:30 - 16:00 purchase whatever it is that they're recommending because maybe a celebrity isn't going to be as precious about what they advertise You watch celebrities in a Neutrogena commercial but we kind of all know they probably aren't using it So that's really why influencer marketing has become so successful And so as influencing becomes a legitimate career path there is so much more knowledge and strategies surrounding an influencer becoming an influencer the concept of building a brand comes into
• 16:00 - 16:30 play That term is so like ubiquitous at this point that people even say that about themselves People who aren't influencers will say like "Oh I'm rebranding." you know as a way to say "Oh I'm changing a habit or a lifestyle of mine or or an aesthetic." I want to talk more about this concept of building a brand and the commodification of the self and how that may impact authenticity Influencers are
• 16:30 - 17:00 more than social media personalities who attract attention for brands argue Grant Balmer and Katherine Guinness They are figures of a new transformation in capitalism in which the logic of the self is indistinguishable from the logic of the corporation Influencers are emblematic of what Balmer and Guinness call the corposine A moment in capitalism in which the individuals achieve the status of living breathing talking corporations Behind the veneer of leisure and indulgence most influencers are laboring daily usually
• 17:00 - 17:30 for pittance wages to manufacture a commodity called the self a raw material for brands to use with the dream of becoming corporations in human form by owning and investing in the products they sell It is pretty weird to really think about this idea of rebranding ourselves especially because normal people use this in like their everyday language We are viewing ourselves as companies I mean it's very latestage capitalism as the previous quote explained I'd have to imagine it feels kind of dehumanizing as an influencer
• 17:30 - 18:00 and boring and hard to watch as a consumer to witness the commodification of someone to the point where they've lost their essence and they just seem like a walking corporation Brands are meant to be these easily digestible palatable entities to appeal to customers And when a person begins to embody that it gets it gets a little weird I've mentioned this in previous videos but Jenz has like a real identity
• 18:00 - 18:30 issue because of how we consume content The trend cycle has just only gotten more and more rapid There's a million and one aesthetics that launch every month It feels like the thing with aesthetics is that there's a lifestyle attached to it And that's always kind of been true Usually style and fashion is a product of your lifestyle and your environment your interest think music you listen to etc And so when you're constantly adopting an aesthetic you're constantly adopting a lifestyle I mean
• 18:30 - 19:00 not really You can only change your lifestyle so much but you're meant to at least portray that you live this lifestyle And although not every person in Gen Z is like this and I talked about this I think in my personal style video when you don't have an identity it's so easy to latch on to these different aesthetics and different trends because you don't really know who you are But if you struggle with that it doesn't seem like there's much space to step back and really do that if you're constantly scrolling through Tik Tok and Pinterest trying to find the next skin that you're
• 19:00 - 19:30 going to embody for a month And so with all this there's over consumption and again maybe the psychological issues that could come with having a identity crisis every four weeks I don't know The reason why we have all this is in part because of influencer culture Excessive hauls and the pressure to have this perfectly curated life to constantly keep up with trends go on thousand shopping sprees so you can do a haul It all comes from influencer culture But the thing is like where I think audience members or consumers have this massive
• 19:30 - 20:00 disconnect is that they're not meant to be living their lives like influencers They're not meant to be obtaining as many clothes as influencers cuz they're not being gifted the clothes like the influencers are There's this idea that influencers buy everything that they have use or show off on camera but a lot of the times they are being paid to do it or they're being gifted this stuff And so audience members think like "Oh I need to do that to keep up or because they're doing it so I want to do it I'm not really sure." And so there's all this overconumption because people are trying to emulate a lifestyle that isn't
• 20:00 - 20:30 for them or conducive to their own lives When it comes to influencers there is an incentive to showcasing brand name clothes and and shopping luxury items Not only because it'll get them more attention and garner more views create this aspirational lifestyle facade but also again it's their job They're being paid to do some of this stuff And at the very least it's a tax write off I don't know if you guys know this but almost anything that you use for your videos can be a tax write off And so if you're
• 20:30 - 21:00 a lifestyle influencer I mean there's a lot of things you can write off I mean for example like I bought a new laptop last year I use my laptop for my videos obviously So if every day I'm showing you my workout routine at Aloe Yoga and my Aloe Yoga outfits like if they're not sponsoring me and I'm paying for that membership that's a tax write off cuz it's a part of my content it's probably not going to be a tax write off for you I mean maybe I don't know what you I don't know what you do but like there's a lot that goes into being an influencer
