- 4 hours ago
In today’s entertainment landscape, content creators are no longer just influencers—they’re filmmakers, actors, and industry disruptors. This panel will explore how digital creators have successfully transformed their online audiences into real-world opportunities, using platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram as stepping stones into Hollywood. From viral sketches to streaming deals, we’ll break down how social media stars are redefining storytelling, securing major roles, and shifting the traditional paths to success in the entertainment industry. Join us as we dive into the power of digital influence and its undeniable impact on the future of film and television."""
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Y'all ready for the next one?
00:02Okay, we're going to get right to it.
00:03We're going to get right to it.
00:07We're going to get right to it.
00:08We're going to get right to it.
00:09Okay, so in this next panel,
00:11you're going to hear all about how digital creators
00:14have successfully transformed their online audiences
00:18into real-world opportunities
00:21using platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram
00:24as stepping stones into Hollywood.
00:28Joining us for that conversation is going to be
00:31host, entrepreneur, and content creator, Drea Okeke,
00:35entertainer, comedian, and author, Kev Onstage.
00:39I believe, wait, I'm sorry.
00:42That's not right.
00:43That's author Kev Onstage.
00:47Yeah, Kev Onstage.
00:49And always civil founder and strategist, Karen Civil,
00:54as well as Essence Senior Director of Talent Engagement,
00:58Darren Ricks.
01:00Give it up.
01:05Do-do-do-do-do-do-do-do.
01:14What's up, what's up?
01:15All right, how's everybody doing?
01:22I have no worries.
01:23Welcome, welcome.
01:24Looking good, looking good, L.A.
01:26So we'll get this and get right into things.
01:29First, we have coming to the stage,
01:30we have Andrea Okeke.
01:33Hello.
01:33Andrea knows best.
01:34Hello, hello.
01:36Everybody knows him as Kev Onstage, Kevin Fredericks.
01:39Hello, hello.
01:39Hello.
01:41It's Steve.
01:41And lady, one of the things as well, Karen Civil.
01:46Hello, hello.
01:48So really excited for this conversation
01:50as these are all people I've actually had the pleasure
01:53and privilege to work with across my time and career and such.
01:58So really excited to dive into this conversation.
02:00How y'all feeling?
02:02Good.
02:02All right.
02:03Can you hear me?
02:05You can?
02:06Okay.
02:06How about me?
02:07Can I hear?
02:07Yeah, I can hear myself.
02:08Cool.
02:09Hello, hello.
02:10All right.
02:11So first I want to ask each of you
02:14just to kind of share what your role in content creation is
02:18and how that plays a journey,
02:21how that journey has played out of your professional career.
02:24Drea?
02:25Hey, y'all.
02:26My name is Drea.
02:27If you don't know me, Drea knows best online.
02:30Content creation has played a huge, huge role in my life.
02:34Before I was Drea knows best, the content creator,
02:37I was Drea the engineer.
02:39So I quit my engineering job to pursue content creation full-time in 2018.
02:45And if you know anything about me, I got African parents,
02:47Dr. Lawyer engineer.
02:49I fulfilled the engineer, and then I was like,
02:50no, I want to be a creator.
02:52And, you know, when God puts something in your heart,
02:54you're very passionate about, you know,
02:55making people laugh and bringing humor
02:57and just being a light to people and sharing stories,
03:01especially about my culture.
03:02I wanted to use my platform as an outlet
03:05to be able to spread what I love.
03:07And thankfully, I've been able to do a lot of great things
03:11through my platform online,
03:13from making the Forbes list as a top creator two years in a row,
03:17hosting on red carpets for BET,
03:19the Oscars, and so on and so forth.
03:21It's been a blessing,
03:22and I don't think I'll be able to do that
03:24if I didn't choose myself, my passion and authenticity,
03:28and show up authentically online as myself.
03:32So I'm very grateful for social media, for sure.
03:35Karen?
03:36Oh, can you repeat the question?
03:37I was, like, so indifferent to what she was saying.
03:39Just tell us how, you know,
03:43the role that content creation has played
03:44in your professional journey.
03:46Okay, so content, social media, digital,
03:50is just a big part of who I am, just my identity.
03:55Similar to kind of what you were saying,
03:57I come from a Haitian-American household.
04:00You either have to be a doctor or some sort of nurse,
04:03and I really, really cared about social media
04:06for the pretenses of there wasn't people
04:09I really got along with, like, in my community.
04:12I was a Haitian-Dominican girl who liked the Bakshi boys.
