Creator fees are wild right now

To everyone new this week, welcome. Really glad you’re here.
This newsletter works because people like you read it. Let’s get into it.

🎾 A dating show at the US Open?
The US Tennis Association and Fresh Tape Media are filming a full reality dating show during the US Open. It's called Game, Set, Matchmaker and follows Ilana Sedaka (aka “The Champion”) as she looks for love among influencers, superfans, and tennis-obsessed hopefuls. Yes, this is actually happening courtside.

• Someone forwarded this? 💌Subscribe to get it fresh, every Wednesday.

• Missed an issue? 💬Catch up on past editions. 

• Curious what else we’re building? 💡Insane Media lives here. 

• Want your campaign in front of our founder community? 📌Reach out here.

🌀 Creator economy updates

YouTube is testing collab videos
Creators can now co-post a video and share exposure with each other's audiences. Just like Instagram and TikTok, but on YouTube.

Vine might make a comeback
Elon Musk says X has recovered the original Vine archive. Users may soon be able to re-post their six-second classics.

Instagram updates analytics
New tools show exactly when viewers liked your Reels and what brought in new followers. Livestreaming now requires a public account and at least 1,000 followers.

Twitch opens monetization to all US streamers
Everyone in the US can now access Twitch’s basic money-making tools. A global rollout is coming soon.

TikTok ban may get a legal workaround
Senator Ed Markey proposed a bill that lets TikTok operate if it offers transparency on moderation and keeps US data out of countries like China. The ban might not be dead, but it’s definitely stalled.

Creator pricing is all over the place, and still going up

Some creators are doubling their rates compared to last year. Others with the same follower count are charging $10,000 less. There’s no standard anymore.

What’s going on:

• Brands are spending more on creators

• Quick turnarounds and usage rights cost extra

• Creators are pricing based on results, not reach

Follower count no longer sets the price. Brands are adapting by testing and scaling what performs. Creators who can prove value are winning bigger deals.

The smart ones treat it like media. Iterate fast. Cut what flops. Scale what works.

Woah Vicky just launched her AI clone

TikTok star Woah Vicky (9 million followers) released Call Vicky, an app where fans can talk to a virtual version of her. It sounds like her, talks like her, and mimics her personality, because it was trained on hours of her content.

What makes it different:

• She owns the model, the app, and the revenue

• It’s openly labeled as AI

• Fans aren’t fooled, they’re opting in anyway

Her team says this is just the start. They’re building a full creator-owned AI ecosystem.

As Vicky put it,
"This is the next best thing to me sliding into your DMs."

Kajabi creators just hit $10 billion in total sales

Instead of chasing likes, Kajabi users are building real businesses – and it’s working.

Since 2010:

• Kajabi creators have made $10 billion in revenue

• Nearly 1,800 have become millionaires

• Most have 1,000 to 10,000 followers

• Average earnings are $190,000

The top categories are fitness, finance, and personal development. Most creators on the platform run five or more income streams.

Kajabi isn’t about going viral. It’s about building something stable, with full control over your brand, product, and audience.

As their CEO says,
"You don't need millions of followers. You just need customers who care."

As always, hit reply if something in here hits home.

P.S. If you want to get a feature about your own IP, reply to this email. If you’d like to reach our newsletter audience (founders, creators, and marketers), click the button below.

If you’re new here, I’m over the moon you’ve joined us! To help me craft content that’s actually useful (and not just noise in your inbox), I’d love it if you took 1 minute to answer this quick survey below. Your insights help shape everything I write.

✨ Insane Media is more than one voice

Dive into our other newsletters - where psychology meets the founders, e-commerce marketing, Human resources and AI trends.