In the past, I made a lot of mistakes during my first pseudo-creator journey. I wrote long-form posts that no one read. I asked for money from people who couldn’t give it to me. I blogged about topics that only interested me.
Now, as I give being a creator a tried and true second go, I’m motivated to learn from my past mistakes, as well as the mistakes of others. Thus, I’ve been looking around the net, YouTube, TikTok, and every “expert” blog post I can find to figure out what mishaps I should avoid as I attempt to build this: “The Culture Economy”.
The problem, though, is that most of the advice out there is tailored to creators overall. Not a Black creator, who—in my own case—is speaking to a predominantly Black audience.
As you know, Black creators face a unique set of issues.
- They don’t get paid the influencer rates they’re supposed to.
- There’s implicit bias in algorithms that makes it harder to grow.
- They aren’t given the same “manual” amplification as others.
And most importantly, when we turn to the leadership of these platforms to fix these problems, rarely do we see anyone who looks like us who can understand our plight.
So allow me to fill the void. In this post, I’m going to go over:
- What are the big issues facing Black creators?
- Examples of these issues happening.
- What are the mistakes Black creators make given these issues?
- How do we overcome each of these mistakes?
- A bonus tip that solves all of these issues in one swoop.
- A call to action to all black creators.
What Are the Issues Facing Black Creators?
I already mentioned most of them at the top. Simply put: Black creators have a really raw deal when it comes to growing on social platforms.
But the first issue is simply getting started. Committing to becoming a creator is no easy task, and the pay in the beginning sucks…it’s literally $0.
So before you even get started, you have to have some way of sustaining your lifestyle (i.e., eating) if you are going to become a creator. This usually means having another job. But not all jobs are created equal.
Median Weekly Income for Workers Aged 16-24 (BLS)
- Black workers: $614
- White workers: $747
- Income gap: 21%
Median Annual Income for Workers Aged 20-29 Workers (SSA.gov)
- Black men workers: $25,000
- White men workers: $33,600
- Income gap: 50%
Median Annual Household Income
- Black households: $52,860
- White households: $77,250
- Income gap: 46%
So not only is it harder starting out as a Black creator earlier on in life, but comparatively, it only gets financially harder as you age up. This economic force is probably the not-so-hidden reason behind Black people underindexing as content creators.
But let’s just say you’re able to get started because you’re somehow able to fend for yourself financially, and you can now set aside time to focus on growing an audience.
Well, the unfortunate truth is that there are built-in biases that make it harder for Black creators to get going. Here are just a few:
- Algorithm Bias: The platforms we use to grow often “flag” content from Black creators using terms common in Black communities. And it doesn’t even have to be a bad word. The term “black people” has been known to hurt content reach.
- Implicit User Bias: We don’t have to debate it here, but generally speaking, people are attracted to things and people they are familiar with. And because appearances, thumbnails and music often play a big part in what users decide to watch on these platforms, the presence of Black images and sounds tends not to do as well with the “overall” audience as more racially ‘mainstream’ (i.e., non-Black) images.
- Lack of Amplification: Anybody remember all those billboards going up in Los Angeles and New York when the platforms were amplifying their creators throughout the 2010s? Well, chances are you didn’t see very many Black faces in those images. And that played out in other “creator marketing” initiatives by the platforms. Naturally, that type of exposure was great for the creators that got it, but if left those that didn’t get the exposure fighting against some pretty strong headwinds.
Lastly, let’s assume that despite all that, you make it. And you’re able to build an audience off your content. Now you need to monetize it? The problem is that it’s relatively harder for you as a Black creator to get free merchandise to promote. It’s harder for you to get an opportunity to make a proposal. And then when you do finally get a chance to propose yourself to a brand, and get a brand deal offer, on average, the offer is 35% less than your mainstream counterparts.
That’s a massive disadvantage.
Not to mention, it’s extremely discouraging…and that’s if you even realize it!
But chances are, you don’t even know you’re getting paid less, more slowly, and being asked to do more. But that is the reality of being a Black creator in this not-so-transparent creator economy.
Real Life Examples
Back in 2021, Black TikToker Ziggi Tyler proved, through a video post, that TikTok was not allowing him to use terms like “Black Lives Matter” and “supporting Black excellence” in his “Creator Marketplace” profile, which is used by TikTok to present him to brands that want to partner with TikTokers. At the same time, he was able to demonstrate that the terms “white supremacy” and “supporting white excellence” were allowed. A similar accusation was made of YouTube back in 2020.