04:17Everybody wasn't picking up what I was trying to put down,
04:20so I would go online to find my core group
04:22and people that I, like, I had things in connection with,
04:25and from there, creating websites, you know,
04:29creating one of the biggest Bakshi boy fan websites,
04:31creating one for J.D. Williams,
04:33but then realizing that community that I created online
04:36can help me start, like, my career, my goals,
04:40things I wanted to do where it was still a question
04:43on what exactly it's going to be,
04:44but it gave me the trial and error that I needed
04:47to actually start,
04:49to, like, try out for Funkmaster Flex's apprentice contest,
04:55excuse me, Angie Martinez's apprentice contest,
04:57not coming in, not winning,
04:59but coming in third to then get, you know,
05:01an entrepreneurship with Funkmaster Flex.
05:04So the different things,
05:05it really was just my start,
05:06and I'm super excited.
05:08Like, I tell people, like, where do I start?
05:10Just start.
05:11Like, have the conversation.
05:12Know what you want to push out there.
05:13Have the dialogue.
05:14But that was the biggest part for me,
05:16was it helps me get outside of my community.
05:19Love that, love that.
05:20And before we get to Kev,
05:20I just want to say shout-out to the diaspora,
05:22you know, both of y'all represent here
05:24and hollering it down.
05:26Kev, let's have at it.
05:28My parents are just regular Black,
05:29so they didn't expect...
05:31Good Black.
05:32I just had to get a good job,
05:33a government job, state,
05:35a university, military,
05:37they would have been happy with that.
05:38I got a job at the bank,
05:40and they were like,
05:40my baby, he working,
05:41he's a personal banker.
05:42They were very proud of that.
05:44They didn't have expectations
05:45like your parents did,
05:46which is good.
05:47I use content creation.
05:49To me, it's like the coal in the engine
05:50of everything else that I do.
05:53The platforms that don't pay,
05:55it's like a mixtape.
05:56Every day, I want to let you know
05:57that I'm funny,
05:58funny, funny, funny, funny, funny,
06:00so that when I'm coming to your city,
06:01you might come to a show.
06:03And then there's monetizable content
06:05like podcasts or Patreon
06:07or long-form video.
06:11So I basically use all of it.
06:13Not all platforms pay.
06:14Some do Facebook, Instagram, YouTube,
06:16TikTok, but Twitter doesn't pay
06:19or doesn't pay like that.
06:20So if I'm not getting paid to make it,
06:23then I'm trying to monetize you
06:24in another way
06:25or convince you to join my Patreon
06:26or come to a show or buy a T-shirt.
06:28So it's basically a calling card
06:30to become a fan of mine
06:32and hopefully rock with me
06:34in another place
06:34where there's money involved.
06:37And even if that's free,
06:38you're watching my YouTube video,
06:39it doesn't cost you anything,
06:41but the platform pays me.
06:43Then it's technically free for you,
06:44but profitable for me.
06:48Can y'all hear them in the back?
06:49I was going to say, yeah.
06:50Hey, y'all,
06:51we can hear y'all more
06:53than we can hear ourselves.
06:55Amen.
06:55We black, y'all.
06:58I ain't even mad.
06:59We just black.
07:00We don't know how to be quiet.
07:01They was playing spades over there.
07:02I was like, god, y'all.
07:04We know it's a reunion, y'all.
07:05There was a lot of cousins back there
07:07everywhere, all good, all good.
07:09So if you're anything like me,
07:13you know,
07:13I might take the content,
07:15I'll, you know,
07:16be out and about
07:17shooting different things,
07:18and then I, like,
07:19scroll through it,
07:21half of it,
07:2275% of it actually
07:23never makes the feed.
07:24It never makes it
07:24out to the world.
07:27For you,
07:28let's say,
07:29Drea,
07:29what are some parameters
07:30that what you think
07:31makes good content,
07:33and how do you decide
07:34what actually makes it
07:35on the feed?
07:36Okay, I have two answers to this.
07:38I feel like, one,
07:39we tend to overthink
07:40and try to overplan our content.
07:42I do sometimes.
07:44But what you might find out
07:46is that content
07:47that you just was like,
07:48oh, this was a great moment.
07:49Me and my girl Kiki,
07:50let me just post this.
07:51Turns out,
07:52that one that you don't overplan
07:53might be the one
07:54that goes super viral
07:55or resonates with most people.
07:57I believe that the best content,
08:00when I'm going to post,
08:01I'm like,
08:02is my content
08:02emotionally provoking?
08:04Like, am I providing
08:05some type of emotion
08:06for somebody?
08:07Is it entertaining?
08:08Is it engaging?
08:10If it's not one of those three,
08:11then I'm not posting it.
08:12Because the most important thing
08:13is I want to provide value
08:14for people.
08:15Like, when I first started
08:16doing my series
08:17where I teach people
08:17Nigerian slangs,
08:18it was just my friends
08:19were in the room,
08:20and you know Africans.