• 21:00 - 21:30 that people don't realize And so they're constantly kind of like keeping up with the Joneses trying to compete with people that they're really not meant to be competing with Influencer marketing has gotten really good I mean it can be seamless to the point where you don't even realize that it's a paid post And that's why I say we have gotten to a point where we are watching advertisements as entertainment and the influencer industry has made that really easy More recent technological development has allowed them to offer seamless integration of content with the
• 21:30 - 22:00 ability to shop And in what many advertising practitioners and researchers call a post ad world where consumers increasingly tune out or avoid blatant advertising influencers offer companies a crucial means of getting messages to the public While fashion influencers typically identify themselves as being fueled by passion and their work being a creative outlet collectively they are marketing juggernauts in vital components of the retail system E-arketer estimated that influencer marketing revenues on
• 22:00 - 22:30 Instagram alone totaled more than $570 million in 2016 and argued that the space is likely a multi-billion dollar industry and growing Wait till they find out about Tik Tok shop [ __ ] That was back in 2016 I mean it's only it's only grown since then and that was almost 10 years ago Yes 2016 was almost 10 years ago Anyways moving on So how do you maintain authenticity while also being a brand i actually think it's pretty easy Um I just think you need to be driven by
• 22:30 - 23:00 your work your passion your purpose for your content rather than being driven by the sole pursuit of money or fame etc I know it sounds corny but it's true Listen I've been doing YouTube for a few years now It's been my full-time job for a few years now And I've gotten a lot of people asking me "Oh how do you start how do you build a following etc." And what a lot of these people will say to me is like "I want to be a YouTuber or Tik Tocker but I don't know what to make content about." Which I never really understood because why would you want to make content if you don't know what you
• 23:00 - 23:30 want to say like it just seems like the idea would come first and then the pursuit of content would happen next At least that's what happened for me I was like watching other video essays on YouTube and wanting to share my own thoughts because my opinions were different or I wanted to add on to what they were saying I also started during the pandemic so I was probably just lonely and like wanted people to talk to but I couldn't talk to anyone other than a camera and so that's how my YouTube channel was born with the rise of influencing you know so many people view it as this coveted job which it is It's a very uh incredible position to be in
• 23:30 - 24:00 but the glamour of it is what is appealing to a lot of people rather than the like authentic pursuit of creativity Not to sound like a snob but it's going to be hard to have that sense of authenticity without the purpose You know what I mean and I'm not saying that being an influencer or a content creator is the hardest job in the world It's not But like I think you guys can understand I put a lot of work into my videos right and so when you're doing it for free and you're grinding on iMovie or Final Cut
• 24:00 - 24:30 Pro for hours cuz you don't know how to use it and you are trying to get people to watch your videos starting from zero subscribers it takes a lot of patience and time especially YouTube It's not like Tik Tok where you can just kind of like blow up and to maintain that is also another thing But like there is a lot of patience and trial and error that goes into being a content creator or an influencer and you have to be okay with that And so if you have no purpose behind it if you don't know what you want to make or what you want to do and you and you don't believe in it as well it's going to be really hard to make it
• 24:30 - 25:00 a entire career Anyways that was a bit of a tangent but when you again are focused on uh money and just the pursuit of being a influencer without the substance of it it can feel very hollow And you know some people do successfully become influencers because they just wanted to be an influencer or they just wanted to become famous and be famous for being famous At the end of the day there is a element of performance that is required
• 25:00 - 25:30 in any sort of like public-f facing medium All influencers content creators are performing I mean I'm performing right now And that's not to say that you can't perform and be authentic Both are required in my opinion The version of myself that's present right now is not necessarily the same version that is present when I'm with my friends or my boyfriend or at the doctor like you know what I mean um and so kind of the dark side of being an influencer is that especially if you're commodifying every
• 25:30 - 26:00 aspect of your life when you are commodifying yourself it can be very easy to fall into the performance aspect only and for kind of forgetting who you are or forgetting to put that authentic part of yourself forward And you know I think in some ways it's more rewarded to lean in more to the performance of it and to conform and to try to be this ideal influencer Um especially if you want to go to the brand trips and have the brand deals and get the kind of
• 26:00 - 26:30 attention that a lot of these New York City influencer girls get You know there was a really interesting article that I came across through a Tik Tok that was discussing this New York City influencers are boring topic influencers are boring because they're literally being factory produced I saw this article in the Wall Street Journal in July The article talks about how this one woman Shauna Davis Ross is behind so many influencers you know and love helping them plan their content around a very specific lifestyle ideal I mean look at this right here You might call her the Frankenstein for the influencer
