Rich Santiago

I had a chance last week to join Cara Kneer and her incredible team at Atlanta & Co. to talk about Black Music Month and Atlanta's musical contributions. The conversation around equity has to continue beyond June. Here are my big takeaways on the issues in the industry as it stands for black artists and professionals and my proposed solutions to help make the music industry a more successful industry for all. The Issues:  We have little to no control of how the music comes out and is shared/framed with the public, the labels and system do. This prevents us from moving culture in a positive way. We have little to no control over finances. This creates opportunities where young people and young leaders can be taken advantage and "pimped out" for short-term corporate profits.   We have little to no control of the people. Sure, we are seeing more black executives than in the past, but in the system they are reinforcing the institution. When I was in this system I gave up my freedom to be able to create systemic change and I knew that. That change has to be done by means of getting the full trust that other groups have over their music (Latins running Latin music, Nashville people running country music) I KNOW all of this is because I was in this and lived this and when I tried to change things I got the boot. The Solutions: Grassroots community building - we as a black community need to start investing in each other and passing our knowledge on in an impactful way to the generation behind us. We need to bring awareness to our non-black friends to understand what we are up against and how this is actually preventing moving culture forward for all of us. Real ACTUAL inclusivity, not empty titles/positions where black leaders can't actually lead https://lnkd.in/er-kD3jS #blackmusicmonth #dei #diversity #equity #blackprofessionals #blackbusiness #musicindustry #music #entertainment #entrepreneurship #raydaniels

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Sports and Wine: An Unlikely Duo Now Scoring Big in Brand Partnerships Sports and wine isn't a common pair, but it’s becoming one. From Kendal-Jackson's collaboration with the NBA to Los Cuernos teaming up with the San Jose Earthquakes, it's clear things are changing. This rarity always puzzled me, but these partnerships are paving the way for new avenues in brand awareness and audience engagement. Stadium advertising signs are ingeniously placed. As fans track their favorite teams and players, they subconsciously register the branded signage. Once the game kicks off, there’s no skipping ads. Your brand stays in view, unmissable and unavoidable, cheered on by tens of thousands. So, how should you fill up all this ad space? It's vital to match the medium. Sports arenas demand a specific aesthetic and energy. That means moving beyond still images to more dynamic, engaging video content. High-definition, action-packed visuals that capture the essence of both the sport and your brand can make a huge impact. Are we witnessing a new era where wine not only complements a meal but also the big game? #WineMarketing #WineIndustry #WineVideo #MotionGraphics #Animation

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Good-Bye Streaming Wars, Hello Retail Wars A lot of people are asking the question: why is Saks buying Neiman Marcus? They are old retail brands. But, to be honest, they are two of the bigger brands on LTK in affiliate marketing and the audience that follow those brands have huge purchase power. Gen X, Millennials, and potentially even older Gen Z have an affinity for the brands. As online commerce takes over the retail world, the tech companies are beginning to stake their claim. Amazon bought MGM for the IP library, and I believe they are part of the Saks/Neiman's deal for the same reason. Retail IP that aggregates high end brands.  One of our clients, Anna Daly, drove $30K worth of sales for Saks on LTK through 18K clicks. That's a pretty solid number for one of the brands that she pushes on LTK whose platform has over 40M active consumers.  Having said that, Ash & Em drove $334K worth of commerce across their Amazon shopping in the same time period. Now, with further incentives given to them for Saks and Neimans, that would be very big for Amazon as they begin to aggregate the buyers through their Affiliate sales program. What happened with Tech companies buying up studios, might be happening with retail. Look at how Amazon uses Whole Foods for returns. That also brings foot traffic to Whole Foods. I'm sure you will soon be able to do Amazon returns to Saks and Neimans.  More foot traffic and more upsells while there.  Retail sales driven through LTK creators making content is over $4.1B.  I wonder if LTK will begin targeting to acquire some retail brands to make them exclusive on their platform or overall deals with some top performing creators, much like Netflix made deals with big show runners like Ryan Murphy and Shonda Rhimes for content.  While we still don't know how Amazon will strategize with the two retail IP's, will there be a race to acquire retail brands or make exclusive deals with strong affiliate marketers on these shopping networks? I believe this is just the beginning. Thoughts? #influencermarketing #creatoreconomy #onlineretail

