Latest / Mini Scroll / MINI SCROLL: Live Nation Urban launches Black creator network, Spooners press tour goes viral + Dude Perfect doco

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MINI SCROLL: Live Nation Urban launches Black creator network, Spooners press tour goes viral + Dude Perfect doco · Mini Scroll

• 0:00
  Hi everyone. Welcome to Mini Scroll, the
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  daily Internet culture podcast bringing you the biggest stories
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  from social media, the creator economy and the digital space.
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  Every Monday through Thursday and sometimes Fridays.
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  I'm your host, Lauren Meisner, the founder of the youth digital
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  media brand Centennial World. Welcome back to Mini Scroll
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  everyone. Do I have a story for you?
• 0:24
  This is like a business founder update.
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  If you guys don't care about me trying to build this business,
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  there's always time stamps, always time stamps.
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  The time stamps are part of our lore now.
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  I swear every week, I'm not going to say every day anymore,
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  but like every week, we still get comments even though there
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  are chapters and time stamps in every description.
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  OK, but you guys know Alex left at the end of last week.
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  I'm taking over sales now for the company for the time being.
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  I did all of these things when she left, right?
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  Like I configured HubSpot into my inbox.
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  I turned on e-mail forwarding from her e-mail to my e-mail
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  this weekend. I also redesigned our entire
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  website and I changed where we host it and all this stuff.
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  So a lot has changed in the last like four or five days.
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  This morning, I wake up, I'm checking my e-mail as I always
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  do, and I literally have a three, OK.
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  And normally I wake up and I have like, I don't know, 30.
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  A lot of it is either press releases that come in overnight
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  from, you know, the US or something, or like, newsletters
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  that I subscribe to, whatever. But either way, I always have
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  like, a full inbox. Anyways, I came to the
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  horrifying realization that I have not received an e-mail
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  since Thursday. Reminder, I have taken over
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  sales for our company. I know it's only Friday is a
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  business day and Monday is a business day, but we have active
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  campaigns. I've been booking meetings, I've
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  been sending proposals, I have contracts out that I'm waiting
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  to get signed. I've been sending emails and I
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  haven't received anything back. And I did think that was kind of
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  weird, but it's just been such a busy few days because of the
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  transition and just like several other things.
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  So anyways, I I had this realization and I was like Oh my
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  God. And then I realized our general
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  inbox also has not been receiving emails since Thursday.
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  Then I check in with the other girls, they have also not been
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  receiving emails since Thursday. Our entire company e-mail has
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  been down since Thursday and I had no idea why.
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  I didn't even realize nobody else realized.
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  We were all just going with the flow.
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  So it's like 6:00 AM. I'm super tired.
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  I'm so overwhelmed. I'm freaking out because I'm
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  like day one of the job, day one of me taking over partnerships
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  and this happens and I had no idea.
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  And I'm like, what could people have been emailing us?
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  What is out there in the abyss? I'm trying to book meetings and
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  I'm thinking people aren't answering me and like, what if
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  they are? And they think I'm rude?
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  What if I'm losing opportunities?
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  Like you just have no idea. So I'm freaking out.
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  So I start like breaking down. I'm having like a full mental
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  breakdown. I call my parents because I'm
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  like, how else am I going to talk to anybody at this time?
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  And they're in Canada. Obviously I'm in Australia.
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  So I call them. I'm like sobbing to my parents
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  on the phone. I'm freaking out.
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  My mom's like, just wait until you talk to your brother because
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  my brother is a software developer and they're like, just
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  wait. He'll probably be able to figure
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  it out. Like honestly, what tech
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  problems have you had that you haven't been able to figure out?
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  And like she is right because between Shawn, my husband, who
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  has like so many friends that work in tech and do like IT
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  stuff and whatever, and like my brother being a software dev and
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  just like in general, like all the forums, all the YouTube
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  videos you could watch, like I had tried everything up until
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  this point, but still she was like, just calm down, it'll be
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  OK. And I was like, you don't
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  understand, like whatever, how am I supposed to focus?
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  Like I was having like a mental breakdown, but you know, when
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  you're just in a headspace and you're just in a time in place
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  where you just cannot handle it. So I just had like a full on
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  mental breakdown. And then anyways, a couple hours
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  later, I get on to my brother and I'm like, I need you to help
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  me. I tell him what's going on.
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  I'm not kidding. We're not even, you know,
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  together. Like this is over.
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  Text takes him not even 5 minutes to figure out what
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  happened. It was something related to like
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  me switching over our hosting for our website that I did over
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  the weekend. It wasn't even anything related
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  to like getting Alex out of the business or her inbox or
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  anything. It was literally like me
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  redesigning the website and he's like, Oh yeah, all you have to
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  do is, you know, input this into your new host.
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  So I did it. Emails again, emails again.
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  So, you know, I had a mental breakdown for no reason and my
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  mom was right. So moral of the story, listen to
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  your mom within reason, but listen to your mom.
