Is your love big enough for what’s to come?
Some reflections, an unloading of the future of the media ecosystem, and some dedication to British indie neo-soul.
Quick shout-out to everyone rejoicing because the robocalls and Resistbot texts have stopped nagging you incessantly. Our national nightmare is… gone for now. Unless you’re in Georgia—thoughts and prayers for the stamina, but hopefully the right kind of energy leading into those very special January Senate elections.
(I’m rooting for you all, but really rooting for Stacey Abrams. Queen: she’s worthy of a chapter in political science textbooks. You know she writes fiction, right?)
In 2012, Lianne La Havas (one of my top-5 favorite living artists, a Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter) released her debut album Is Your Love Big Enough? The hook to the title track felt perfect for this moment—love, and how we define it, has shifted so much in this pandemic, in this boiling point for racial justice, and in the sheer amount of Americans who went out to vote.
What makes that song, from an artist so adept at writing modern love songs, different than most of her top tracks, is that it’s an ode to self-love. From those first lines—
“Found myself in the second
I found myself in the secondhand guitar
Never thought it would happen
But I found myself in the secondhand guitar”
—you were introduced had an artist who found her bag, her sense of confidence, her location in this wild world in that moment. She put out two albums since, Blood, in which she grappled with her identity as a mixed-race woman of Jamaican and Greek roots, and her self-titled effort this year. This latest effort is a testament to her own efforts in self-love: finding out the best parts of her, the shadows she had to overcome, and allowing herself to live in that purpose to create work that was truest to her.
I knew this title would surface before taking last week off, cause sometimes the fragments of the future start taking shape in front of you, as sand from an hourglass poured out to form tomorrow’s castles. And sometimes, you have to take a glance at your own journey through self-love and industry.
Like yo: I quit a job two years ago, in the beginnings of a media ecosystem collapse and ad industry reckoning, to take care of my mental health and because I knew I was worth more. I wish I could’ve found it in a secondhand guitar, but I think I found it in a friend’s apartment months later while dogsitting. You’re reading it.
Sounds silly to put in words, but finding yourself requires being forced to lose yourself. What’s more heartwrenching than that moment when you’re looking at the world you contributing to and feeling like a stranger?
That process of healing, to self-love—which never ends, as HANNAH magazine EIC Qimmah Saffir, made a note of yesterday—is so crucial to learning what you’re truly capable of.
For me, I got to restart therapy, figure out my stressors, and take pains to find people that resonated most with the best part of me. Some people were already there, but in the journey to making this newsletter, building Aerialist, and helping launch both 600 & Rising and Allyship & Action (two organizations borne from Black pain), I got to bring new people to the fold.
Something cool happened from that: a sense of collective healing—not healing each other, but giving each other space to rebuild as individuals together, and share learnings and wisdom. That whole “together apart” nonsense we’d all been fed at the beginning of the pandemic hits different now, right?
We might’ve needed that collective release of stress from the last 4, maybe 5 (if you think about the beginning of Trump’s then-unfathomable candidacy) years, but I think it’s clear that the work to be done now is much greater than when our worlds came undone.
The next few weeks will go through the pressing topics quickly, because I’m building my content calendar for 2021—wow, b+c will be a thing heading into 2021!—and you should get a preview of future coverage before I get all “paid newsletter” on y’all.
What is the future of content?
Duh, this is brand+content after all, so I’ll always be here to ponder what’s up and what’s next in media. But I need to make clear to you: America the country may need to heal as a whole, but it only begins with healing American media. (Not Quibi.) MMFA’s Parker Molloy spoke on how conservative media has twisted the work of activist movements and brands taking progressive stances at Allyship & Action’s first-ever State of Equity summit. Fox News and others have held it down for a style of storytelling to audiences that’s simplistic enough to make hatred and bigotry mainstream enough for 70+ million voters.
Understand the damage that’s been dealt is bigger than just politics. The infrastructure that’s been deteriorating long before this year has crumbled further. ESPN laid off 300 employees last week, easily the largest in sports media in quite some time—but just a statistic in a growing list of media layoffs. Where will these reporters and media professionals go, and how will they make money? The internet’s been heavily reliant on ad revenue since its inception, but we’re veering towards potential collapse.
What comes from the ashes is anyone’s guess, and who brands trust with their budgets is also up in the air. Adweek recently asked 70 brand-side marketers if they’ll retain their current roster heading into 2021—about 60% were either unsure of their next move or anticipated switching things up.