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Creator, Inc. As the Paramount saga personifies, Corporate Media will continue to contract. As it does, the Creator Economy will fill that void - scooping up the audiences, revenues, and influence Hollywood leaves behind. To understand why and how, you must understand the full extent of the expanding Creator industry and the rules by which it runs. Rule #1: Influencer Marketing is just a part of the Creator Economy. As the chart below shows, MOST of the world's biggest influencers were the world's biggest musicians, actors, chefs, artists, models, athletes, or gamers FIRST. Conversely, most who rise to stardom AS influencers, then build substantial businesses around themselves. Emma Chamberlain started as a teen influencer, hosts a popular podcast, owns a coffee company, and now makes at least $20 mil per year. Jake Paul is now the best known boxer on the planet, who just launched a body-care product line for men. Matt Rife is one of the industry's most successful professional comedian (which is impressive, considering he is also wholly unfunny). Mr. Beast is perhaps the biggest star on earth, and just sold a game show to Amazon for $100 million, after a massive bidding war among the streamers. Ryan Kaji started on YouTube at just 4 years old. Ryan’s World is now THE MOST PROFITABLE channel on YouTube, generating $250 million per year, JUST from MERCH. This summer, Kaji and his partners at pocket.watch are self-releasing a feature film, starring Ryan, on 2500 screens. Taylor Swift did the same last year with her Eras Tour Movie, now the highest grossing concert film in history. That’s small potatoes compared to her industry-defining Creator play: Re-recording her catalog to claim total ownership of her music. Beast’s game show (the most expensive ever sold), Jake Paul’s swelling business empire, Dude Perfect’s production studio (which just raised $100 million btw), Minecraft Creator Aphmau’s CatFace Inc., Kaji’s Sunshine Entertainment, Smartless Media, Rhett & Link’s Mythical Entertainment, and a growing list of Creator-led companies, are now hiring hundreds of mainstream Media exiles. THIS is why Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity partnered with Viral Nation to take on VidCon this summer and start its own Creator Fest. As Joe Gagliese, Viral Nation founder said: “It’s about celebrating the Creators themselves as new media stars.” Rule #2: Despite all the hype, the Creator Economy is still on the ground floor. There is still so much great real estate available on the beachfront of the Creator universe. And the water is nice! There's plenty more room here for artists, producers, editors, agents, managers, writers, designers, directors, gamers, marketers, and yes, even lawyers. For a complete list of #CreatorEconomy rules, dip your toe in and hit the link: https://lnkd.in/e3GT8M4m #influencermarketing #advertising #media #canneslions #vidcon

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Here’s a hot take on everything happening at Paramount right now from an actual employee and you might be surprised by what I say: Watch the Kids’ Choice Awards this Saturday on Nickelodeon as we kick off SpongeBob’s 25th anniversary. This year’s event is truly special, and I’m especially proud of our work with influencers, even if I had to write some clickbait to get you to read about it. Amidst all the headlines, there's amazing work being done. We didn’t just slot them into #Ad campaigns; we created opportunities that play to their strengths. I can’t wait to see it all unfold on social media this week and weekend. Here are some fun highlights: • 350 creators at the awards, reaching over 2.5 billion on social media. • First-ever creator-exclusive pre-party celebrating SpongeBob. • Physical SpongeBob tributes from four top creators. • Orange Carpet and Creator Party livestreams, hosted by top creators. • Nickelodeon social, hosted by a top creator. • Social-style show bumpers with creators making cool SpongeBob content. • Revealing our SpongeBob TikTok Creator Consultant after a huge search. • A Roblox experience in our SpongeBob game featuring creators’ favorite moments from the show, with each creator turned into a Bottomite in the game. Thanks to the entire team for the incredible work leading up to the show this week! We love creators, and we know creators love SpongeBob. This is the perfect kickoff to our big campaign. #CreateLikeASponge