08:21We love to make everybody
08:22be part of our culture.
08:23So I'm like, okay,
08:24hey, friends,
08:25say no wahala,
08:26which means no problem, right?
08:27And my friends said it,
08:28and I'm like,
08:29ha ha, this is funny.
08:30I had a video of my friends
08:31saying Nigerian slangs.
08:32I posted it,
08:33and I'm like, hold on.
08:34A lot of people
08:35resonate with this.
08:36A lot of people like this.
08:38Let me make more.
08:38Let me make part two,
08:39part three, part four.
08:40And then I created a series.
08:42So I think for me,
08:43when it comes to content,
08:44I don't like to think too much.
08:45My brain,
08:46I have too many things
08:46to think about, adulting.
08:47So I'm like,
08:48if I can create a series
08:49and it works,
08:51if it ain't broke,
08:51don't fix it.
08:52Do more of that.
08:53So definitely entertaining,
08:55some type of emotion,
08:56provide value to somebody.
08:57If you do,
08:58there's no way that
08:59someone is not going to
09:00come back to your page,
09:01like, comment, follow, subscribe,
09:03if you're providing value.
09:06Kev, what's your thoughts on that?
09:08I am a throw-it-all-against-the-wall
09:10type of person.
09:11I also think that depends
09:12on where you place it.
09:13Like, I just started yapping
09:15on TikTok, like, last week.
09:17Literally, I've watched creators
09:19who do not care,
09:20and I put all this thought,
09:22like, oh, I want this to do well,
09:23I want this to do well,
09:23and the algorithm really chooses
09:25what does well or not.
09:26I mean your audience as well.
09:27But for TikTok,
09:29I might yap and throw up everything.
09:30Instagram stories,
09:31who cares, it's going nowhere.
09:32Twitter, I just tweet.
09:34Instagram or Facebook,
09:36I probably curate that
09:38a little bit more.
09:39But also, I do a lot of,
09:41I mean, I don't,
09:42I'm going to let y'all
09:43into a little secret.
09:45I do a lot of data testing
09:47on my own, A-B testing.
09:49I'll test something out
09:49in my Instagram stories
09:50if it does well,
09:51then I'll put it on my main grid.
09:53I'll test something
09:53with a caption,
09:54with no caption.
09:55I'll do a lot of A-B testing
09:56and then delete the one
09:57that doesn't do as well.
09:58So I'd be putting
10:00the science behind it.
10:01But at the end of the day,
10:02if I shot it and edited it,
10:03it's somebody going to see it.
10:05Because what's the point
10:07of holding on to it?
10:08As long as it's not reckless
10:09or embarrassing me
10:10or my community,
10:11I think sometimes
10:12I'm really talking
10:13to myself as well.
10:14Sometimes I'd be like,
10:15this ain't really do that well,
10:16and it'd be like 50,000 views.
10:18And I remember the times
10:19when like 100 views
10:21was like,
10:21can we say nigga?
10:22Man, we made it.
10:26100 views was a lot.
10:28So now what was really a lot
10:29I've made small.
10:31But what I realized is
10:32when I watch
10:33other people's videos,
10:34it doesn't have to have
10:34a lot of views
10:35for me to enjoy it.
10:36Like if I liked it,
10:37it doesn't matter
10:38what other people thought.
10:39So lately I've been
10:40letting them fly a lot more
10:41because if somebody enjoys it,
10:42you know,
10:42that's one person I made laugh.
10:44That's one person
10:44who is either more
10:46of a fan of me
10:46or a new fan of me.
10:47I just think of it that way
10:48as opposed to
10:49how well it did.
10:50And I want to add
10:51to what you just said,
10:52like if it gets 100 views,
10:53I saw this post about like
10:55if your video got 10 views,
10:56you have 10 people in a room,
10:57that's a full room.
10:58100 people,
10:59that's a lot of people
11:00in a room.
11:001,000 people,
11:01that's even a lot of people
11:02if you put them in your room,
11:03all y'all going to be squashed.
11:04So I think it's a mindset thing
11:06because sometimes
11:06we look at a video like,
11:08oh, I only got 100 likes,
11:09I only got one like,
11:10my mom and my friend.
11:12But at the end of the day,
11:13like try to remove yourself
11:15from the views
11:16and look at the comment section.
11:18What are people commenting
11:19on that video?
11:20If they commented like,
11:21oh my God,
11:21this was so valuable,
11:23then okay,
11:24even if it only has 10 likes,
11:26I provide a value.
11:28Let me post more of that.
11:29So if we get ourself
11:30out of that mindset
11:31of like views,
11:32likes, shares, comments,
11:33look at the saves.
11:34That's what y'all should look at
11:35because some people
11:36would not like your video,
11:38but they will save it
11:38and come back to it.
