Each week, we handpick a selection of stories to give you a snapshot of trends, updates, business moves, and more from around the creator industry. This week, an A-lister is getting jiggy with streaming, a major platform is getting a makeover, and a creator group is putting the skincare game on watch.
Creator commotion
Will Smith made a surprise cameo on xQc’s stream. The Twitch ironman walked away from his monitor for a minute, and all of a sudden Will Smith was there. Luckily for xQc, this collab went a lot smoother than the last time Will Smith made a surprising move.
IanOnYouTube made videos set at his 7-11 job. So they fired him. You might think it’s bad PR to let an employee go for giving your brand free advertising on YouTube, and yes, you’re right, it is.
Subscribe for daily Tubefilter Top Stories
The NBA All-Star Game was interrupted by a MrBeast video. A fan won $100,000 in the middle of the NBA’s new all-star tournament. Kai Cenat and Druski headlined the celebrity game, and Jesser was a judge from the dunk contest. Are creators starting to overshadow basketball stars at the NBA’s annual bash?
Platform headlines
Does YouTube have a Valentine’s Day crush? It’s blushing. After reaching the 20th anniversary of its founding, YouTube announced a new logo that’s slightly less red than the previous one. The new hue will clear up some display issues and make YouTube’s iconography less jarring overall.
TikTok’s reprieve is causing RedNote to fade in the U.S. The Instagram-style app known in China as Xiaohongshu has seen its user numbers wane since the Apple and Android App Stores restored access to TikTok. Despite that dip, RedNote’s IPO still looks like a go.
TikTok announced automotive ads. TikTok is already in the car. Now the car is on TikTok.
The biz
AMP is setting the Tone. The creator group whose members include Kai Cenat and Fanum launched a skincare brand on February 20. Skincare is a popular area for creator products, with Jake Paul’s W also edging its way into a category dominated by name brands.
Tinx is joining forces with the duo behind Nobody Wants This. The creator known as “TikTok’s older sister” has struck a deal with the sisters who developed a talked-about Kristen Bell/Adam Brody romance for Netflix. The upcoming project will be an adaptation of Tinx’s 2024 novel Hotter in the Hamptons.
Moose Toys sets its sights on The Amazing Digital Circus. The company that teamed up with MrBeast for a universe of kids’ toys has now set its sights on a Gen Alpha cultural touchstone. Bet on the Amazing Digital Circus line to end up as a bestseller.
Movers and shakers
Loren Piretra leaves Fanfix for role at Passes. The well-traveled influencer marketing exec is now the CMO at Passes. The creator marketing platform will look to level up with help from a seasoned decision-maker who has also spent time at Red Bull, the NFL, and Twitch.
LunarX shoots for the moon with Spotter vet. The startup that acquired Theorist Media in 2022 has named Kevin Daigle as its new COO. Daigle will oversee LunarX’s growing portfolio of brands, which also includes some “unannounced investments,” according to a press release shared with Tubefilter.
Colby Mann is the new General Manager of Donut Media. Mann will steer the automotive brand after previously working on one of its first original programs. He helped produce Up To Speed, which ran for more than 130 episodes.
Outloud Talent acquires two agencies. The talent arm of Outloud Group will manage the creators formerly repped by Bowie Agency and has acquired NanoZebra, a firm known for its influencer marketing strategies.
The internet is a strange place
RIP, Howie the Crab. A crustacean who got more than a million followers on TikTok has passed away. He enjoyed demonstrating his manners on leash and communicating with his owner via sign language.
A beloved virtual idol is coming to McDonald’s. The chain has a new menu item launched in partnership with the singer Hatsune Miku. Don’t worry; Miku might not exist IRL, but the McDonald’s items are still consumable.
A typo in a YouTube search led an Indian farmer to a new profession. Rajasthani man Narenda Kumar Girwa wanted to see videos about terrace farming, but a slip of the finger led him to search for pearl farming instead. Surprise, surprise: He’s now a freshwater pearl fisherman.
