Wanted: Celebrities… no talent, looks, or brains needed

Being famous or a celebrity is something that every one has thought of once of twice in their lives.

But just how easy is it to become famous?

The web for one, has completely changed the ability to become famous. In the pre-internet era, becoming famous was just as rare as winning the lottery. Not only did you usually have to know somebody in the industry, you had to have exceptional amounts of talent or brains. There were high barriers to entry meaning that not everyone had a good shot and that it was quite difficult to rise to fame.

But because of the web, it is now easier than ever to become famous.

No prior experience needed. The entry age to become famous is get younger and younger. The article from The New York Times, “No Stardom Until after Homework” talks about average teenagers who have traded in the Barbie doll for a couple million. And what is it that allows for this easy access to fame?

The Internet and Social media really allows for fame to take place and allows for content to go viral. Cinkle, 14 ,talks about how she became famous almost over night for being that girl in the car of the “Friday” music video by Rebecca Black. She tells us how she used social media to create fan pages for herself and tend to her up and coming fame where she would spend hours answering questions to her fans. The article states that “Youtube” is where most pre teens and teens go to to start their shot at fame.

Teenagers upload videos on “how to do” several things including applying make up as well as shop for outfits which can sometimes get thousands of views. The article states that this has happened for many normal high schoolers who eventually drop out to manage their “new found fame”, with a lot of extra easy earned cash.

“In less then a month, Cinkle had gone from anonymous high school student to micro-celebrity”

-The New York Times

YouTube is online website that is the most popular when it comes to getting famous.

Gone are the days where you have to audition across the country in the hopes of landing an unpaid gig that might lead to your “discovery”. All it takes now is a camera, a room, and well.. your-self.

An article in the Business Insider ranked “YouTube stars” on the amount of money they make depending on which ads advertisers can work with. Although YouTube takes 45 percent of the profit, YouTube can turn anyone with a witty personality or make up tutorial skills for that matter, into a millionaire. The article begins with number 20 on the list of people who are earning as much as doctors, lawyers and celebrities just by creating home made videos. $134,000-$1.32 million estimated yearly income after YouTube’s 45% cut.

476,000 total subscribers.

443 million total views .

This isn’t the profile of one of Hollywood’s actors or the CEO of Google, this is just a young boy and his camera.

Evan is the 7-year-old face of EvanTubeHD,a family-friendly YouTube channel where Evan (and occasionally his sister or mom) reviews toys and video games.

The number one YouTube celebrity on the list is PewDiePie who makes over 7.4 million dollars a year.

But what exactly does he do might you ask? Well he didn’t find a cure for AIDS or cancer, that’s for sure. According to the article ,“ YouTube star PewDiePie responds to haters over 7.4 million annual earnings” in The Guardian, good old PewDiePie has to defend how much he earns from haters who accuse him of sitting down on his bum all day, which in reality is what he does.

The article states that PewDiePie began his hit videos just by reporting on video games, something that hadn’t been done before. This concept led him to become YouTube’s most watched “celebrity” in 2014.

The internet has democratized fame seeing that now anyone , everywhere with a broadband connection and a recording device has the potential to rise to fame.

Social media allows for fame to take place and allows for content to go viral. In reality, all you need is a smart phone and social media accounts to either create a Facebook, YouTube, twitter or Instagram page. The possibilities for becoming famous are available to anyone with little or no money, talent or time.

In the start of Hollywood, being a celebrity was not easy. The great actors like Audrey Hepburn or Clark gable were celebrities because of their unparalleled talent and look on stage. But now, people can become famous for all the wrong reasons thanks to the internet.

Let’s take Rebecca black or Kylie Jenner, who is part of the already famous Jenner/Kardashian gang.  Unlike Kourtney or Kim or Khloé, Kylie was born and raised in the online era. She’s a social media native. And she has lots of fans—many who are digital natives, too.

