In at the moment’s digital panorama, one reality is sort of plain: originality sparks a novel form of fame. Social media strategists and model consultants alike agree that the extra genuine your strategy, the quicker you carve out a definite identification. However what occurs after that preliminary spark of fame? More and more, we’re seeing a pattern the place influencers and creators use reputation as a springboard — then pivot into one thing new solely.
Those that know me personally can testify to my long-standing dislike for TikTok. My difficulty with the platform has at all times been the way it promotes senseless scrolling and obsessive consumption. I’ve at all times most popular X (previously Twitter). Once I’m not at work, you’ll often discover me on Elon’s app, catching up on the most recent information. I’ve educated my Twitter algorithm to ship impressionable tweets — and it really works.
As a result of I’m so aware of Twitter’s ecosystem, I’ve seen one thing fascinating: most viral acts that dominate conversations there don’t truly begin on Twitter. They’re imported from different apps, then dissected, memed, or praised by Twitter customers. And that’s precisely how I stumbled throughout one specific influencer’s tweet that caught my consideration.
She had collaborated with a micro-influencer who commanded a loyal following. Out of curiosity, I clicked via to her profile. Her pinned posts hooked me instantly — sufficient to earn her a observe. And right here’s the fascinating half: she truly made me reinstall TikTok, a platform I had sworn off. Abruptly, each time I logged in, my FYP was stuffed with posts like “bandana woman on my FYP” or “somebody on my FYP” — creators mimicking her model, constructing momentum round her model.
This wasn’t my first time seeing the “reputation, then rebrand” sample. Take Jadrolita, the self-styled “human AI.” She gained world traction by posting AI-inspired content material that blurred the road between human creativity and machine precision. Then, after commencement, she stopped. Followers questioned her silence till information broke — via Twitter, after all — that she had partnered with Peller. The revelation wasn’t made instantly; relatively, influencers hinted at it. The pivot sparked debates. Was she abandoning her followers? Or was she making a strategic transfer that will enable her model to develop in new instructions?
Now, enter Chisholm Laurel — higher generally known as Bandana Lady. Whereas her model isn’t an identical to Jadrolita’s, she appears to be following the same arc. At first look, her content material feels introverted and understated, but she persistently reveals new layers, like her surprising singing expertise. Right now, she popped up on my FYP once more — this time backed by endorsements from main manufacturers like JBL. That made me cease scrolling.
And right here’s the place my curiosity deepens: I actually need to know if folks genuinely like her posts. As a result of from my expertise, one factor that may’t be precisely measured is the human notion of a model. Metrics give us numbers — engagement charges, impressions, follower development — however numbers don’t inform us the emotional reality. What we will do, nonetheless, is strategically affect that notion. Storytelling, partnerships, and cultural positioning all play into how an viewers experiences a model, whether or not consciously or not.
Which brings me again to the query: is that this the brand new social media technique? Do creators construct reputation simply to later pivot — rebranding themselves into singers, entrepreneurs, or life-style icons? Or is that this a time-tested components that predates the digital age, merely taking part in out on quicker platforms?
Give it some thought. Even earlier than the web, public figures reinvented themselves. Musicians shifted into performing. Actors grew to become activists. Writers grew to become political voices. And every pivot, whether or not intentional or circumstantial, reshaped how audiences perceived them.
So perhaps this isn’t “new” in any respect — simply extra seen, extra accelerated, and extra strategic due to social media’s immediacy.
Now I’d love to listen to from you. Are you able to consider a historic determine, lengthy earlier than TikTok or Twitter, who mastered this components of “reputation, then rebranding”, it could not essentially be within the type of social media, it may simply be life basically? Drop a reputation. Let’s research the sample collectively.