• 26:30 - 27:00 marketing era but what she's fashioned isn't a monster exactly but a woman with an algorithmically covetable Manhattan life Aloe yoga apparel spritzes Here at the bottom you can see some of the people that she represents at her agency Her article explains that when Shauna works with her clients she applies almost this factory production method When taking on a new client she works with her team to build what she calls content franchises These are post in a format that are easily repeated tried and tested monetizable and mainly appeal to brands Essentially codifying a formula Here are my internet anthropology takeaways I think what we
• 27:00 - 27:30 have here is a classic case of the capitalism breeds innovation meme where things continue to get more and more similar over time as everything is focus grouped into the ground Tip number two when the economy is doing good y'all want to see aspirational content When the economy is doing bad you want to see more inspirational content We are now in the inspiration wave so creators with strong personalities interesting hobbies and with focuses on learning will gain traction And we'll probably get back into aspirational creators when the economy recovers I want to dive deeper into this article because it does reveal a lot about the influencer industry specifically these New York City
• 27:30 - 28:00 influencers that are the center of this conversation So the article focuses on a woman named Shannana Davis Ross Davis Ross 31 is the founder and CEO of Point Firm a talent management company focused on social media influencers that she found in 2019 In five years she has gone from zero to around 80 clients for whom she scores lucrative brand deals and advises on social media posting and long-term business strategies Notably many of them are following a similar playbook living out a certain kind of
• 28:00 - 28:30 New York City dream Her clients Kit Keenan Hi Mcugan Audrey Peters Yashmina Ferrer Carly Weinstein and Carly Rivlin have given new cache to a neighborhood that has long been among the city's most desirable the West Village So I think this article perfectly explains why this niche group of New York City influencers kind of all seem the same or go to the same places go to the same events get the same brand deals etc It's because they're all managed by the same person Management or agencies play a really big role in the influencer industry I have
• 28:30 - 29:00 one myself I have a manager and the role of managers was described in that previous quote They help you get brand deals and other opportunities And this article makes it really clear what the brand of girl David Ross works with She has a very specific niche and type of person that she likes to work with And they've really nailed the branding This article is filled with a bunch of brand names and trendy spots in New York Throughout this article they mention Aloe Yoga Invite Only Gym Appperal
• 29:00 - 29:30 Spritzes Glow Bar Reformation Chanel Miumu Gucci Bags West Village Like those words all embody a specific kind of person I'll just start by saying New York City influencers are boring This is primarily because none of the mainstream NYC influencers are native New Yorkers It's very rare that I meet a boring native New Yorker I'm biased but it's true And with peace and love you know it's like what do you expect when you consistently platform a bunch of like upper middle class and wealthy suburban
• 29:30 - 30:00 white women because guys as we know rich people historically famously are not very cool And usually they buy their way into you know coolness or proximity to coolness And the way in which these people interact with the city and the surrounding communities is also really telling Like they don't go above 14th Street They don't go into any burrows outside of Manhattan There's a lack of genuine open-mindedness and curiosity that I think is necessary to actual character development while living here And for New York and Boring to be in the same sentence like I just I simply know we've lost the plot And I think this is
• 30:00 - 30:30 in part because on social media people reward wealth and they reward privilege which is also kind of perpetuates the cycle of like the rich getting richer because it's like we platform people who already have money and like you know live luxuriously This sort of perversion and glamorization of what it's like to live here just perpetuates this idea that it's like a young wealthy person's playground which it certainly is not This manager actually describes this lifestyle as very Carrie Bradshaw Like
• 30:30 - 31:00 that is very powerful in marketing for like the age demographic that they're going for which is like 20s to early 30s And with this kind of niche marketing it's very specific but it's also farreaching like it's a very specific kind of girl who goes to these very specific places and wears these specific things but it's very palatable to a lot of people cuz a lot of people either can relate to these girls or they want to be these girls You know you don't have to necessarily live in the West Village or
• 31:00 - 31:30 in New York City to find this content aspirational This could be appealing to a girl from Oklahoma who's never left her hometown or a girl in LA who maybe wants to move to New York or live vicariously through girls who live in New York If David Ross has a client who wants to grow their presence in a specific category food luxury fashion she and her team will work with that person to build content franchises post in a format that's easily repeated and monetizable that appeal to the brands in that space Pawn introduces clients to one another so they can collaborate and
• 31:30 - 32:00 help grow each other's audiences David Ross works to ensure their influencers are on the guest list for events hosted by the brands with which they'd like to form partnerships So again that explains why a lot of the same influencers kind of end up going to the same places same events but it also kind of explains maybe why some of these girls content can feel interchangeable I feel like again if you're watching the same kind of influencer over and over again yeah maybe you might get bored but like maybe you got to diversify your feed I don't know And I don't think it's it's the