Kylie uses social media such as Snapchat, instagram and twitter as a base to upload videos, and her day- to-day happenings which help make her become even more famous. In the case of Rebecca black, a girl with little to no talent or looks to be quite honest, was turned into a over night star and as her video was shared, re tweeted and received millions of views. Whether viewers liked her video or not, the fact that it was shared so often made it go viral and ultimately gave her a rise to fame.

Uploading pictures can also lead to fame with the app called Instagram. Nowadays anyone can become Instafamous. It begins with uploading single images and then getting more and more followers until you ultimately get sponsored by a brand.

“Social Media is centered around the discourse of becoming a star”

-The New York Times

But why exactly does the Internet allow for people to become famous? Even when they have no talent? Is it just because the Internet provides a certain platform?

The key part of modern day fame lies in VIRALITY. Once uploaded, a video can be passed on and watched millions of times all over the world. Pictures get shared, tweets get re-tweeted, videos receive likes and views. Many C-listers ( aspiring actors) or even girls who work at Hooters, know that the internet leads to fame which is why many Sex tapes get “accidentally” leaked, thus getting the chance to go spread.

All it takes is for it to go viral and there we have it!… a new celebrity.. voila!

I also think that the Internet has trivialized fame and made it less complex then it really is. In the post internet era, society used to admire famous people and celebrities hoping to one day maybe get a glimpse into their lives. Now, with the Internet, being famous isn’t seen as being that glamorous or as “special”. I for one, think that due to the fact that we can see the way celebrities live and act on a daily basis, we become accustomed to it. Since, we see so many different people become famous and the circle of celebrity keeps on shifting, we think of fame as something easy to come by and quite undervalued. In fact, I think to myself that maybe if I started a blog, and uploaded some revealing photos on Instagram I might too have an easy shot at fame.

The concept of fame isn’t what it used to be.

 

 

Get your “Jessica” on aisle two

We find our selves purchasing things every day from Crest toothpaste and Bounty toilet paper to that Prada handbag. The world we live in is filled with brands. But there is a new item on the shelf, a different kind of brand..the human brand. So I, and many others ask the question of the decade, “Have we become a brand ourselves?”

If more and more people are creating a brand.. what is it that enables this phenomenon? How has our society changed?

The popularity of online social networks is the answer.

With everyone being constantly wired and on the internet, we are expected to keep our presence up 24/7.

Long gone are the days where you could act a certain way at work but then could come home and unwind. Nowadays, pressure is on and people are  either scrolling through Facebook or uploading to Instagram ever minute of the day.

An online presence or brand is extremely important in any business world. Joshua Baker, a financial advisor, is a perfect example of this. Baker has a twitter feed with under a million followers where he combines business facts with his own side of personal quirky and funny comments. This “online brand” that he creates for himself has led him to many clients who search him out due to the “online” side or brand he portrays.

Twitter is an online social network that allows it’s users to upload an image and is largely used to create a brand. In the “bio” section, people write a small introduction to who they are and what they are about. This allows for viewers to decide if they like the person and if they want to follow or “purchase the brand”.

Online networks allow us the opportunity to be whatever and whomever we want to be.

As profile turns into a brand these profiles becomes a self-representation of our selves. For example, people use Instagram to upload pictures of them selves eating a quinoa salad with organic kale while participating in every 5k… a personal brand depicting healthy life styles. Many women create profiles with witty comments and retweets of their favorite comedians and celebrities, a personal brand depicting their personable character. We all know that friend who uploads pictures of every luxury purchase they have ever made to show the world that.. “hey”! They’re a Fashionista.  An aspiring journalist would use facebook to upload articles and content that they have created perhaps with a picture of themselves.

Image, as I just introduced is a very important part of an online brand. It is for this reason that most online platforms are focused on uploading pictures.