Also in 2021, Black creators went on strike against TikTok after they found themselves not getting the credit for the content they were creating. Jalaih Harmon, for example, introduced a dance to K Camp’s “Lottery” song, which was extremely popular at the time. But did she get credit?
Nope.
Instead, other non-Black creators performed the dance on their accounts, and they were invited to NBA All-Star Weekend. Ultimately, there was a ton of backlash for this oversight, and the NBA ended up inviting Harmon out. But the underlying issue of her being the original creator of a fad, only to have other mainstream creators get the credit and amplification for it, continues on today.
The 5 Mistakes Black Creators Make
So with all these challenges, how can Black creators set themselves up for success?
It starts by avoiding these five common mistakes.
Given the issues Black creators face, it is incumbent upon us to be aware of those and account for them in our creator journey. So here are the 5 biggest mistakes I think Black creators are making, as well as ways to fix those mistakes.
Mistake #1. Relying too much on one platform.
I wish I could say everyone knows not to do this, but overreliance on one platform is still a big problem. I just saw Tubular reporting that 31% of the top 100 TikTokers rely almost exclusively on TikTok for their reach. That’s just absurd. We’re talking about creators with millions of followers, and who likely have the means and ability to migrate thousands—if not millions—of followers elsewhere, all relying on a possibly soon-to-be-banned app for their business.
And while this is not exclusively a Black creator problem, Black creators likely overindex here. Anybody who witnessed the number of Black creators willing to go with God on translating the Mandarin Terms & Conditions for Xiaohongshu during the short-lived TikTok ban knows what I’m talking about.
With the potential of something like the TikTok ban, relying on any one platform is a horrible idea. But even without the threat of a ban, us OGs of the internet era know that algorithms change, money dries up, and apps fade out of relevancy…sometimes overnight. Just ask the folks who relied 100% on MySpace, Tumblr, or Vine, like Drea Okeke. Those platforms weren’t banned. They simply died.
How to correct this mistake: Be on multiple platforms.
Before we get into building your own platform (which we will speak to), if you’re on TikTok, it makes all the sense in the world to be on YouTube, Instagram and probably Snapchat. And while simply cross-posting and alerting your audience that they can follow you elsewhere is a great set of steps to start with while you focus on growing your primary platform, once you are established there, you will want to immediately start optimizing for a second platform too. It doesn’t have to be too much. It could mean editing 5 similarly-themed TikTok videos into one, long-form, landscape video for YouTube. Or it could just be posting behind the scenes photos and short videos on IG. The point of this is to make sure you’re growing your audience on a second platform, and not just telling the same folks to follow you elsewhere.
Mistake #2. Not niching down.
One of the biggest problems smaller creators face is trying to be everything to everybody, and then they end up producing content that is too broad. And while I don’t have any data to support this, my experience is that because Black people enter this game with implicit biases from the algorithm, they end up targeting content verticals that have bigger audiences in order to negate some of the visibility bias. Unfortunately, that is not a recipe for success.
But in 2025, gone are the days when you can come in, with no pre-existing following, and start talking about the biggest and broadest topics that already have hundreds of LARGE creators speaking to them. The competition is just too expansive, and when there are hundreds of videos for a single topic, trying to become one of THE suggested videos on that topic, is exponentially hard. You’d likely have to create content that is an order of magnitude better than what a creator with a representative audience already has just to have a chance.
During my time at YouTube advising creators and media companies on their content strategies, one fact the Analytics team at YouTube would stress to me is that niche channels grow faster than more generic channels. Essentially, studies show that niche-focused YouTube channels grow 3X faster than generalist ones due to increased audience engagement and algorithmic preference (Evolving Digital). And when you think about it, this makes a lot of sense.
First, when you’re targeting a specific niche, you’ll have less competition. Now your content doesn’t necessarily have to beat out the really big channels that are focused on broader topics.
Second, because your content is in less supply on the platform, your viewers are going to be more engaged. Given the people looking for your niche content are more “starved” for it, they’re more likely to click through at higher rates, watch for longer, and engage more with your content.
And third, when you pick a niche that is aligned with who you are, you’re more likely to be viewed as an authority. It would be ridiculous to start an account tomorrow claiming to be the foremost pizza maker in the world and you have no preexisting merits, awards or accomplishments of note. But if you start an account called “Weird Homemade Pizza Lab” claiming to be the authority on making homemade organic pizza with weird ingredients…from across the world…using everyday tools in your kitchen, there’s a good chance people will believe you’re an expert in this very singular category.
How to correct this mistake: Start off covering a very specific topic or going after a very specific audience.