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  With that being said, sign up to our new newsletter.
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  It did launch. Oh God, this is so classic.
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  I forgot to tell you guys this yesterday.
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  This is so this is so me. This is so me.
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  I'm such a Sagittarius. Like I just go, go, go and I
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  just, I don't know. I just, I'm not detail oriented.
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  OK, so we relaunched the newsletter on Friday and it
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  looked so good and the content was really good.
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  We send it out and it has a big banner at the top with our old
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  branding says infinite scroll when we have completely not only
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  just like rebranded in general, but like the name is different,
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  the colors are different. And I was like, of course, of
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  course. So we're calling that our soft
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  launch. So subscribe to our new
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  newsletter because I promise all the branding and everything will
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  be actually accurate on Friday and that will be our hard
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  launch. OK, the first way that I have
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  for you guys, this actually happened around a week ago, but
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  I still wanted to report on it. It's a bit of industry news, but
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  Live Nation Urban has launched a creator network catering to
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  Black creators. Live Nation Urban is a
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  subsidiary of Live Nation Entertainment, which is an
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  American multinational entertainment company.
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  I'm sure many of us know what Live Nation is.
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  They managed ticket sales for a lot of concerts and other kind
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  of like live entertainment across the world.
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  Live Nation Urban focuses specifically on hip hop, R&B,
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  and gospel. On July 25th, it was reported
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  that Live Nation Urban would be collaborating with Breaker,
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  which is a creator marketing and payments platform based in
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  Atlanta, GA to launch the Live Nation Urban Creator Network.
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  So Breaker has reportedly been a game changer for many creators.
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  Breaker Pay, which is, you know, part of Breaker, has been a
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  really powerful tool for creators to ensure that they get
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  paid. Through this platform, creators
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  are stationed to receive their compensation within 48 hours,
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  which definitely would help alleviate the stress of having
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  to follow up with brands and other collaborators for payment.
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  Somebody needs to make that for media.
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  The network bills itself as a quote, exclusive network of
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  content creators collaborating with the biggest names in music,
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  entertainment and lifestyle brands.
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  But at its core, the network is a tool for Black creators to
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  scale their reach and impact while also tapping Black
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  consumers. From a business standpoint, it
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  has become increasingly prevalent when it comes to
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  promoting music events, cultural moments and concerts.
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  So it feels like moving into the creator space is a necessary
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  decision. This is from Forbes quote.
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  The business model is dedicated to forging brands that are
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  seeking to tap into black consumers, an act that has been
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  long-awaited by black consumers who have pondered on
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  representation amid the ad campaigns of non black-owned or
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  centered brands. Forbes spoke with Malcolm Gray,
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  the VP of Marketing and Partnerships at Live Nation
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  Urban to understand the purpose of the network.
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  In the conversation, Gray explained how important it is
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  for companies to lean into micro and mid creators instead of just
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  those macro influencers. This also allows Live Nation
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  Urban to tap into cultural events in a more authentic way,
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  according to the press statement from PR Newswire.
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  Quote. Think a brand wants to activate
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  around Juneteenth, or product launch at an HBCU in Atlanta, or
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  a digital campaign tied to the BET Awards?
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  LNU can now curate, execute and amplify with precision and
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  speed. This is more than influencer
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  marketing. It's cultural media as a service
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  with reach, narrative control and conversion power all under
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  one roof. So I know that those examples
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  are kind of like cultural moments in time, but they are
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  being clear that this network will be seeking like a sustained
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  year round effort quote. What they're building isn't
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  conditional on the corporate diversity trend cycle.
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  It's a market tested mechanism to drive real results.
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  Whether that means selling tickets, pushing a product, or
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  activating A voter base. The network is equipped to move
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  audiences to action. And that's something brands need
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  every day of the year, not just when black culture becomes
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  marketable. This is all just so cool and I
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  love these initiatives and I really love how we're looking at
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  creators and the creator economy as real media.
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  These are scalable endeavors in this space that are kind of
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  bringing that legitimacy to this niche and to these creators.
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  Because at the end of the day, like so many creators are
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  creating their own like a mini media brands off their platforms
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  and they're so powerful and their reach is honestly probably
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  a lot bigger than a lot of traditional media these days.
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  So yeah, it's very, very cool. OK, the next right that I have
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  for you guys is about this Spooners quote UN quote press
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  tour that is taking place on YouTube.
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  So came across the story on TikTok from a user called
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  Claudine's corner. In this TikTok, she talks about
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  how she's obsessed with the Spooners press tour.
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  For those unfamiliar with Spooners, it is a short film.
