One Of The Only Black-Owned ‘Content Houses’ For Black Influencers Has Been Sold – Here’s Why
A well-known influencer collective, Collab Crew (formerly known as Collab Crib) has had a turbulent few months with its founder Keith Dorsey stepping down to focus on his mental health, appointing Robert Dean III (@robiiiworld) to take the lead and of course the big news that it’s shifting from a collab house into a studio.
What was the ‘Collab Crib? It was one of the nation’s only content houses for all-Black influencers.
There – 10 young creators worked daily under the care of a manager.
Most of them lived in the house as well. The youngest was reportedly eight years old and the oldest was 30.
Why the sudden change into a studio? Their Atlanta area house was sold, so they couldn’t renew their lease.
A few minutes from downtown Atlanta, the new Collab Studio ATL describes itself as “a tech-based one-stop shop for content creators, HBCU students and young entrepreneurs to achieve their business goals.”
Black influencers and startup founders alike face systemic barriers to their growth. In the same way that Black founders are unfairly overlooked in venture capital, Black content creators have had their work stolen and earn fewer brand deals than white creators, studies have shown.
The studio wants to be part of the solution and provide them with a safe haven to make original content.
Currently, the studio is funded in part by partnerships with Monster Energy and Snap’s 523 program, which supports small content companies and creators from underrepresented groups, according to TechCrunch.
There is an application process and fee for members to join Collab Studio ATL, but the group hopes these costs will be subsidized by partners in the future — they say that the application process is more about assessing the needs of an entrepreneur or creator and what services they require from the space.
The price of membership varies depending on what resources an applicant is looking for, whether that’s marketing, help connecting with potential brand partners or use of studio space, the publication reported.
It’s almost similar to community-oriented tech incubators in Atlanta like the Russel Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs, PROPEL Center and Gathering Spot, but Collab Studio says it will focus more specifically on the entertainment industry
At launch, members estimate that one-day access to the workspace will cost $25, while the use of the studio will range between $150 and $250 an hour. Depending on how often a member wants to book the studio, monthly memberships will range from $85 to $250.