If you want to review TV shows, don’t review every popular TV show on streaming. Review every viral Tubi show from the Black Cinema section. If you want to make scripted videos about relationships, don’t center it around a typical everyday couple; make the focus a couple with 2 people with very different backgrounds, living in the rural South, with a passion for playing board games. Once you’ve established yourself in a niche, that’s when you will see your growth really start to take off. Plus, the bigger you get, the more leeway you’ll then have to expand your content further out from that super-specific niche.
Mistake #3. Renting an audience instead of owning a community.
Because Black creators often aren’t given the same financial opportunity as their mainstream counterparts with similar followings, we tend to think the answer is to just get bigger. That results in doing things that the “algorithm” likes, moving to whatever platform has the most users, and doing everything possible to grow the number of followers. The thinking is that if you can just be bigger, you’ll make more money.
First, that’s not necessarily true. Bigger isn’t always better. In fact, if you are properly niching down and your following is particularly valuable, that can be much more financially advantageous than reaching a big, homogeneous group of users.
Second, and most importantly, efforts meant to simply grow your number of subscribers often means you’re just building an audience. Effectively, you aren’t spending the time required to nurture your subscribers, focus on their retention, and tailor your content to their specific needs. The end result is an “audience” of people who have no real attachment to your channel/page, and while they probably don’t want to hear from you anyway, even if they did, you’d have no way of communicating with them, because they only follow you on TikTok or YouTube—neither of which allows a systematic way of contacting your subscribers.
How to correct this mistake: Don’t build an audience on rented land.
Build a community on a platform you own. Having an owned and operated website may be an old recommendation, but it has stood the test of time for a reason. You need to have access to your followers without the necessity of going through a 3rd-party that doesn’t have your best interests in mind. So whether that’s collecting email addresses, building a user acquisition strategy for your website, or having a podcast with an RSS feed, you need to have a mechanism in place that allows you to have a direct relationship with your audience.
Speaking of which, turning members of your audience into members of your community is much easier on your own properties. Having their email address allows you to get into your subscribers’ inbox on a regular basis; thereby, creating a reliable relationship with them over time. Getting your RSS feed on their favorite podcast app means you can effectively put content in their hands at any time of day. And getting your users to share their mobile phone numbers with you for texting purposes, is now easier than ever.
Mistake #4. Focusing (and waiting) on brand deals.
Let’s face it, a lot of people get into creating for the money. Despite the fact that 48% of creators make less than $1,000 per year, and that 73% of creators make less than $50,000 per year, people of all ilks think becoming a content creator is some kind of gold mine. And Black creators, because they are usually entering the Creator Economy with fewer financial resources than the average person, they’re more likely to be driven by this revenue motive.
And there’s nothing wrong with that. However, when that focus is too heavily dependent on making money from brand deals it becomes a problem. Because brand deals often require a lot of work. You have to have a meaningful audience. You have to do the leg work of reaching out to brands. And as a Black Creator, you have to do the extra hard work of making sure you’re not being shortchanged by brands because of your race.
Thus, when I hear about creators waiting on a brand deal from “X” or are targeting a sponsorship from “Y”, I worry that they (1) are too reliant on one form of revenue, and (2) that form of revenue isn’t even reliable.
How to correct this mistake: This is an easy one: don’t focus on brand deals.
Brand deals are great. And yes, sponsored content is responsible for 59% of the money coming into the Creator Economy. However, the competition is fierce, as 70% of creators are targeting 60% of the revenue as their primary source of revenue. I’m no mathematician, but it sounds like that’s too many people going after too little money.
Thus, you should definitely prioritize other forms of revenue. Because if you’re doing the hard work of growing your audience, building a community, and having a direct relationship with them, then the brand deals will come. Trust me. But while you wait, it’s perfectly possible to earn 6 figures without brand deals. Whether it’s through affiliate ads, consulting, subscriptions, products, or rev share, there are many more predictable ways of earning revenue as a creator.
KevOnStage is a master at this, as he leverages his audience online to build a paid membership community on Patreon. And LaShonda Brown does a genius job educating people about tech tools, and then making affiliate revenue from recommending those same tools to her viewers.
And the best part is that, unlike sponsorships or even ad revenue share, you (generally) don’t have to meet any type of threshold to earn money from the other types of revenue. For example, you only need to draw the attention of one decision-maker to earn thousands of dollars per month in consulting fees.
So if you have an Instagram page that extols your love for candy and you desperately want a brand deal with Snickers…why wait? Sign up to be an affiliate with candystore.com and start earning revenue from the audience you already have. Brand deals should be a bonus, not the focus.
Mistake #5. Avoiding long-form content.