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  It was published on YouTube to the Mico Brothers channel on
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  July 9th is accumulated over 500,000 views at the time of
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  recording. OK, so this is the plot of the
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  film. According to IMDb quote, Lydia
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  dreaming of a Prince Charming grapples with adulthood good and
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  loneliness, ultimately connecting with Matt, who offers
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  paid hugs. To promote the short film, the
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  cast and crew have been doing a quote UN quote press tour on the
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  Mico Brothers YouTube channel. They've essentially recreated
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  every online show that actors and celebrities go on to promote
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  a film product or a brand. Some examples include a remake
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  of Wired's auto complete interview G QS 10 essentials and
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  varieties actors on actors. These videos have gone on to get
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  hundreds of thousands of views and not only are people
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  engaging, but it's doing exactly what a press tour is meant to
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  do, like get people to go and watch the short film I.
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  Didn't even know what Spooners was.
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  This was the first video I saw and I was like well what is
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  various actors and actors sat there watched the whole thing.
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  I laughed and I proceeded to watch every other video that
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  they had relating to Spooners. Not Spooners, but just all the
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  other interviews. Users went on to flood
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  Claudine's comment section with support of the film and the
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  press tour. 1 user wrote quote guys, Spooners is very good.
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  Don't forget to actually watch it.
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  Another wrote, you've convinced me to watch these and it.
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  So people are loving the press tour for a number of reasons.
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  First, the videos are funny, but on a deeper level, social media
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  users love to feel like they're kind of in on this joke and Gen.
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  Z loves referential humor. We know that.
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  So the strategy of this press tour definitely leans into this
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  by mimicking these existing series.
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  It's just really creative and you know, we don't see a a lot
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  of creativity and press tours anymore.
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  I know this this is kind of like a fake press tour, but you know
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  what I mean? Like when we do see authentic
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  press tours, there's not a lot of creativity.
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  There's a lot of these attempted, like gotcha viral
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  moments, and this almost like flips that on its head.
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  It's really creative, It's really funny.
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  You guys should definitely go watch some of these.
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  OK, the last story that I have for you guys, this is like an
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  industry episode. It's also YouTube and film
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  related, but there is a documentary set to be released
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  about the YouTube group Dude Perfect in theaters.
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  So we aren't super familiar with Dude Perfect, but they're an
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  American sports and comedy content group based out of
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  Texas. There are five members, and they
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  were all former college roommates out of Texas A&M
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  University. As their website explains, quote
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  5 dudes, a camera, and a friendly bet.
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  That's how Dude Perfect was born.
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  Since then, it's grown into a global phenomenon, reaching
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  millions of fans worldwide with the epic antics you know and
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  love. But there's more to do perfect
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  than just having fun. We're about giving back,
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  spreading joy, and glorifying Jesus Christ.
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  According to Reddit threads, the group seems to be particularly
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  popular among preteen boys. They're also the 51st most
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  subscribed to YouTube channel on the platform.
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  They have 61 million subscribers.
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  Anyway, it was recently reported by Bloomberg that Regal, the
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  second largest movie theater chain in the US, will be showing
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  Dude Perfect the Hero Tour, which is a documentary that
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  follows the Youtubers and documents their various
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  performances across the United States.
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  According to Bloomberg quote, it will be released on more than
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  800 screens across the USUK, Western Europe, and Australia.
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  The film will run for two weeks starting September 26th but can
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  be extended. OK, this story is obviously a
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  little bit random for us to be reporting on, but I think it's
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  important because it shows how Hollywood is having to turn to
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  the creator economy for ongoing relevance and engagement.
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  Also, I don't know if we've ever seen a creator driven film or
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  like documentary about creators in theaters.
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  I don't know off the top of my head I can't think of one.
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  I'm sure you guys will be in the comments naming some but not
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  that I know of or that I can remember.
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  Bloomberg continues quote Movie ticket sales are about 25% below
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  their pre pandemic level and the number of wide releases is down
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  to. Theaters have dabbled in TV
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  shows, sporting events and concert documentaries with mixed
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  results. Now, like Hollywood studios and
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  talent agencies, they are turning to YouTube for
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  inspiration. You know, where they need to
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  turn to inspiration as well. Reality TV, OK, we need to have
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  places where groups of reality TV fans can congregate and watch
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  like binge watch. Like say we're going to watch
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  the 1st 5 episodes of season 3 of Vanderpump Rules in this
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  theater. I mean, OK, five, that's a lot
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  actually. That's like 5 hours, the first 3
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  episodes, let's say. And just do that incrementally
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  every single week. Like everybody can binge watch
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  the show together. How good with that being you can
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  have like popcorn and like the movie theater feel.
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  Oh my God, I I've just come up with a concept turn to the pop
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  culture fans. There's so little for us in
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  terms of experiential moments. Like that's what we need and
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  that's who's going to spend the money because we're stands.
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  I came up with an idea. Nobody take it.
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  OK, that is it for me to scroll today.
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  Guys. I know this is a bit of a random
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  episode, but, you know, sometimes we just got to throw
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  in that kind of like industry news.
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  Thank you so much for listening. I love you guys.
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  Annabelle will talk to you guys tomorrow and I will talk to you
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  guys on Thursday with hopefully a fully functioning inbox.
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  OK, bye.