TOGETHER WITH

👉 It’s Wednesday and Facebook users are bringing back the platform’s awkwardly flirtatious ‘poke’ feature. According to Meta, the infamous tool experienced a “13x spike” in usage over the past month.

ON THE RUNWAY

Style Theory’s creator catwalk will feature shoppable collections by stars like ZHC, Cassey Ho, and Critical Role

The event: On April 25, Critical Role, ZHC, Cassey Ho of Blogilates, Yes Theory, and other creators-turned-designers will hit the runway for a revolutionary event: Creators in Fashion.

• That landmark showcase is the brainchild of Theorist Media, which is producing Creators in Fashion alongside its parent company Lunar X and Paragon Creative Agency. The event will be hosted by Game Theory creator MatPat and Style Theory creative director Amy Roberts.
  
  

• YouTube Shopping will also play a major role in the show. When Creators in Fashion hits the web next month, fans will get an up-close look at dozens of pieces from creator-designed spring/summer ’24 collections—all of which will be shoppable via QR codes.

The details: Creators in Fashion will have an in-person audience of 150 people, while online viewers will be able to catch the broadcast on Style Theory, Game Theory, and across all featured creators’ YouTube channels.

• The Style Theory team will spice up that four-hour extravaganza with in-depth fashion analysis, creator interviews, special guest commentary, and behind-the-scenes footage. According to Theorist, a mystery announcement involving “the future of the ‘fans meet creator fashion’ space” will close out the show.

The impact: In addition to his hope that Creators in Fashions will reach “the level of Fashion Week for online creators,” MatPat aims to further legitimize the role of creators in the fashion industry while raising “the profile of these entertainment production companies of the future.”

🔆 SPONSORED 🔆

What does the world’s #1 influencer talent agency look for in creators? Here’s the answer from 3 Viral Nation agents:

As a creator, having the right support system can revolutionize your career. That’s why Viral Nation Talent offers 360° creator representation—including personalized support from industry-leading agents. 

But how do those agents decide who to sign? Creators wanted to know, so we sat down with 3 Viral Nation talent agents to find out:

1. “First and foremost, a strong point of view.” 💪
Elysia Wong - Director of Fashion, Beauty & Lifestyle Talent: “If the talent has a strong point of view in whatever area they're passionate about, we can work towards having the platform numbers catch up to the talent."

2. “I look for someone who is committed to content creation.” 💯
Everett Champion, Covering Agent: Creators looking to connect with a talent agent should be committed to “finding new ways to express themselves and not being afraid to change how they approach their content.”

3. “I have three non-negotiables.” ✍️
Joanna Giunta - Director of Talent, Image: “The Talent needs to be focused on building a community that’s connected to them,” while also being “willing to invest in themselves” and “open to passing on lucrative offers with the wrong companies.”

Hit the button below to learn how Viral Nation Talent can supercharge your growth:

Take your content to new heights →

HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

• Xbox has tapped YouTube vet Leo Olebe to serve as its new VP of Global Partnerships. (Tubefilter)
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• U.K.-based Instagram beauty content creator and Made by Mitchell founder Mitchell Halliday has signed with Outshine Talent for representation in all areas. (Tubefilter)
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• Linktree has announced the release of a new “Featured Layout” tool that allows users to highlight individual links. (TechCrunch)
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• In an interview with Lex Fridman, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman confessed that he thinks the current version of ChatGPT “kind of sucks” (but he has high hopes for the next iteration). (Gizmodo)

DATA • GLOBAL TOP 50 📈

Who knew fixing pipes and patching roofs could be so satisfying?

From construction sites to assembly lines, Craftsman Vision is all about finding satisfaction in a hard day’s work.

The channel: The YouTube Shorts hub is only five months old, but its library of oddly satisfying content has already attracted 2 million subscribers and more than 2 billion views. It’s easy to see what viewers find so addictive about Craftsman Vision’s collection of welding, farming, and construction videos.

• The channel’s most popular Shorts are almost instantly gratifying to lovers of ASMR, with repetitive sounds and visuals that offer satisfying results within seconds of scrolling.
  
  

• Many of those videos have generated tens of millions of views within days of hitting YouTube. This clip, for instance, has collected more than 70 million views since March 19.

The stats: Combine that oddly satisfying approach with little-to-no dialogue and multiple daily uploads, and it’s no surprise that Craftsman Vision is on the upswing.

• The Hong Kong-based channel scored 495.5 million weekly views over the course of our last seven-day measurement period.
  
  

• That total added up to an impressive week-over-week viewership increase of 20%.
  
  

• The result: Craftsman Vision moved up three spots in our Global Top 50 chart to claim a place at #7.

DOWN TO A SCIENCE

Got dry lips? TikTok’s favorite dermatologist has a Remedy for that

Dr. Muneeb Shah is getting into the skincare business (again).

The reveal: Fans of DermDoc are in for a restorative treat. The TikTok-famous (and board-certified) dermatologist has leveraged funding from an anonymous angel investor to launch his very own line of nutrient-packed products.

• Shah currently offers three items through his newly-revealed brand, Remedy. According to the doc, those “clinically proven” products are “loaded with beneficial ingredients” and range from $16 to $38.
  
  

• Fans can expect to see more Remedy products hit the digital shelves soon, including items tailored to hair loss and under-eye circles.

The strategy: Although Shah operates a dermatology practice as part of the team at Hudson Dermatology & Laser Surgery, the creator says Remedy caters specifically to the needs, feedback, and varied financial circumstances of his TikTok fans. Shah noted that releasing pricier products would have been “disingenuous”—something his online audience “would see right through.”

The bigger picture: Shah’s decision to release a brand of his own (rather than partnering with a pre-existing skincare brand) likely gave him the ability to retain control over details like pricing—but it also comes with another advantage.

• As Colin and Samir pointed out during a recent collaboration with YouTuber Ludwig Ahgren, more and more creators are seeking to establish stand-alone brands that don’t rely on a steady output of content or an unwavering social media following to remain sustainable. Shah has similar hopes for Remedy:

WATCH THIS 📺

Bigmode’s first release is less than two months away

The publisher: Over the last decade, Dunkey’s sharp humor and biting game critiques have earned him more than 7.5 million YouTube subscribers. In 2022, the creator took that social media-fueled gaming cred to the next level by founding an indie publishing company alongside his wife.

The game: That publisher—aka Bigmode—is on the precipice of releasing its first game: a 2D platformer called Animal Well. Players can get a sense of the title’s “haunting world” and ominous vibes in a release date announcement trailer uploaded earlier this week.

• Spoiler alert: Animal Well is set to arrive on May 9.

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Today's newsletter is from: Emily Burton, Sam Gutelle, and Josh Cohen. Drew Baldwin helped edit, too. It's a team effort.