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YouTube Killed the TV Star For years, I’ve been telling you YouTube is the biggest TELEVISION network on TV - and one with an unparalleled advanced TV audience advertising machine. https://lnkd.in/eAykCjRa I’ve been warning y’all in the TV business that your TRUE competition now is NOT each other, but rather Google’s CTV Death Star. Seems Google liked that pitch, and turned it into their #Upfront presentation: “Other media companies unveil new TV shows coming to their services. YouTube used the stage to boast about its massive reach and engagement relative to traditional TV. YouTube‘s message to Madison Avenue: The video giant isn’t traditional TV. It’s bigger (with literally billions of viewers) and better at targeting relevant audiences.” https://lnkd.in/e_G-pZXy This week I dissected Nielsen’s new look Gauge, which breaks down TV viewing by publisher - across all platforms. https://lnkd.in/gaBZ3KfC With this analysis (my version below) YouTube comes in second for total monthly viewing. But, note, it takes ALL of The Walt Disney Company & Disney Streaming combined (ABC, ESPN, Disney+, Hulu) to best The Tube. It took ALL of NBCUniversal (NBC, Bravo, USA, Telemundo, MSNBC, Peacock), all of Paramount (Pluto TV, Paramount+, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, et al), and all of Disco Bros (TBS, TBT, MAX) to LOSE to YouTube. YouTube’s one, simple, massive app is by far the number one channel… ON TV. It’s the first stop on CTVs for most TV viewers under 35 and, everyday, more and more audiences over 36 too. And, crucially, they are better at video advertising than every other TV platform in the game - catering equally well to massive budgets from P&G and local pocketbook budgets from Mom & Pop Shops. Many in the TV ad biz will obsess this week over Netflix’s fancy shmancy Upfront and their Christmas NFL games. But Netflix’s total viewing (see below) is FAR off the competitive set - ESPECIALLY considering only 7% of their viewing is on the ad tier where viewers can (get this) see ads. (Kinda important in the Upfront.) But YouTube also had the NFL - and the NBA - at their presentation. More importantly, on their Upfront stage, YouTube represented the fastest growing segment of entertainment - The Creator Economy. While other TV platforms trotted out traditional Hollywood celebs to talk about a new wave of TV shows, YouTube brought out the biggest stars in the world that you’ve never heard of - Haley Kalil, Cleo Abram, Kinigra Deon, Ryan Trahan, Taty Cokley, Sydney Morgan, Zach King, Valkyrae. These new TV stars don’t just make shows, they command communities - in ways that limited series and procedural dramas never will. TV is not changing. It changed. Years ago. You may have missed it. But don’t worry, I’m sure there’s a video on YouTube about it, so you catch up.

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Summer Series 2024 with #GCCPortfolio and GrowthPlay Alycia Sutor How Pets Combat Loneliness Owning a pet can be especially beneficial in reducing social isolation. Pets provide companionship and can serve as a bridge to connect individuals who might otherwise be more isolated. Providing companionship and unconditional love pets help us fight depression, improve our mood and outlook, facilitate healing, increase resiliency, plus bring distraction. Research has even shown that dog and cat owners laugh more daily than people without pets. They can give a person a sense of purpose and allow them to talk to someone that will respond in a loving & kind way. Pets are the best listeners! Question: What was the name of your first pet? Check out our Howl of Fame https://1l.ink/QXLBRR2

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Deepna Devkar, Ph.D. what a treat having you on the podcast! If you’ve ever wondered what goes into building your personalised experience on Max, this is the episode for you. Tune in to hear from one of the minds leading the build of the platform experience!

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So what can #artsmarketers learn from this? Does the adage “even bad press is good press” work anymore? There is almost just as much #impact with this as with any other news announcements. However, doesn’t this negatively impact their #brandloyalty even with their usual #targetaudience who is the majority of the #creativearts sector?