11:39So that's some tea right there.
11:42I love what you just said
11:43in terms of,
11:44you know,
11:45the number of views,
11:47whether it be 10,
11:471,000,
11:48I think perspective
11:49is everything.
11:50And I think that's
11:50with life in general,
11:51just like,
11:52you know,
11:52maintaining a good perspective,
11:54y'all looking
11:54and staying on the positive side
11:56of that for real
11:57in anything that you're doing.
11:59So Karen,
11:59as the strategist here,
12:01let's talk about
12:02how important it is
12:04to have a presence
12:05across more than one
12:06social media platform.
12:07And if your goal
12:08is to step,
12:09to use these platforms
12:10as a stepping stone
12:11into film or TV,
12:12what do you think
12:13that strategy is?
12:15I want to say
12:17first and foremost,
12:17it's definitely important
12:18to have one.
12:19A lot of,
12:20like,
12:20talent that I work with,
12:22they want,
12:23it's like they want
12:24to bring me on,
12:24but then they want
12:25to keep this mystique of,
12:27oh,
12:27I don't really want
12:27to post on Instagram.
12:28I don't want to do this.
12:29I don't want to do that.
12:30I'm like,
12:30each platform,
12:31you can have
12:32a different strategy
12:33and make it work.
12:34So you have to understand,
12:36like,
12:36these are your fans,
12:38right?
12:39Or people who happen
12:40to like you.
12:40You want to turn them
12:41into loyalists.
12:42You want to turn
12:43those loyalists
12:43into buyers,
12:45right?
12:46And it's a whole process.
12:48So when you think,
12:49okay,
12:49I don't want to post it all,
12:51how are they supposed
12:51to know what you got going on?
12:53What this BTS looks like?
12:55Or just what you may be working
12:56on building into something
12:58and not necessarily
12:59just dropping it?
13:00Somebody who I love to watch
13:02who does great
13:03is Tyler,
13:03the creator.
13:04This is someone now
13:05where in this fast,
13:08microwavable age
13:09where people think,
13:10okay,
13:10I put out an album
13:11on Tuesday
13:12and that's it.
13:14I'm going to stop promoting.
13:15I posted about it twice
13:17and I'm done.
13:17He put out an album,
13:19what was it,
13:19last year?
13:20He's still promoting it,
13:21still putting out,
13:21still giving you the singles
13:22and things like that.
13:24So each platform
13:24will be different.
13:26So yes,
13:26there may be
13:27limited conversation,
13:28certain things
13:29with like talent
13:29I work with.
13:30They may say,
13:31okay,
13:31these are my tour dates
13:32or something as important
13:34on Twitter.
13:35Instagram is where
13:36you put those images.
13:37They get to see
13:38what's going on.
13:38You can put the BTS,
13:40whatever it is.
13:41Something like TikTok,
13:42to me,
13:43that's a more friendlier
13:44like letting people
13:46behind the velvet rope
13:47to see how you maneuver
13:48and things.
13:49That doesn't need
13:50to be super curated content.
13:52That's a place
13:53where you can just have fun,
13:54let your guard down
13:55and things from there
13:56and then say something
13:57like Facebook,
13:58depending on how
13:59you have it set up.
14:00These are all
14:01monetizable platforms.
14:03So your updates,
14:04things that may have
14:04happened to you
14:05in the past,
14:06like your anniversaries
14:07and things like that.
14:08So at times
14:08a lot of the talent
14:09may not be on there
14:10but we have a company
14:13that does it for them
14:14to keep them in the loop
14:15because these are all
14:16monetizable platforms
14:18and whether they understand
14:19the importance of it or not
14:20but it's like
14:21you're making anywhere
14:22from $50,000 to $250,000
14:24a month
14:25off of,
14:26face off of
14:27any of these meta platforms.
14:29A month?
14:30Yeah.
14:31I need to get all
14:32the platforms now.
14:33Let me get it together.
14:34No, definitely.
14:36So Kev is the guy
14:38who said,
14:38you know,
14:38you kind of
14:40throw it all up
14:40against the wall.
14:41Tell us how
14:42you think,
14:44you know,
14:44pitching your social content
14:46directly through things
14:48like tagging
14:50or DMs
14:51versus creating
14:52and let the opportunities
14:53find you organically.
14:54I have never pitched
14:56or DM a video
14:57I've made to anybody
14:58in my life.
14:59I'm too prideful.
15:00I can't do it.
15:01I'm not even saying
15:02this is right.
15:02I just will not.
15:04I cannot.
15:05I hope it finds you
15:07and I hope
15:08your friend
15:09sends it to you.
15:10That's a more
15:11strong pitch
15:12but my ego
15:13will not allow it.
