Issa Rae Launches New Company To Connect Brands With Diverse Creators
Actor, writer, and comedian Issa Rae is launching a new company, Ensemble, to connect brands with diverse creators.
Ensemble Connecting Brands With Diverse Creators
Ensemble is a next-generation branded entertainment company bringing production and distribution infrastructure to a diverse group of creators.
The company collaborates with brands, platforms, and publishers to produce and distribute content that shapes culture while engaging audiences.
Their primary mission is to make the creator economy more equitable for underrepresented creators, as research has previously found that Black creators, on average, made 35% less than white creators.
Ensemble is funded by Issa Rae and is run by a small team of advertising and marketing vets, including Ian Schafer, co-founder and president, Matt Berge, head of revenue and Keith Lee, head of revenue operations.
“We just see it as an evolution of the next generation of talent discovery, and the path is not obvious,” said Schafer, according to Business Insider.
“People used to look at digital as the minor leagues. It’s very much the major leagues, but the thesis is that the future is much more likely to be discovered by audiences and financed by brands.”
Ensemble is working to attract ad spending by connecting brands with a network of 50 up-and-coming creators and has already signed up Pepsi, Chili’s and Popeyes as clients.
Improving Opportunities For People Of Color
According to TIME, ISsa Rae has long made it her priority to create pipelines for people of color.
Ensemble is separate from her media and entertainment company, Hoorae Media, which was formed in 2020 out of Issa Rae Productions.
Issa Rae, best known for HBO’s “Insecure” and “A Black Lady Sketch Show”, also has a marketing company, Fete, a management company, ColorCreative and an audio division, Raedio.
Her other ventures include Sienna Naturals, a hair care line, and Viarae, a prosecco with E. & J. Gallo Winery.
“I recognize that I have to do well economically to be able to make change,” she told TIME. “That’s frustrating, that’s ugly. But I recognize that money moves things faster – and so much of what I do is with the intention to help make those moves.”
Image credit: Danielle Levitt/The Observer