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🌟 Just published a new blog! 🌟 Join me on my journey of self-discovery and growth as an artist, entrepreneur, and creator. Embrace the continuous cycle of transformation and find fulfillment. Read: https://lnkd.in/gSvaE5Ak #PersonalGrowth #CreativeJourney #Entrepreneurship #Blogging #ArtistLife

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A good op ed about our entertainment industry - written in the tone of defeat and mild snark that defines the film industry these days. The fact is no matter how excited the top 1 % earners in our business get about our movie and streamer industry - it s - u - x out there and there is little light at the end of the tunnel except the existing 1% who make sure they get ALL the jobs. I have a female 1% er attached to one of my projects- the studios arent even taking pitch meetings. Wall St is turned off by the CEO’s, we honestly couldn’t, as the people and faces of industry sustain the strike following Covid. It has hurt everyone financially deeply, coupled with the impact of AI. There does need to be a government bail out. It is a rapidly rapidly declining industry, still miles behind pay parity for women, whereas others industries are hopping economically and in pay parity!!! If anyone here wants to rattle and shake DM me but be aware it’s time to jump out of the pot! Skydance deal: Shari Redstone, David Ellison agree to merger terms.

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After YouTube, TubiTV is the fastest growing streaming service In the US. Puck News' podcast, "The Powers That Be", discusses the key factors behind its success and then takes a look at the fortunes of HBO/Max. My takeaways: - Discoverability -> Engagement -> increased ad revenue/lower churn rate - "Old Programming" represents a very significant opportunity for both streamers and advertisers - The road ahead will be different than the road already traveled Stormcast Cinema's average session times for our Western Mania and Amazing Classics channels are well over 2x the industry average, showing that a combination of classic movies and custom app design brings a highly engaged audience.

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🔔 Exciting insights from the world of sonic branding! 🎶 Companies like Intel, McDonald's, NBC, TD Bank, and Netflix have mastered the art of the sonic logo, creating iconic sounds that enhance brand recognition and evoke strong emotional responses. From Intel's unmistakable "bong" to the catchy McDonald's "I'm Lovin' It" tune, these sounds are designed to capture attention and linger in the memory, proving pivotal as brands navigate the sound-on digital landscape. Dive deeper into how these sonic logos were crafted and their impact on brand identity! https://lnkd.in/gdwhpugX

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People who expect AI to be this "one and done", you just push a button and "da-tah!" it's done, are TOTALLY missing the point. The actually process is supremely janky with tons of trial and error. It's a creative process with the human very much in the loop, as illustrated in this very informative post by Kyle Shannon. 👇

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I'm happy to announce that my original TV pilot screenplay, PROSPERITY, was awarded a semi-finalist spot in Filmmatic's drama competition! PROSPERITY is now listed in the top 5% of all projects on Coverfly. Jen Grisanti, a writing coach and story consultant was pivotal early on in the process. Writing on the side and continuing to find inspiration, while being a full-time business owner, especially in the age of AI, is not easy. But I continue to do it for the love of bringing forth my vision. When you truly love what you're doing, while you're doing it, and realize it as what it is, a Divine gift, nothing can stand between you and your vision. No matter how easy it gets to seemingly create via AI (and will continue to get easier), there's always room for your human vision to influence it. After all, it was trained on human creation and human intelligence. Even in a new coming world filled with instantly prompted niche movies, people will crave something human-centric. Something they can empathize with, identify with, and feel inspired by the journey they're taken on by a human-centric hero. I truly believe nothing will replace human creativity. As long as humans are watching, reading and paying attention to a hero's journey, nothing will replace that human-centric story. #screenwriting #screenwriter #entrepreneur #marketing #storyteller

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Benjamin Mullin and James B. Stewart wrote the piece that everyone in Media will be passing around this week, in The New York Times. free link: https://lnkd.in/e7BjA85t It's a great read, based on five months of interviews with IAC icon Barry Diller, Comcast second-gen CEO Brian Roberts, Netflix co-creator Ted Sarandos, Disco Bros master John Malone, Amazon content head/grizzled streamer Mike Hoskins, TV rebel Jason Kilar, and more. What's fascinating is how long its taken the moguls to realize things that've been obvious to others for some time: - 200 million global subs is the low water mark to compete in streaming now. - Very expensive Sports are now the price of entry. - Ads matter. (Seriously, uh-duh‽) - "The once-unthinkable possibility: there will be only three or four streaming survivors." Netflix and Amazon are two. Between earnings calls and these pretty revealing interviews, we are seeing inside the mindset of those driving Media. However, with few exceptions, it seems they are chasing events rather than steering them. #streaming #advertising #churn

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