15:15I'm sorry
15:15if that's not
15:16the correct answer
15:16but that is the truth.
15:18It's worked.
15:19It's worked for you.
15:20I can't do it.
15:20I'm too competitive.
15:22Like,
15:23bro,
15:23who do you think you are?
15:24Even if you're
15:25the subject of the video,
15:26I would never send it to you.
15:27I would hope your mom
15:28sends it and be like,
15:29did you see what Kev said?
15:30That's my goal.
15:31Drea,
15:32what's worked for you
15:33and your success?
15:35I pitch.
15:36This is not a,
15:37that was not a,
15:38you do what you,
15:39what works for you,
15:40Drea.
15:40I have no pride.
15:42Okay,
15:43well,
15:44you are right.
15:46Everyone has different strategies
15:47and do what works for you.
15:49When I first started,
15:50I was very hungry
15:52and I'm like,
15:56you know when you just know
15:57you're good at something
15:57and you feel like people
15:58need to see it?
15:59So I wouldn't just say,
16:00hey,
16:01work with me.
16:02That's not good enough.
16:03I will send a link
16:03of a video that is like
16:04very good quality
16:05that shows like,
16:06oh my God,
16:06this girl knows how to tell
16:07a good story.
16:08She's funny.
16:09She knows how to edit.
16:10She's very like good at her craft.
16:11I can see,
16:13because one thing I know
16:13is like when I make videos,
16:15especially when I'm doing
16:16like sketch comedy,
16:17I try to make my video
16:18in a way that
16:19if I'm a brand,
16:20I can see where I can
16:21put product placement in.
16:22And that was like for me,
16:23one of the first brands
16:24I worked with,
16:25major brand ambassador position
16:26I got was with Nissan.
16:28My first car was a Nissan,
16:30so when I used to make skits,
16:31the Nissan was always
16:32in there now.
16:32And the Nissan Altima,
16:332007,
16:34run down,
16:35broken.
16:35But you know,
16:36it was getting me
16:36from point A to point B
16:37to hustle.
16:38I really wanted
16:39brand collaboration,
16:40but these brands
16:41were not seeing me,
16:41so I'll go on LinkedIn.
16:42I'll DM them on LinkedIn.
16:44If they don't answer,
16:45I'll DM them on Instagram.
16:47I'm very stalkery,
16:48but you know.
16:49But with Nissan,
16:51they finally came around
16:52and worked with me
16:53and ended up
16:55giving me a car
16:55and I became
16:56their brand ambassador
16:57to work with them.
16:59I think I might start
17:01like DMing
17:02and pitching people.
17:03I didn't really,
17:04I didn't know
17:04how far it could go.
17:05He's like giving out cars.
17:06Yeah, I didn't know.
17:07I got like a gift card
17:08at Waffle House one time,
17:09but I didn't know
17:09like a full car
17:10was possible.
17:11It goes down
17:12in the DM.
17:14But yeah,
17:15so again,
17:16whatever works for you.
17:17Some people,
17:18because I feel like
17:19especially with creators
17:20of color too,
17:21and this is one thing
17:21I fight for,
17:22is that injustice
17:23of like a lot of creators
17:24of color get overlooked
17:25and even creators
17:26that have huge engagements
17:28that get overlooked
17:28because they'll go
17:30and see another creator,
17:31you know,
17:31blonde hair,
17:32blue eyes,
17:32whatever,
17:33when it's like
17:33sometimes they're not
17:35going to see you,
17:35so you have to go out there.
17:36There's a lot of great agencies,
17:38you know,
17:38your agency,
17:39other agencies
17:39that actually represent
17:40multicultural people,
17:42so if they're not
17:43seeing you,
17:43be like,
17:44hey,
17:44do you not see me?
17:46Like,
17:46come work with me
17:47because closed mouths
17:48don't get fed
17:49and you only get in life
17:50what you asked for.
17:52So Karen,
17:53as someone who's worked
17:53on both the brand side
17:54and as well as with,
17:56you know,
17:56different creators
17:57and talent,
17:58what's your thoughts there?
17:59I'm with you
18:00with pitching.
18:02For myself,
18:03just on a creative level,
18:06like,
18:06for instance,
18:07even just coming
18:08to California,
18:09at the time,
18:11Beats by Dre
18:12was owned by Monster.
18:13I reached out to them
18:14and said,
18:15hey,
18:15I would love to come
18:16to one of your events,
18:17I would X, Y, Z,
18:19and I did that
18:19with the intention
18:20of understanding
18:21and knowing
18:21I am a black female
18:23in this blogger,
18:25quote-unquote,
18:25space.
18:26It's really very
18:27male-dominated.
18:27It's not intentional.
