It can start with a single video going viral overnight or by slowly acquiring an audience who enjoys your content. Before you know it, you are labeled as an “influencer,” which can become a stepping stone to getting what you were aiming for your entire life. What so many have yet to accept about success on social media is that it still requires significant talent and creativity. Without these two, try as you might, you will not go far. You might have a viral post or two, but cultivating a career out of these takes much more. For people who are after a career in entertainment, their social media profiles become their professional portfolios. And those who work hard enough might very well use it to find their way to fame.
“We Made the Right Person Famous”
Brittany Broski, who first started her “influencer” path on TikTok and is the face of many iconic memes, never imagined that the first video she uploaded would later lead her to become a highly successful interviewer. Yet, here she is, interviewing people like Harry Styles and the cast of Bridgerton on her YouTube talk show, Royal Court.
Via Royal Court
Last month, Dylan Mulvaney, who became known for sharing her gender transition journey in 2022, made her Broadway debut in SIX The Musical. And alongside her performs Abigail Barlow, who even won a Grammy for her TikTok musical in 2022. Similarly, Alex Warren, who began his social media journey on YouTube, is now a Grammy-nominated artist with a number of hit songs on the Billboard Hot 100 list.
Via sixbroadway
Each and every one of these talented people have been accused of not deserving their success, much like many other social media influencers who managed to transition from the small screen to the big screen, the stage, or the theatre. Every time a cast announcement or award nominees list includes someone who started on social media, criticism tends to follow. Questions like, “Did they only get cast because of their social media following?” or “Should this artist really get a nomination just because their song was viral on TikTok?” represent the main concerns, but they always miss the point. The question should first and foremost be, “Are they talented enough?” The answer is “yes,” because they wouldn’t have built their social media audience if they weren’t. They deserve their recognition just as much as any other talented person, regardless of how many followers they have.
So why is it that many still view social media fame as another form of nepotism?
Social Media Baby VS Nepo Baby
True nepotism refers to the act of receiving job offers, promotions, or any type of favoritism based on kinship rather than merit. Talent is barely a consideration; what really matters is who your friends and family are, and who you know on the inside.
Unlike a Nepo Baby, nobody is a “social media baby.” Everyone starts from scratch and climbs their way to the top through hard work. Social media is the modern version of an open mic night at a local comedy bar where nobody knows the performer’s names. In a world filled with nepotism, where the only way one gets hired is by knowing the right people (especially in the entertainment industry), why not celebrate when talented individuals are hired thanks to their skills?
It’s not just a career in entertainment that people gain from posting on social media. Online fandoms, for example, are filled with talented editors and writers. The simple act of showing your love for a media piece through a fan edit or a fanfiction can lead you to achieving your dreams. A Heated Rivalry fan, for example, received a job offer from HBO itself after her fan edit became viral on TikTok and caught the attention of millions. This fan now works as an editor making trailers and promos, simply because she shared her passions on social media.
The only thing social media success shouldn’t be is a requirement, and unfortunately, the entertainment business tends to get that mixed up. Plenty of aspiring actors or musicians are told, mostly by talent agencies, that a social media presence is a must in order to kickstart their careers, even though it shouldn’t be. At the end of the day, the only thing that should matter is the talent. Social media helps those with the right skills to reach the right audiences, and with the power of the internet, the most remarkable ones might just get to achieve their dreams. But whether they did so through a viral TikTok or an actual open mic night shouldn’t matter. As long as us fans help those who deserve it to fulfill their true potential. The fact that they include TikTok on their resumes should not matter.