Would you even use Facebook if you couldn’t see pictures? The article in the New York Times, “Glamour Photos Replace Selfies” states just how important this image is. There are times, it seems, when an iPhone and an outstretched arm just won’t do. Your average Jane can now call a professional photographer and shoot images that he or she wants to use in terms of self representation. No more college head shots or boring pictures in a suit. Self branding uses images that conjure thoughts of creative strong and sexy people that you want to associate with, that you want to buy into.

Social media makes this all possible.

Indeed, an impact photo is more than just a vanity statement these days, since it’s hard to say where “personal” ends and “professional” begins on Facebook and Twitter, said Sean Behr, a tech entrepreneur in San Francisco.

 

The article in the Wall Street Journal which gives tips on creating a brand in the real and online world,  mentions this fact as well.

How you look is very  important. If you don’t look presentable, no one is going to care enough to continue talking with you.

Appearance is the first box that needs to be ticked off.

The article in The New York Times, “Glamour Photos Replace Selfies” shows us just how important it is to have a professional picture to create a brand for ones self. Having a boring headshot taken or a Selfie from an Iphone, wont create that appeal of a professional image which ultimately won’t Sell well.

 

Then comes consistency.

Consistency is critical- even though it is difficult in our always connected lives. “Presence cant just be there on Monday’s when you are rested”, says Elizabeth Holmes from the Wall Street Journal article. Due to the fact that we are always logged in, society expects us to constantly tweet, upload, and like.

I for one, think that it is very important to create an strong online presence.

I think that people are brands and today’s available social media platforms make it happen.

In a society that is based off of how many instagram followers one has or how many likes one receives,  building online networks solidifies a personal brand. It is also important to create a brand for career prospects. I remember that after my internship for the south African Broadcasting Corporation in South Africa, my supervisor told me that developing a brand was one of the most important things to do as a young journalist. Me? a brand? I left the lunch in utter confusion thinking of different ways I could start.

I didn’t know this yet, but it was actually quite simple.

Social media helps one create this ideal, as it is easier then ever to construct a social identity and presence online.

In fact, it is almost impossible  not to create a brand for ones self if one uses social media.

As soon as you upload a single picture, you begin to attribute images to your persona. Facebook for example, makes it easy to create a brand for your self as you upload images of how you want people to think of you. Do you want a shot of power? A boost of confidence? Are you a fitness junkie who loves animals? Each and every image you upload contributes to the way you position and ultimately sell yourself to the audience. Just like the article in The New York Times states… before social media, creating a self brand was left for celebrities and models or those who had enough social influence to be on the cover of a magazine.

“We’ve been flipping through magazines since we were 5 years old, looking up to these glamorous women,” Ms. DeVee said. “Today, we can create our own magazines through social media.”

The concept of self branding has now been democratized due to the fact that every one can now hire a photographer for a couple hundred dollars and upload them unto various different platforms. One no longer has to wait to be featured in a magazine, creating a self brand starts with the click of a button..and anyone with wifi can create multiple accounts.

Linkedin is another popular site that strongly contributes in cerating a personal brand. You sign in and begin by uploading a picture of yourself.  “People buy you, more so than your exact services or goods,” said a customer of a professional photo-shoot.

“My business is truly and authentically me, so I wanted to make sure that this came out in my social media presence.” she says.

“Social media is a place where real business is actually happening,” said Mr. Behr, 38. “Customers of our business follow me on Twitter, they’re friends on Facebook. If they go see the profiles of this guy in this fake photo, wearing a suit and tie, they’re going to think, ‘Ugh, that’s not who we thought he was.’

How do you establish a personal brand?

Holmes, the author of “How to Develop your Personal Presence on Social media and on Real life” creates a list stating that you can begin by writing down everything that is positive about your self. Then, use the list you create to know what to emphasize when making an online presence.

Don’t try to be someone you aren’t….. but don’t be afraid to brag a little.

Take note on how extroverts move and speak and use those findings to turn heads and ultimately build up social capital at your next cocktail party.

Remember You are the brand and networking is the currency… welcome to the online world.