Where do we begin again?
2020 may feel like it's put on hold, but maybe we've been given a breather. Not a bad time to share some things you may have missed out on.
First, hi.
I told the internet, “Yerrrrr, I’m launching a Substack” a few weeks back and 100+ of you signed up saying you wanted to read. 😲Thank you, for the support and your patience. It’s time, and I’m excited to just get into it. Even when it’s not exciting to work right now. Still, if you’re reading this, hello again.
When I first started working on this newsletter, we were just maybe enjoying February, which seemed like a step up from January. Januaries are normally the hangover month from the previous year, so I always felt like February was when people we’re really ready to think of a new 12 months.
But, nothing’s ever as we plan it out to be. Even this was supposed to start weeks before, but to open with something that felt right, something not completely bogged down by the weight of what isn’t.
For me, this means figuring out where we can go based on the now.
Renegade’s maybe a big deal for TikTok, Black creators, and record labels’ waltz with the dance community
When Jalaiyah Harmon got her first ‘15 minutes’ moment last month, it was *a thing* for more reasons than the obvious: a young, black creator being acknowledged for her craft.
It served as bits and pieces of a crescendo of sorts for music lovers, and lovers of music videos. Remember Missy Elliot, whose knack for elevating what a music video could be, won her the VMA Vanguard award last fall. Da Baby’s “Bop” video reunited us with the original best dance crew, the Jabbawockeez. This year’s Pepsi Halftime Show, just casually existing.
The momentum’s there for a hell of a decade in dance’s tango with popular music (with TikTok’s ascent helping), but the financial support, according to pieces like this one in Rolling Stone, give some pause. When creators have been elevated, especially Black and Brown ones, so does the opportunity to elevate the issues that impact them the most. Of course, this can’t fall on one young person, but it’s worth considering how culture and the institutions that shape it can be more equitable going forward.
The relationship between content, creator, and compensation — and now TikTok filling the role of creative magnet that Snapchat, YouTube and Vine once had — is worth keeping an eye on.
(While I have you, I should put you onto my favorite piece of choreography. If you’re a fan of Jon M. Chu, director of Crazy Rich Asians, you’ll love The LXD. Over a decade ahead of its time.)
Old Spice did what Gillette hasn’t: make me believe in P&G’s recent masculinity push
My favorite spot this year aired nearly a month before the Super Bowl. Y'all remember The Man Your Man Should Smell Like?
The Hall of Fame worthy campaign launched ten years ago, and the brand brought back its shirtless icon Isaiah Mustafa back for its latest brand push. And guess what?
He has a son!
Of course, the muscle-bound, smooth-talking, ladies man protagonist of one of the oldest men's brands has a son. Instantly, I realized how best to explain an issue I had with P&G's portrayal of men and masculinity in its sibling brand, Gillette. Last year, they tried to start a conversation on "The Best A Man Can Be."
Gillette’s spot wasn't the worst attempt to get men to rethink masculinity. But, when you look at ads from rivals in the men's grooming category (Harry's and Axe, especially), it felt like they didn't need to try this hard to get it right. Enforcing catcalling and breaking up fights have their purpose in advertising and real life. As the vicious reaction to it showed, something might be missing in how brands express that.
The W+K team behind “Time Out” and “Office Visit” filled that pit for me with a clear insight: there’s a laundry list of wrong ways to be men, but there’s no single right way to be one either. The Old Spice man gets to stay true to who he is: a cool, charming salesman for a clean body, but also show he's a dad who wants the best for his kid, even if he risks embarrassment for being himself: entering a gym or the office, biceps blazing.
Hearing that his son wants to be his own kind of well-smelling man, respectfully at that, is probably the most subtle way for a brand to make a statement. And in a time where everyone’s charged up, a feather’s more effective than a shotgun.
Sometimes, wearing clothes on the job (remote or nah) is fine. And sometimes, allowing space for other men to be their own best selves is the best a man can be. P&G can learn big time from that.
Netflix is starting to show what inclusion could be in the streaming age
Strong Black Lead has done for Netflix what 'Black Twitter' has done for Twitter: intentionally hold space for a multitude of content focused on the Black diaspora. Since launching in 2018, Netflix's SBL team has been curating shows and films for its audience, celebrating the stars of its growing catalog, and building a small ecosystem for their voices — something not seen in this phase of mass media yet.