18:29They may not see me
18:30and I want to make
18:31myself seen.
18:32The worst thing
18:33they can do
18:33is say no
18:34or ignore me.
18:35It's not a big deal to me.
18:36I just move on
18:36to the next.
18:37I don't take it
18:38personal at all
18:38but they like the fact
18:40that I did reach out
18:41to them,
18:42invited me to come
18:43and then from there
18:45I built a relationship
18:46with Beats by Dre
18:47and even with them
18:48I pitched them
18:49on social,
18:50like,
18:50hey,
18:50I hate the way
18:51your social is set up.
18:53Let me give you
18:53da-da-da-da-da-da
18:54and I broke it down,
18:55send it to Omar Johnson
18:56and maybe like
18:57three months later
18:58they moved me
18:59to California
19:00and I was like
19:00their 12th employee.
19:01So I'm big on
19:03a lot of the deals,
19:04opportunities,
19:05and things that I've gotten.
19:06May it be people
19:07who work at the company,
19:08sometimes they don't know
19:09how to reach out to you.
19:10I'm big on when people are like,
19:11oh, I don't check my DM.
19:13Me?
19:13I'm checking it.
19:14I'm looking
19:14because a lot of people
19:16who work at these companies
19:17are reaching out like,
19:19hey, I love your style.
19:19I would love to figure
19:20something out.
19:21Yes, let's figure
19:22something out.
19:22Take it off social,
19:24streamline it to an email
19:25and go from there.
19:26But I wholeheartedly think
19:28it works in a sense.
19:29Just make sure
19:30that when you are pitching,
19:32it aligns with,
19:33it'll give you ROI
19:35and it'll give them
19:36brand equity
19:38in what they have going on.
19:40And it's a partnership
19:41that has to make sense.
19:42And they most likely
19:43will reach out to you.
19:44We don't get too many opportunities
19:45as black creators.
19:47We get overlooked a lot,
19:48like you said.
19:49So if I need to do something
19:51to put myself out ahead
19:52and the same thing
19:53with talent,
19:54putting them out ahead
19:56of something
19:56that they really want
19:57to make sure they get it,
19:58I'm going to go ahead
19:59and do that.
20:00So, Kev,
20:01I think we're getting
20:02these pitches together, right?
20:03Absolutely.
20:03Cars, jobs, money.
20:04I didn't know the way,
20:06obviously.
20:09So as someone
20:09with a TV show,
20:10let's give it up for Kev.
20:12The show is like,
20:13you know,
20:13on the end.
20:14Hallelujah.
20:15Was there anything
20:16that you think
20:17you started doing differently
20:19to get the attraction
20:22to get your show?
20:24As did you have
20:25a different strategy
20:25from making content
20:27to go viral
20:28versus attracting
20:29those for film
20:31or TV opportunities?
20:33I think
20:34I was pitching a show.
20:36This is one of my wife's
20:36favorite stories.
20:37Shout out to my wife,
20:38Melissa.
20:38She's on the front row.
20:39She's gorgeous.
20:41We were pitching a show
20:42about me and my brother
20:44were like,
20:45we want to do a show
20:46where we work
20:47in a funeral home.
20:48And the executive
20:49was like,
20:50okay,
20:50so what do you know
20:51about working
20:51in a funeral home?
20:52We were like,
20:52it just would be funny.
20:54Like,
20:54people would be dying
20:55and black people
20:55would be allowed
20:56in the funeral stuff.
20:57She was like,
20:58but yeah,
20:58but why would we pay you
20:59to make that show?
21:00And I was like,
21:01I don't know, man,
21:01the funniness of it.
21:03And that really sat with me.
21:05What she was saying
21:06is why would we make
21:07a show you don't
21:08know nothing about?
21:10So churchy
21:11is the thing
21:11I know the most about.
21:13I'm a church kid.
21:14I was a musician.
21:15former youth pastor.
21:17That's something
21:18that I could tell
21:19a lot of stories.
21:19But the truth of the matter
21:20is the reason churchy
21:22got made
21:22is because me
21:23and Melissa
21:23saved our money
21:24from other stuff
21:25and paid for it.
21:27And because we made
21:28eight episodes
21:29and we paid for it
21:30to look like a TV show,
21:32it was a lot easier
21:33for an executive
21:33to say,
21:34we can license this
21:35from you
21:36as opposed to
21:37we're going to develop this.
21:38Developing a TV show
21:39is much more expensive
21:40than licensing one.
21:42And then once it went on air,
21:43it was successful,
21:45it's easier to say,
21:46okay,
21:46let's make season two
21:47of something
21:47that we know work.
21:48So I think in this climate,
21:49there's so many shows
21:50that get made
21:51that don't last that long.
