Well, I did it. My blog is three years old and I can say this is one of my proudest accomplishments. My passion for writing has only grown since launching. Though I may not have stayed consistent with publishing, I know the joy I find in writing will always remain.
Three full years of putting figurative pen to paper. Three years of ideas ruminating in my brain and being shared with you all. Trust, I don’t even publish half the ideas I have, but the ones that make it are always done with careful consideration.
So, as I thought about what I’d write on this third anniversary, it was not my intention to reflect. Instead, I’d rather provide insight (as I’ve done in years past) on blogging, writing, and content creation in the 21st year of this 21st century.
Y’all seeing what I’m seeing?
In early December 2020, I scrolled across Instagram and saw a famous female rapper promoting a Facebook show titled similarly to my blog. As I continued to dig I noted how the show was marketed. I noticed the coincidences did not stop in name alone. From the logo fonts to the color scheme that was chosen, and the language used in advertising the show across social media, I found more and more of what my blog and brand aim to be about, being executed by someone with a greater influence.
Now, I’m not saying my ideas were copied, but the coincidences are highly suspect. I don’t have one million, one hundred thousand, or even ten thousand follows. But, reach and influence are subjective. It is not impossible to think that given the relative success and proximity I’ve had to spaces of influence, that someone saw my vision, and pitched it to a celebrity that can pull in money and viewership in ways I certainly cannot.
I’ll even concede that there are certainly are other young millennial women of color who also have curated a brand similar to mine. But I think what frustrates me the most is what little recourse I have if I truly felt there were sinister motives. What I experienced was not an isolated event; I have seen “influencers” who engaged with me copy my words and works in the past. I am not the only person on the planet to exist as I do, but to see my work elsewhere, does hurt. But it happens all the time. If you just Google “celebrity accused of…” and you can fill it in with “plagiarism” “copying” or “stealing” you’ll see this is an everyday occurrence. Here are just a few recent examples.
- In Fall 2020, Fashion designer Aazhia came forward with claims that one Megan Thee Stallion used her designs for her Fashion Nova collaboration without compensation
- Black-owned lingerie brands Edge ‘o Beyond and DBleuDazzled called out Victoria’s Secret for not only copying designs but going so far as to order from them to use their products for exact replication
- In June 2020, B. Simone was accused of outright copyright infringement when it was discovered that much of the book she authored was content taken directly from bloggers
There’s not much if anything smaller creatives and artists can do to make sure their work isn’t copied. Sure, someone can trademark their work or copyright it as I do with my website. But, the sad reality is, people don’t care about who did something first, they care about who did it best.
Being a creative inherently means that your work will be copied or replicated at some point. Moreover, you very well may well do the same to others without realizing it (cc: the growing debate on if Pablo Picasso just copied the works of African artwork). Nothing is ever really “new” but when you find a niche and you’re good at it, people might steal it for themselves.
Protect ya’self
As the days went and on the promotion continued, I had varying levels of emotions. Seeing billboards and social media ads for a concept and vision so close to my own irritated me. More than anything, I felt frustrated by the notion that even if unlikely, someone, somewhere found me. Rather than credit, celebrate, or collaborate, they chose to steal my vision as their own simply because they could.
In the age of influencers who constantly put themselves out there, how can you stop this from happening to you?
The short answer is usually you can’t. This is something we sign up for. The advent of social media has made it such that we can use free platforms to promote our work. But nothing in life is truly free. When you agree to post on Instagram, make a Tik Tok, fire off a Tweet, or join Clubhouse and dole out advice, expertise, and work for FREE, you’re exposing yourself to risk.
The biggest thing for me has been, and I say this frequently, owning my brand outside of social media. If I had a dollar for every time I hear YouTubers, Instagrammers, or Pinteresters complain about “the algorithms”, or being demonetized, or losing engagement, or getting unnecessarily banned, I’d probably not need to work an actual 9-5.
To post on Instagram and call yourself an “influencer” is not enough. Each time you use #sponsored or #ad, yes, folks might see you as a reference for where to buy flat tummy tea. But ultimately if these platforms disappeared tomorrow (like Vine did…) who would you be? Just a chick who posted viral videos and disappeared into the ether.
Now, being a blogger with a domain I own on a platform I pay for is not a failsafe. But what it does provide is the opportunity to say what I want, how I want, without fear of a Zuckerburger (shoutouts to Boosie) censoring me. The only other medium that offers this freedom is podcasting. Moreover, it legitimizes everything else I do in a way the B. Simones of the worlds can never be. When you invest in a website, where you can host your own ideas, you get a more honest audience. Folks have to seek you out rather than just being another photo on a feed. When you invest in your own platforms, your content is yours to do as you wish, for better or for worse.
For example, I was recently pitched an opportunity to work with a popular home décor media group that focuses on apartment styling. After several emails, I was ultimately not given the opportunity. Only after I created a bit of content and pitched ideas was I told I would not be featured. However, had I been selected, anything published would’ve been subject to their creative jurisdiction. My words and vision could have the potential to be altered. Fortunately, I was not discouraged that the opportunity would mean my latest adventures in home décor would not see the light of day. My website provides me with the opportunity to share my home, on my terms, with the vision I want.
If you consider yourself a brand and you only exist on free platforms (independent of Business accounts), there is ALWAYS a cost to pay.
As a creative, if you are not finding ways to put yourself out there independent of these platforms, you’re doing it wrong. Sure, YouTubers have become millionaires and Instagrammers can make $10K a post, but if you’re always chasing the trends and playing the “influencer” game, you’ll always lose.
So I’ll leave you with this. Your brand is yours and you should protect it at all costs. Buy your own domain. Host your own content. Stay consistent and true to yourself, and the followers, opportunities, and loyal responses will follow.
Thank you to everyone who has supported me these past three years. Shoutouts to those who publically show support. As always, to those who lurk in the shadows and pretend like you don’t pay attention, I see you too.
I’m so excited for what’s on the horizon and year four is going to be incredible, even if 2021 isn’t.
P.S. If you’re looking to take your brand seriously and start your own blog, join me on BlueHost and get your site set up for just $3.95/month.
