TOGETHER WITH

It’s Wednesday and if you’re still reeling from news of Amazon’s official Jeopardy spin-off, you might want to sit down for the reveal of Prime Video’s live-action Spider-Man (aka the star of Noir).

Can you say ‘Who is Nicolas Cage?’

POP POWER

‘The Taylor Swift Effect’ just sent Blogilates’ activewear brand into hyperdrive

The cameo: Swifties are sprinting to Blogilates’ Shopify storefront—and it’s all thanks to a three-second clip. On April 19, a promotional video for Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department album included a brief shot of the star playing pickleball in a ruffled purple skort.

• The statement piece in question: a lavender version of the Pirouette Skort from Popflex, an activewear line founded by Blogilates (aka fitness YouTuber Cassey Ho) in 2016.

The fan response: The impact of Popflex’s three-second cameo was almost instant. According to Ho, the brand sold out of its lavender skort within 15 minutes of Swift’s video going live. The skort’s other 12 colorways sold out shortly after, leading Popflex to open presales “for the first time ever” (per Shopify president Harley Finkelstein).

• Finkelstein illustrated the extent of that “overwhelming” sales traffic in a recent LinkedIn post, which also served to laud Shopify’s ability to “handle the demand and meet the power of the Swifties”:

The context: As the Shopify exec pointed out, the staggering impact of “The Taylor Swift Effect” is nothing new. Another small business—UK merchant Little Lies—reportedly saw a 17,000% increase in daily sales after Swift was seen wearing one of its items in January 2024 (per Finkelstein).

• Swift isn’t the only star hiking up creator revenue, either. By removing copyrights for their respective diss tracks, Kendrick Lamar and Drake have allowed creators like No Life Shaq to earn “a ridiculous amount of money” through video updates and reaction streams.

🔆 SPONSORED 🔆

What should you know before signing with a creator talent agent? We asked and Viral Nation answered:

Finding the right creator representation isn’t easy—but asking the right questions can make the process easier for both you and your potential talent agent. 

In fact, Viral Nation Senior Talent Agent Toni Rose Goulden says she loves “when creators come prepared with questions because it shows they are dedicated to their craft”:

So, what should creators ask to ensure they sign with the right agent? Here are suggestions from three industry-leading Viral Nation agents:

1. “What other talent do you represent?" (Michael Chew, Director of Comedy, Entertainment, Gaming, Music & Sports)
   
   

2. “What direction do you see my brand going in?” (Toni Rose Goulden, Senior Talent Agent)
   
   

3. “What do you look for when identifying new talent to work with?” (Cooper Short, Agent)
   
   

4. "What brands/projects have you worked with?” (Michael Chew, Director of Comedy, Entertainment, Gaming, Music & Sports)

You’ve got the questions—now it’s time to ask an agent. Visit Viral Nation’s website to find out if 360° creator representation is right for you:

Take your content to new heights →

HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

• TikTok is reportedly testing AI-generated “search highlights” powered by ChatGPT. (Tubefilter)
  

• OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever has announced his decision to leave the company after a nearly decade-long tenure. (TechCrunch)
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• Eight TikTokers have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government in the hopes of derailing the newly-passed “divest-or-ban” law. (The Verge)
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• According to Google, viewers of educational videos on YouTube will soon be able to test their knowledge with AI-generated quizzes. (TechCrunch)

DATA • GLOBAL TOP 50 📈

Mobile gaming is still a major business on YouTube

The trend: Roguelikes and Roblox games might be all the rage in the U.S., but YouTube’s global viewership still has a soft spot for more casual diversions. Data from Gospel Stats shows that mobile gaming consistently reels in major traffic across Shorts—especially when combined with a few of YouTube viewers’ other favorite things.

The chart-topper: One TikTok transplant seems to have cracked the code behind that short-form popularity. Three months ago, Turkey-based creator DERDO.00 began scoring hundreds of millions of views by marrying the simplistic style of mobile puzzle games with graphics representing viral stars like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lebron James.

• Derdo’s strategy for tapping into international audiences goes way beyond soccer iconography. The YouTuber’s dialogue-free Shorts also feature animated characters like Tom & Jerry—a duo often name-dropped in mischievous skits posted by Indian chart-toppers like KL Bro Biju Rithvik (this week’s #3 most-watched channel worldwide).

The stats: Derdo’s knack for nailing short-form trends came in handy during the second week of May.

• Over the course of our last seven-day count, the Turkish creator scored a total of 298 million views.
  
  

• That impressive sum represents a week-over-week increase of 55%.
  
  

• The result: Derdo leveled up to 19th place in our Global Top 50 chart.

READY TO RUMBLE

Rumble is gearing up to take Google to court

The lawsuit: Rumble isn’t in the mood to play Monopoly. The conservative platform—which counts pundits like Tucker Carlson among its users—has filed a lawsuit accusing Google of anticompetitive practices.

The context: Rumble hit mainstream news in 2021—when Donald Trump became an active user—and quickly capitalized on that momentum by announcing content deals with right-leaning voices like Glenn Greenwald and Tulsi Gabbard. Two years later, Rumble added a series hosted by high-profile streamers Kai Cenat and iShowSpeed (i.e. The Kai N’ Speed Show) to its growing list of offerings.

• Rumble’s new suit concerns a venture launched sometime between those two events. According to Axios, Rumble was a Google Ads client before launching its own ad center in 2022. The platform now says it missed out on “billions” in revenue due to Google’s alleged monopoly in the digital ad business.
  
  

• This isn’t Rumble’s first legal battle against the Alphabet-owned company. A previous lawsuit argues that Google search results unlawfully favor YouTube content.

Why it matters: Rumble isn’t the only party concerned about Google’s alleged anticompetitive practices. The U.S. Department of Justice has also publicly challenged the tech giant’s “monopolistic grip” on the digital advertising market.

• If Rumble’s suit is successful, it could add further fuel to the government’s case against Google—but the YouTube parent company isn’t going down without a fight:

WATCH THIS 📺

There’s now an anime version of Kendrick Lamar and Drake’s viral diss tracks

The video: The rivalry between Drake and Kendrick Lamar has officially reached a new level of cultural permeation. Earlier this week, YouTube channel Avocado Animations preserved the stars’ rap battle for posterity by reimagining their creative process as a high-stakes anime. 

• Is the image of Drake impregnating a past version of himself to birth his future doppelgänger slightly disturbing? Sure. Does it also convey the internet-breaking drama of the rap rivalry in a single frame? Absolutely.

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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.