21:52For me,
21:53my process was
21:54let me make the show
21:55and because I pitched it
21:57all over town
21:58for years
21:59and it was like,
22:00no disrespect,
22:01but like explaining
22:02to a white man
22:03what the black church
22:05was like
22:05and him being like,
22:07oh,
22:07I don't know
22:07how middle America
22:08is going to see this.
22:10Like there's not
22:11black people
22:11in the middle of America.
22:12Chicago,
22:13St. Louis,
22:14every town I've ever been to,
22:15there's black people
22:16that live and exist there.
22:17So that's an easy way
22:18to say,
22:19are white people
22:20going to watch this?
22:21And that's not
22:21how I create.
22:22I create for the people
22:24that are like me
22:25to enjoy
22:26and that's enough
22:27for me.
22:28So I think
22:28to shorten my answer,
22:31I was able to make
22:32enough money
22:33in other ways
22:34to finance my own show
22:36and then pitch it
22:37as a licensing deal
22:38and that's how
22:38I got my foot in the door.
22:40Similar to Issa Rae
22:41and Insecure,
22:42they could see the prototype
22:43in Awkward Black Girl.
22:45I just didn't have
22:47an Awkward Black Girl.
22:48So I just made Churchy
22:50as good as I could make it
22:51and pitched it
22:53and low key,
22:53we didn't think
22:54it was going to get like,
22:54it was cold for a minute.
22:56It was cold for like a year
22:57and I was like,
22:57let me go back on the road
22:58to pay for what that just costs.
23:00And then like a year later,
23:02it worked.
23:03So you stayed true
23:04to the vision
23:05and kept putting it out
23:06and look at it,
23:08we up.
23:08Absolutely.
23:09For sure.
23:14So from a strategic standpoint,
23:18Karen, what do you think,
23:20like, do you think
23:22there's a moment
23:23that you should scale back
23:24from certain content
23:25if you're looking
23:28to get into film or TV?
23:30Like, do you think
23:30you should stop posting
23:31or scale back
23:32from posting original content
23:33on your social pages?
23:34Or what do you think
23:36a strategy is around that?
23:37Or like, just...
23:39I'm saying just
23:40a conversation now around,
23:42I don't know
23:43if you've seen it
23:43or anyone's been
23:45paying attention,
23:46but how,
23:47I forget this actress said,
23:49now they're bringing
23:49people on sets
23:50depending on how many
23:51followers they have
23:52and their engagement
23:53in one sense.
23:54And then we see
23:55seasoned actors
23:56talk about,
23:58you know,
23:58having to be in a space
23:59with people who are coming
24:00from the Instagram
24:01and from those worlds too.
24:02So with this,
24:04I say it's a twofold.
24:06Like, if you're used
24:07to creating Monday,
24:08Tuesday, Wednesday,
24:09whatever got you there,
24:11don't stop it.
24:12Continue to do that.
24:14But now,
24:14I'm really excited
24:15that we are moving
24:16into this space
24:17where, yes,
24:18I'm not going to say
24:19you can't negate
24:19going to film school
24:20and all the things
24:21that come with it,
24:22but when people now
24:23have a chance,
24:24especially our community,
24:26what I call,
24:26quote-unquote,
24:27skipping the propaganda line
24:29of a bunch of waiting
24:30and I'll call you back
24:31to get to those roles,
24:33do it,
24:34and still make the content
24:35that you can get monetized
24:36and you make money on.
24:37So I'd never tell a person
24:39to, oh, scale back
24:40while you're doing this,
24:42you know,
24:44Amazon Prime film.
24:46That's great.
24:47That'll be out
24:47in maybe seven,
24:48eight months,
24:48but till then,
24:49this content is monetized.
24:51You're making money off of it.
24:52I would never tell you
24:52to stop
24:53till you have something
24:55that's super lucrative
24:56and whatnot.
24:57So you brought up
25:02something really great
25:03talking about money
25:04and, you know,
25:05the value in which
25:06we're getting paid
25:07and such.
25:08Drea,
25:09as a content creator,
25:11now we've seen you
25:12on, you know,
25:13hosting red carpets,
25:14we see you coming up
25:15with different shows
25:16and very similar to Kev
25:18who has a show.
25:20How do you approach
25:21the conversation
25:21with understanding
25:22your value
25:23in a different space
25:24from content creator
25:26into moving into,
25:27say,
25:28hosting or such
25:29and then in a way
25:30that you don't feel
25:31like you're selling
25:31yourself short
25:32because you've worked
25:32to build your brand
25:33and such there.
25:36Say it, say it, say it.
25:38She said,
25:39add another zero.
25:41Y'all hear that.
25:42Today's price
25:43is not tomorrow's price.
25:44All right,
25:45there we go.
