Have you heard? MrBeast’s critic walks it back, creators go south, and ‘Hawk Tuah’ gets a podcast

There’s a lot of news in the creator economy. Each week, we handpick a selection of stories to give you a snapshot of trends, updates, business moves, and more from around the industry. Let’s get into it…

Creator commotion

DogPack404 is finding that this journalism stuff is a bit harder than it looks. Despite legal threats, a former MrBeast employee continues to post videos that criticize the North Carolina-based creator. This time, DogPack went after MrBeast’s “secret CEO” James Warren. But he also identified Warren as the defendant in a domestic violence case that actually featured a different James Warren. Oops! That one might come back in court.

DrDisrespect has no shame but plenty of views. The disgraced streamer’s longtime editor quit his post rather than return to work two months after DrDisrespect admitted to sending inappropriate texts to a minor (though he’s now trying to walk it back). That internal strife didn’t stop the Doc’s return stream from reaching more than 223,000 peak viewers, according to data from Streams Charts. I could say the comeback was in poor taste, but given the guy’s screen name, we shouldn’t be surprised.

Alex Botez and Ludwig Ahgren are two of the creators calling out America’s Card Room for missing sponsorship payments. A poker company bilking its users? Wouldn’t be the first time…

Hiring moves

Nicole Iacopetti leaves TikTok. The app’s Head of Content Strategy was one of the execs who oversaw an entire unit after the operations division reorg went live. Retention — especially at the top level in the United States — continues to be a thorn in TikTok’s side.

CreatorIQ has a new CMO.

The longtime supplier of creator economy insights has elevated Brit Starr to a CMO role. She gained her new role just a few months after Chris Harrington took over CreatorIQ’s CEO role. Despite its long track record, the analytics firm is not afraid to shake things up in search of a little innovation.

Former YouTube employee Jessica Wang has quietly taken a creative role at GM. Is original content the best way to distract consumers from the unreliability of Chevys? Wang will apply her wealth of experience to give it a shot.

The biz

Nadeshot is loving Texas. The 100 Thieves co-founder thinks everyone in his new hood is so nice and friendly. With creator organizations like Night and GameSquare holding court in the Lone Star State, has Texas become the new California?

Streamer IceTalks reveals his earnings, and he gets more from TikTok than Twitch. Even for small creators, the money tap seems to be flowing more freely on TikTok than it is on Twitch. Perhaps Twitch’s attempts to ape TikTok will help it keep up in the revenue department.

Kim Kardashian’s kid had to sign an “extensive contract” before starting a YouTube channel. Kim K wants eight-year-old Saint to protect the family secrets. We may not all be the Kardashians, but this level of oversight is becoming more common across the kids’ content landscape. Maybe Saint can find a way to get 15% of his mom’s considerable earnings.

Agency dealings

CAA signs creators of Pop The Balloon Or Find Love. The dating show falls squarely into the “competition between a bunch of people standing in a line in front of a blank background” genre popularized by channels like Jubilee. Now Arlette Amuli and Bolia Matundu are branching out with help from CAA.

Speaking of CAA… The Los Angeles-based agency has also inked a deal with comedy creator Larray. The one-time Streamys host keeps moving up in the world.

MonRae Management adds soccer channel 5ive Guys FC. Sports are blowing up on YouTube right now, and U.K.-based MonRae is making inroads in the soccer community (though they may prefer for us to call it football).

The internet is a strange place

You can probably guess the flavor of the Ben & Jerry’s x Kamala Harris collab. Yup, it’s coconut. The new novelty flavor is arriving a bit late to take advantage of Brat summer, but the Democratic nominee for president is hoping to continue that trend all the way into November.

Hawk Tuah girl has a new podcast and you can probably guess the name. If this meme gets played out any harder, I might have to “Talk Tuah” therapist…

And finally, the old Hype House bus was found abandoned on the road in LA. The once-mighty TikTok supergroup is now taking up a parking space. There’s something very “Ozymandias” about the whole situation. Look upon my Bus, ye mighty, and despair!