Onlyfans + TikTok Drama
Professional athletes across multiple sports organizations in the US went on strike this week, protesting the police shooting of Jacob Blake. LeBron James took to Twitter to share his thoughts, saying “Change doesn’t happen with just talk!! It happens with action and needs to happen NOW!” The NBA announced that games will resume tomorrow, after the league and players came to an agreement on next steps, including establishing a social justice coalition and converting NBA facilities into voting locations for the 2020 election.
TikTok’s US drama continues...the company’s newly-minted CEO is stepping down, only three months after leaving Disney for the position. Analysts predict that this means for sure that the app’s US operations will be sold, they’re thinking to the tune of 35-40 billion dollars.
Solving murders with social media? After posting a series of videos detailing her sister’s disappearance in 2001, Sarah Turney was looking for justice. She suspected that her father had something to do with the disappearance and shared many videos explaining why. The videos got millions of views and, almost two decades after her sister’s disappearance, her father was charged with homicide.
Celebrities are getting into the OnlyFans scene and they're making moneyyy. Bella Thorne (former disney star) joined and made over 2 million dollars in less than a week (while upsetting the platform’s sex workers). The platform, which is primarily known for porn, is a content subscription service where fans pay creators for exclusive content, giving influencers the ability to ‘monetize their influence’. This could be the future of social content, where big-name influencers charge directly for their photos and videos.
Spotify is developing a virtual events feature to help fans find online concerts and give artists a new way to generate revenue. In other music news this week, the late Nipsey Hussle dropped his new collaboration with Big Sean called ‘Deep Reverence’. Also, FKA twigs shared the cinematic visuals for "Sad Day", directed by Hiro Murai, known for his work on Atlanta and Guava Island.
Speaking of virtual music events, artists are also chartering innovative and creative ways to perform. Miyavi, Japanese rock star based in Los Angeles, teamed up with tech-savvy director David Cihelna to shoot his next hit-single NEED FOR SPEED music video. Read how their dynamic team experimented with volumetric capture and game engines to foster a COVID-friendly environment for Miyavi’s electrifying performance.
Two TikToks that brought me joy this week: this car-honking sesh and this cinematic masterpiece resulting in a surprise vine throwback.