In the age of TikTok where we’ve all heard stories of someone going viral for doing a silly dance, eating something weird, or showing some skin, it’s hard to avoid the appeal of creating 15-second videos hoping for your time in the limelight. But I’m here to tell you something, even if that strategy works out for you (and for 99% of you, it won’t!), it’s not going to last very long. Use Hawk-Tuah girl as an example.
She went viral for basically a 15-second response, but now she’s struggling to maintain a grip on those viewers because she didn’t have a solid library of longer-form content to keep folks invested. Now she’s doing everything she can to build out a podcast presence and grow a YouTube channel so that she can earn some “time” with her “audience”. But because she didn’t already have that in place, she probably lost millions of people who would’ve gone to those platforms to learn more about her, had those things already been in place.
How to correct this mistake: Start making long-form content now.
On the flip side, I remember watching a video of Devale Ellis, the creator turned star actor, and he was talking about the advice someone had given him. I believe he was telling them about how he was creating video after video on YouTube, but he was feeling a little discouraged that the audience wasn’t really growing and that he wasn’t necessarily seeing the opportunities from it that he had hoped for. But the person he was talking to told him to keep going, and to keep building a library of engaging, funny, lengthy content so that when a video finally did go viral, the people who discovered him would immediately be able to see more of him while the momentum was there. And ultimately, I think that’s how it played out for him. He kept creating, and as his audience grew, particularly along some tentpole videos that brought in big audiences, he had a library of YouTube content and dozens of episodes of a long-form podcast he was doing with his wife.
And that’s where you want to find yourself if you ever do go viral with your short-form content. You want to make sure the people that fell in love with you during your 15, 30, or 60-second short have a chance to chase that momentary dopamine you gave them by diving deep into who you are, the topics you love, or the advice you give. So while I don’t begrudge anyone chasing the whims of the TikTok algorithm, you need to back that content strategy with a long-form one.
And again, we don’t have to reinvent the wheel. This could mean just doing a 30-minute podcast every week. It could be a weekly newsletter that consists of a 700-word feature. Or again, just stitching together your shorter videos into 7 or 8-minute compilations for YouTube could get the job done.
Bonus Tip: Don’t go at it alone.
The catchiness of “5 Reasons” vs. “6 Reasons” is why I have to label this my bonus tip. But just know, if there’s anything you take away from this post, this may be the one to remember.
Building alone as a creator is hard, and it’s especially hard as a Black creator. On top of the aforementioned financial, algorithmic, and revenue issues, there’s the societal pressure. Because while Black people overindex in terms of their usage of social media, as creators, we’re severely underindexed. We make up 13% of the U.S. population, but data suggests we make up possibly as little as 5% of the creators out there. Thus, it can feel lonely, particularly if your niche is something directed at a Black audience (like me!), that again, lessens your window for success.
So don’t do it alone!
Find someone to go through this with. And while, yes, it will aid you with a lot of the personal stress of building out your creator business; perhaps more importantly, it will aid you in your growth.
Some of the biggest creators on Earth came out of what I would call “creator syndicates”, where groups of creators collab with one another, share learnings, peer mentor one another, and make beneficial introductions. Mr. Beast famously talks about how he increased his learning exponentially by teaming up with multiple creators, which led to faster growth for his YouTube channel. During the pandemic, I witnessed scores of tech-bros on Twitter working to aid each other in their online growth, which resulted in relatively massive followings on the platform. And one of my favorite creator syndicates out there is an organic one in Los Angeles and features a ton of the biggest Black creators you know today. I don’t know if it was an intentional syndicate or not, but creators like Bigg Jah, Kinigra Deon, Barry Brewer, and many other Black skit creators had a long-run of consistently putting out hilarious videos for the culture to enjoy, and they all seemingly grew and thrived as a result.
A Call to Action: Act on These Thoughts!
So if you read all of this, you probably had at least 1 of 2 thoughts.
The first thought you probably had is, “Wow! The game is rigged!
And you’d be right. It kind of is. But that doesn’t mean we can’t win. As you know, there are thousands of Black creators, large and small, out there crushing it as we speak, so there’s no reason to give up hope. Learning from the mistakes I’ve outlined is going to prepare you for a big and bright future.
Secondly, you’ve probably thought, “Damn, that’s a lot of stuff to think about”.
Well, this is also true. But as I said, if you’re going to start with one thing, start with my bonus tip and don’t do this alone!
That means:
1️⃣ Find 2-3 other Black creators.
2️⃣ Share this post with them.
3️⃣ Set a goal for your next 30 days and hold each other accountable.
Now let’s build something real…together.