“Black people are culture drivers and that’s shown in the creator economy.
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2025 10:12 am
I’ve seen creators on TikTok who are white predominantly use sounds that were created by Black people and have millions of followers. That’s not to say it’s only Black creators who are creating original content, but croatia b2b leads that’s something for brands to consider during their research. Who are the true drivers of these trends? Which creators have helped these moments online come to life? You’ll often find that a lot of them are from Black and brown creators,” she says.
She mentions an example that happened on February 1st, 2024. Content creator @cierralikeseggs called out a mega influencer who replicated her joke in a TikTok video word for word. People on both TikTok and X started calling the influencer out for not giving credit to the original creator. The mega influencer deleted the video in response, but didn’t acknowledge the situation.
A post from Black content creator @cierralikeseggs calling out a mega influencer for plagiarizing her TikTok video on the first day of Black History Month. The original video is located on the left and the replicated version is on the right.
Between these common scenarios and social media marketing teams often being smaller, Powell explains it’s not just one or two people to vet and validate creators—an industry wide shift is needed. So how can brands be part of the trailblazers making that shift? Pay transparency.
“If you’re working with a creator and you know you have a larger budget and they severely undervalue themselves, tell them. For example, if you’re creating an influencer list of five people and each quote $1000, but one person asks for $300, it would be unethical to give them a lower rate when you know you can do more,” she says.
She mentions an example that happened on February 1st, 2024. Content creator @cierralikeseggs called out a mega influencer who replicated her joke in a TikTok video word for word. People on both TikTok and X started calling the influencer out for not giving credit to the original creator. The mega influencer deleted the video in response, but didn’t acknowledge the situation.
A post from Black content creator @cierralikeseggs calling out a mega influencer for plagiarizing her TikTok video on the first day of Black History Month. The original video is located on the left and the replicated version is on the right.
Between these common scenarios and social media marketing teams often being smaller, Powell explains it’s not just one or two people to vet and validate creators—an industry wide shift is needed. So how can brands be part of the trailblazers making that shift? Pay transparency.
“If you’re working with a creator and you know you have a larger budget and they severely undervalue themselves, tell them. For example, if you’re creating an influencer list of five people and each quote $1000, but one person asks for $300, it would be unethical to give them a lower rate when you know you can do more,” she says.