• 32:00 - 32:30 responsibility of all the individual girls to like cater to all of your content needs You know what I'm saying i know these kinds of influencers get dogged on a lot for being like uh boring I guess or maybe claiming that what they do is really hard but it's not cuz it looks like they just go to Pilates and drink lattes all day I don't really think that's completely fair Like it is a job at the end of the day I don't make the same kind of content so I'm not exactly sure how easy or hard it is but as someone who does make content for a living like there is still work that
• 32:30 - 33:00 that goes into it And I think it's easy to we live in a society that loves to put down women and influencing is a female dominated space where women can make a lot of money being themselves And I don't know I just think I just think it's like a little too easy for people to dogpile and be mean to young women who are like successful and making money Anyways it also kind of explains why this niche of influencer feels similar is because there is a content strategy that can be copy and pasted But in their
• 33:00 - 33:30 defense you could say the same thing about video essays I mean a lot of us will have similar thumbnails similar topics Again like maybe just diverse You just got to diversify your feed But what I'm more interested in talking about is the homogeneous aspect to influencer culture and conformity The more you conform the more you are rewarded in in a lot of ways The reason why these like New York City influencers are so successful and make so much money is because they make brands safe easily
• 33:30 - 34:00 monetized content and especially with this kind of West Village girl archetype It's not the most unique branding type but that's why it's so palatable and in turn very profitable Brands are very meticulous about who they work with If your brand doesn't align with theirs If your audience doesn't align with the audience they have or an audience they want to obtain they're not going to work with you And you know the bigger the brands the less controversial they want the influencers that they work with to be And so if you are a young white girl who lives in a nice apartment who has
• 34:00 - 34:30 money or comes from money you most likely will appeal to a lot of brands As corporate brands and individual people began with the help of marketers to understand themselves as the same type of commodities existing in the influencer marketplace they were better able to determine who might match with whom for sponsorship deals that would be financially and reputationally beneficial for both parties By speaking the same language of brand voice and scrutinizing audience size and demographics like a traditional media
• 34:30 - 35:00 company would they made decisions about brand fit or whether a partnership would be appropriate Although influencing is a creative industry and again has opened up so many doors for all kinds of people this industry has its issues too and especially because it is based in commercialism and capitalism And I think all kinds of influencers and content creators can maybe feel this pressure to conform because at the end of the day you got to make money to live if you want this to be your job And also just in general there is an increasing level
• 35:00 - 35:30 of censorship on apps like Tik Tok and YouTube And aside from brand deals like your videos could easily be suppressed or just straight up taken down for using the wrong kind of word That kind of censorship and you know maybe avoiding certain topics because you don't want to get demonetized because you would actually like to be paid for your work is putting on the pressure to conform or to fall in line So I was trying not to get ahead of
• 35:30 - 36:00 myself because I do have an entire section now that I would like to discuss about the racial disparities that occur in the influencer industry If you're a young rich white girl brands are more likely to be interested in you and want you to be the spokesperson of their brand and to represent their brand to show up at their events And we all know that white content creators tend to be favored in the algorithm more than black creators or creators of color There is a distinct pay gap in the influencer
• 36:00 - 36:30 industry and people have been talking about that a lot recently I grossed $768,000 in 2024 Black creators are not making this Black creators are not making this at all bro And I am honestly kind of tired of people not being transparent about it So let me spill the scene real quick and let y'all know how this industry actually work If you can show me a single black creator that has made $700,000 with less than 1 million followers on here I literally will be gagged beyond my mind That does not happen It does not happen Even if you have the same exact engagement as Brandon in this video even if you have the same amount of followers it does not matter Not saying it's not possible but it is very very unlikely When black
• 36:30 - 37:00 creators talk about the race pay gap between our fellow white counterparts we are not joking y'all For reference Brandon just hit a million followers Period Brandon I believe he has less than 500K on Instagram I have nearly 3 million followers on Tik Tok and I have a million followers on Instagram For reference my niche is fashion And I also do makeup I also do talking videos I had a song that went number one on the Tik Tok charts on here A trending song with over 1 million videos made I started a worldwide trend on here called Leia And I inspired women black women specifically to dress how they want to dress alternatively to be yourself I talk about self-confidence on here And I'm saying all of this to say that my page is 100% brand safe Do you feel me