25:45I feel like,
25:47well, it's know your worth
25:49and add tax.
25:51That's, like, number one.
25:53I think when I think
25:54about how much
25:55I've grinded in my career
25:56and how much effort
25:57and how much quality
25:59my work is,
26:00I always try to make sure
26:01that, right now,
26:03I'm not doing negotiation
26:04because I have a manager
26:04that negotiates for me,
26:05but I try to make sure
26:06that it matches
26:06because it's very easy
26:08to be underpaid
26:09as a person of color,
26:11as a female of color
26:13in this industry.
26:14So definitely
26:15when I approach brands,
26:17I say first,
26:18I'm not going to work
26:18with a brand
26:19that I don't align with.
26:20If I'm not passionate
26:21about the brand,
26:22I can't sell the brand
26:23because what am I going to say?
26:24Oh my God,
26:24I love this product
26:25when I don't.
26:26Like, it's weird.
26:28I think for me, too,
26:29even, like, beyond just, like,
26:31when I'm thinking
26:31about hosting,
26:32I'm thinking about longevity,
26:33especially as a creator
26:34because the industry
26:36is saturated
26:37and I try to think,
26:38how can I set myself apart?
26:40So when you talk about film,
26:41I thought about, like,
26:43what my brand is.
26:44My brand is very much
26:45heavy in culture
26:46and my heritage
26:47and that's why
26:48this last year
26:49in November,
26:49I launched Savvy Slangs,
26:51which is a card game,
26:53a party card game
26:54inspired by Nigerian slangs,
26:55which is what I do
26:56teaching people online.
26:57So I'm like,
26:59I'm not just now a creator,
27:01I'm also a small business owner
27:03scaling my business.
27:04I'm also a host.
27:05So when you put
27:06all those things
27:06in a bucket,
27:07come on,
27:09come to me correct,
27:10eh?
27:10Come to me correct.
27:11So, oh, but...
27:12So respect on it.
27:13Yeah, yeah.
27:14So I think that for everybody,
27:16like, even if you're on a,
27:17you don't have
27:18the following yet,
27:19but you have quality product
27:20you're selling
27:21or you have quality work,
27:24make sure you,
27:25whatever brand
27:26you're working with,
27:27ask them, first of all,
27:28what's your budget?
27:29Don't sell yourself short.
27:30Ask them what the budget is
27:31and then if it doesn't match
27:32what you envision,
27:34tell them to multiply that.
27:36Love that.
27:38So I want to thank everybody
27:39for joining us today.
27:40But before we wrap it up,
27:42just want to let everybody,
27:43let the audience know
27:44how we can support you.
27:46Please, buy my card game,
27:47man.
27:47It's all Savvy Slangs.
27:49Jokes inside, though.
27:50If you want to support me,
27:51I am building my small business,
27:53Savvy Slangs,
27:53which is a party card game,
27:54very fun and interactive.
27:56Every time I play with my friends,
27:57it's kind of like Uno
27:58because the competitiveness is there
27:59and there's also a little bit of drama
28:01like how we play Taboo.
28:02It's all my favorite games
28:03in one place.
28:04So if you like culture,
28:05if you love fun,
28:06if you love having a good time,
28:08if you love a little bit of drama
28:09with your friends,
28:10friendly drama,
28:11Savvy Slangs is my card game
28:12I'm building
28:13and of course,
28:13always looking to collaborate
28:14any people or brands
28:16or whatever
28:16that want to help me
28:17scale this product.
28:18I'm more than open to listening.
28:20So thank you.
28:21Savvy Slangs.com.
28:22Andrea knows best is my handle.
28:24Tara?
28:28Very simple for me.
28:29So I started this group
28:31on my Instagram
28:32called Social BFFs.
28:34I'm not necessarily selling anything,
28:36but it's a community
28:38that I created
28:39for digital creatives,
28:41entrepreneurs and things.
28:42So all the information
28:44that I get when,
28:45you know,
28:46the metas,
28:46the TikToks
28:47and the Snapchats,
28:49they allow me to go
28:50to these meetings
28:50and stuff like that.
28:51I share them in this group
28:52just so you have full advantage
28:55of what's to come,
28:56how to monetize,
28:57how to use these platforms.
28:58So if you go to my Instagram,
29:00Karen Civil,
29:01you click that Social BFFs,
29:02join the group.
29:03It's free.
29:04It's just free resources
29:05and information.
29:06Consider it your digital library.
29:10Kev.
29:10Kev on stage.
29:11You can follow me everywhere
29:12and Churchy will be on BT Plus
29:15this summer,
29:16June, July, August.
29:17Yeah.
29:17Season two.
29:18Appreciate y'all.
29:20All right.
29:21Thanks, everybody.
29:22God bless you.
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