On top of worrying about journalists and where they’ll be going, what are we doing about the mental health of our social teams and moderators? The story of social media managers like Alexya Brown in this OneZero piece are not only heartbreaking, but more common than we care to admit. It’s worth wondering if the people running accounts for McDonalds, for example, aren’t just making light of the perils of those paid to keep up the pulse of a brand up on the major platforms.
(Thankfully, seems like the keepers of the McRib are doing just fine.)
These could all be misnomers pushed on some of the masters of online improv, forced upon them by the pandemic, but care for this group feels much like the growing pressure to protect the mental wellbeing of content moderators. You can only hope that—even with the amount of conservative media that nestles in Facebook newsfeeds that the results of this election could bring a lightened load for them.
I’ll save all the political battles against the social platforms (especially increased privacy legislation and Section 230) for friends like Casey Newton’s Platformer to cover in-depth, but please please keep your eye on the likes of Parler—if 70+ million Americans can put a vote in for the outdated-ass, crusty cheese-crusted Florida man from Queens, we shouldn’t be surprised if there’s enough traction to make the conservative Twitter clone a place to keep hate flowing.
But! This is an issue about love. And to paraphrase another good ‘love’ song, how deep is yours? (I’d been jamming to Maroon 5 member PJ Morton’s version.)
Cause we may have had to fight for the soul of American society, but what’s left in you to fight for a better American media ecosystem?
Brands making a mark:
An update on Desus & Mero and Timberland collabing: “The Brand” is surely strong, but seeing the full reveal (with the return of “beef-and-broccoli” colorways?! Respect.) makes this one of the sneakily-better pairings this year.
From their first baby steps to @SHODesusAndMero, @desusnice and @THEKIDMERO made their mark on the BX while rocking with #Timberland. We’re proud to announce two NYC icons coming together for the collab we’ve all been waiting for. Releasing 11.1320. #DesusandMeroxTimberland
I’ve had my eye on Travis Scott and his Maxell-inspired video for the PS5 launch, as the cherry to an amazing year for the rapper in marketing. D&M are up next.Hims-tory is written by the prescriber: An interesting thing happens when certain drugs get through that 7-year exclusivity period before going generic. Hims has very much exploited how drugs get administered, and it should give the big pharmaceutical chains (and the general public) pause.
Did you know Black girls love Mortal Kombat? Fans of Megan thee Stallion will appreciate her appearing in the reveal for a returning favorite in the storied fighting game. Sharing the clip, as well as dope analysis from gaming commentator Erin Ashley Simon—if you’re not following her insights into the sector, you’re missing out.
I love how fighting games have the best cultural crossovers whether via cosplay, hip-hop and etc. @MortalKombat's relationship with the black community and hip-hop artists has been profound.Thee bitch is back 🔥🔥🔥 HotGirl Mileena is back in the game 😛 @MortalKombat #ad https://t.co/e1myykkFpFHOT GIRL MEG @theestallion
Content to keep an eye on:
Fur Seasons Total Landscaping. That’s not a typo: long live the Furry invasion of the infamous last campaign stop of the outgoing administration. In better news, the sex shop and crematorium next door will also make an appearance in VRChat. (Here’s a great interview with the owner of Fantasy Island, btdub.) May it live in your mind as rent-free as long as it does mine.
Men’s basketball is back (already), but give the women their applause. I’m a personal fan of WNBA energy. Its players’ union brokered a major win to get the primetime status they deserve, its stars matched the excitement and safety of their male peers in Bubble (or Wubble) play, and books probably need to be written on this specific chapter in the league’s long history of activism. If you’re not convinced, you should take a read of this Marie Claire piece, give the women their flowers, and catch a game with me next season.
One more note on the broken media ecosystem. I’ve had one parent in my ear tug at me about voting all the way down the ballot—everyone should, but our role in ensuring a thriving landscape has an impact. Michael Stockton, incumbent mayor of Stockton, CA, has found himself behind in a battle to keep his seat—all because of a false narrative created by a local blog. The San Joaquin Valley area isn’t San Francisco, but the truth deserves to win out.
My favorite thing on the internet? A Canadian television host and philantropist with a 36-year tenure making nerds like me feel like trivia’s more than an icebreaker—it could make you money.
Jeopardy was my game show of choice growing up—even if I would’ve rather spun the Wheel of Fortune, and his fight with pancreatic cancer was a quiet thought in the back of Americans’ minds for the last few years. Millions of us will miss a “brother,” a cultural fixture, but I take solace in knowing he didn’t have to witness his adopted country enter an era of fascism.
Even better, he left us peacefully. All we can ask for.