• 37:00 - 37:30 there is no difference between my page and your favorite white creators page at all Through content I've been able to collab with Paris Hilton Lizo I've literally been on stage with Siza I've opened for Charlie XX I'm on a show on FX Hulu Check it out English teacher And believe it or not in 2024 off of content alone I still did not even make half of what Brandon made last year And so as a black creator it just feels like there's so much stacked against you because not only are you fighting with the algorithm and the racial bias of the technology but you're also dealing with the racial bias of brands who either don't want to work with you have a small quota for
• 37:30 - 38:00 black content creators they will they are willing to work with and the fact that they just won't pay you as much as other content creators who are white but have like the same engagement and the same followers as you I've heard black content creators say they debate putting their face in the thumbnails because it may affect the performance of their video Black influencers face difficulties negotiating visibility on social media through the automated algorithmic manipulation of feeds and moderation of content Systems of algorithmic recommendation which are
• 38:00 - 38:30 essential for negotiating visibility over social media reproduce and often intensify forms of discrimination that exist beyond the internet Safia Umojo Noble uses the phrase technological redlinining to describe how technologies of automation reinforce oppressive social relationships and enact new modes of racial profiling Ruha Benjamin terms this technological discrimination the new gym code which she defines as the employment of new technologies that
• 38:30 - 39:00 reflect and reproduce existing inequities but that are promoted and perceived as more objective or progressive than the discriminatory systems They also go on to touch on something I said earlier about conformity versus uniqueness It's like the West Village girl is is very specific but it's not necessarily unique and a lot of people can embody it And although it's more aspirational than relatable at the end of the day whiteness is seen as the default And
• 39:00 - 39:30 although these West Village influencers are probably more aspirational than they are relatable at the end of the day whiteness will kind of always have this air of relatability in mainstream culture because in popular culture being white is the norm And so that's kind of like the double-edged sword of influencing right is like you have to stand out enough to get attention but you also have to conform in order to be rewarded The algorithmic manipulation of attention by the platform tacitly reiterates the norm of whiteness linking
• 39:30 - 40:00 this norm with wealth and success Even though one labors to be interesting and distinct online this distinction must remain relatable within a narrow space that cannot deviate excessively from the norm of whiteness Benjamin describes the power of this plainness as the invisible center against which everything else is compared as the norm against which everyone else is measured Upon further reflection what appears to be an absence in terms of being culturalists works more like a superpower To be unmarked by
• 40:00 - 40:30 race allows you to reap the benefits but escape responsibility for your role in an unjust system Couldn't have said it better myself Truly And that's how you know the black content creators that become really successful and make a name for themselves are really putting in the work and are truly great at what they do and are exceptional Because unfortunately as a black person you have to be exceptional just to get the same opportunities as a white person who's maybe average I mean think about the
• 40:30 - 41:00 phrase black excellence I'm glad we're kind of moving away from that term but even within our own community we are expected to be excellent And to be excellent is what gives you value Being yourself and just existing isn't enough Because I mean historically it hasn't been You can't you can't just skate by in life as a black person and be average and get the same opportunities as your white counterpart Anyway moving on I'm now wrapping up this video and I know I
• 41:00 - 41:30 threw a lot of different opinions and thoughts out there and quotes and whatever but you know it's kind of a complex topic even though on the surface it seems really kind of simple and like not that deep but I'm making it that deep And of course I have my own interest in this topic as someone who does social media for a living But at the end of the day we can look at the in influencer industrial complex and all the things that come with it good or bad And we can also look at ourselves and
• 41:30 - 42:00 question our digital diet and what we choose to do with all of the content that we are constantly being inundated with On one side yes influencers can get really boring if they are all the same and most of their content turns into advertisement and we're just watching ads all day long But on the other hand we can diversify our feed so we're not just watching the same kinds of people and we're not just watching ads all day We can look at a New York City
• 42:00 - 42:30 influencer girl and think "Oh that seems like a good restaurant Maybe I should go there cuz I live in New York and I can choose to go there You know what they say only boring people get bored I don't fully believe that but for the most part yeah like you you can you can kind of choose if you want to be bored and like stay that way Again I I think that latestage capitalism and the consumerist foundation of influencer culture has made it so we look at influencers like Sims and we expect them to entertain us
• 42:30 - 43:00 24/7 because apps like Tik Tok have made entertainment available to us 24/7 In the age of the internet we have to teach people again not only how to think for themselves but also how to act for themselves to actually get off the phone and go do something So yeah I'm interested to see what you guys think Do you fall on one side over the other are you like me and you kind of see both sides and yeah I would love to hear your thoughts and I will see you in the next
• 43:00 - 43:30 video Thank you so much for watching Kill my day You just better get on your knees Come up and go so don't get in my way Yeah Yeah