Atlanta: The New Influencer Capital of America

“Atlanta’s creators are noteworthy for the ways in which they defy prevailing ideas about the influencer economy ... they’re hard working, focused and have a deep understanding of the internet. But they show none of the entitlement or attitude that has come to characterize the better-known TikTok stars of Los Angeles. Another key difference revolves around race. Atlanta’s creators are predominantly Black.”

The so-called “Influencer Mansions” filled with TikTok celebrities all trying to outdo one another have become a quintessentially LA thing. Atlanta's expanding influencer scene is taking a different approach. As this NY Times article highlights, new collaborative creator spaces like the Collab Crib and Valid Crib are both building communities of all-Black Gen Z creators who lift one another up instead of constantly competing.

While they continue to struggle with problems of attracting enough “woke sponsors” and the lasting challenge of what WIRED called “digital blackface”, their emergence is bringing more attention to undervalued Black creators, as well as Atlanta itself.