This year, it's doubled down on identity-themed programming with the launch of Con Todo and The Most, which focus on Latinx/Hispanic and LGBTQ communities, respectively.
Phase two of the “streaming wars” begins here for Netflix. It’s already forced the hand of traditional media to shift to an arena where cords don’t exist. Now: everyone’s here, viewers have their options and price points, and the fatigue of endless options. The hard part was always going to be here: behind the draw of award-winning programming, how do you appeal to viewers who’ve been wanting so badly to see themselves in mainstream media.
The big red N on your screen lost its indie darling status for some time if you ask millennials, Gen Z, or awards season fans. There’s a larger opportunity for Con Todo and Most to show the newly merged ViacomCBS and WarnerMedia how to reach the 21st-century viewer in an authentic way.
At least, as long as we’re given some grace to be great on our own terms.
Here’s some stories I’m keeping an eye on:
We’ve finally figured out what the ‘Z’ in Gen-Z is for, thanks to NYT culture writer (and a must-read for old and young pros) Taylor Lorenz. Thanks to this abrupt shift to WFH life, telepresence is in and Zoom (a webchat app popular with teens and some hip folk) is becoming a strong cure for social distancing.
Speaking of streaming, NBCUniversal’s found a way past recently-shuttered movie theatres: putting films meant for cinema straight to on-demand starting Friday. Adweek’s Kelsey Sutton’s right: it’s hard to see them (or anyone who follows suit) returning to business as usual after a move like this, even if theatre owners feel that there’ll always be a need for the ✨cinematic experience✨.
Members Only founder Herb Goldsmith passed away at 92. Fashion’s always been known for its shrewd designer-founders, and Goldsmith used his brand to take on issues such as voting and the crack epidemic. I was too young to understand how big the jackets were at their heyday, but after owning one for a few years I get it: “when you put it on, something happens.”
Nintendo and Lego have themselves a contender for ‘most ambitious crossover of the year’ and it’s only March. The two toy legends teamed up to bring the Super Mario experience to an interactive playset. I’d explain, but you’re better off seeing this shit for yourself.
One last thing.
I always wanted to do some sort of ‘the best thing on the internet right now,’ where I just find something random for you to interact with. Given the hashtag-unprecedented moment, this first best thing is camaraderie. So, I’m sharing a few cool ways journalism and marketing friends have been holding it down.
Dong Draper (also known as copywriter/satirist Sai He) launched ‘(net)working from home,’ a matchmaking service for creatives in need of community and friendship.
Aisha Hakim, art director and founder of online community Fellow, has built a spreadsheet for young creative talent to have their portfolios reviewed and critiqued. If you’re a creative director of any kind or even someone who cares about helping young marketing talent, you should take part.
Culture writer and advice columnist Rae Witte has assembled a list of links to exercises you can do remotely. YouTube and sweat the new Netflix and chill? Stay tuned.
Danyel Smith, one of music journalism’s foremost chroniclers, revived the HRDlist, a newsletter passion project first launched in 2014, for the foreseeable future. The first iteration covered and curated some of the best stories of the mid-2010s and culminated to a capsule magazine called HRDCVR (real ones know). HRDlist 2.0 is on Substack, too, go subscribe to it!
Remote-friendly companies We Are Rosie and Wethos have been sharing web resources for the WFH life, like prepping your team for emergency remote work, and building culture across time zones.
I’ve personally been building playlists in my spare time, mostly in between writing projects for when I need to shift gears and moods. AgencySpy (for non-industry friends, this is where our tea is spilled) was kind enough to share one I made with perfect 00s R&B hits for handwashing last Friday. (Ambitious.) If that’s played out, I’ve assembled sixty songs from female rockers of past, present, and near-future. Younger me wanted to do right by Stevie Nicks telling the tale of “Rhiannon”. Hope it makes your week more bearable.
If anyone from the media and marketing community wants to share resources or things, I’ll do my best to share them here. Find me in the comments below or on my Twitter, and until next, take it a little easy.
Bennett D. Bennett writes brand+content, and a whole bunch of other stuff. Currently, he leads marketing for HR staffing platform The Gradient, has bylines in The Drum and ADWEEK, and dabbles in fiction and songwriting. Talk to him about sports or music sometime, he’s on Twitter at @bennettdbennett.