Creator Scarcity Theory

Most of us have been there. We find a creator early and watch them slowly evolve into a massive internet personality. But eventually, for the top 1% of creators there usually becomes a time when corners of the internet start to negatively turn on you. The more popular a creator gets (the more brand deals they get, the more they show up on everyone's FYPs), the more animosity people feel toward that creator. Why does this continue to happen? In this episode of Night Light I dig into what I’ve started to call the scarcity theory.

And to quote Batman, “You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain”

Not a lot of creators actually reach this level. I’m talking about the top 1% of the entire ecosystem (I've worked with a few). Most creators, when they start posting videos on the internet, are not thinking about longevity, they’re just grinding on a passion to try and make it into a career. But once that creator finally climbs that mountain, they tend to squeeze that lemon as hard as they can because they’re terrified it could all disappear tomorrow. In reality, this is a good mindset to have, but it leads to bad decision making around when and where you decide to show up.

Once you’ve broken through, the goal shifts. It’s still about innovating and staying relevant, but it’s also about creating scarcity. You have to be intentional about how, when, and why you put yourself in the spotlight.

I think way too many creators make the mistake of overexposing themselves once they become popular. Let’s take Kai, for instance, him stepping away from streaming right now is actually the smartest long-term play he could make. Eventually, creators start trying to be everywhere, from Super Bowl ads to streaming documentaries, and at a certain point, the audience flips. It becomes “cool” to think that creator is cringe simply because they’re overexposed.

As social media has become a larger part of our lives, certain celebrities chose to stay behind the curtain. They still pop out a couple of times a year to promote a movie and then disappear until their next project is ready for the public. Yes, they still attend things like the Met Gala, Oscars, etc., but we’re not seeing their faces across TikTok, Instagram, and TV commercials every single day. They don't saturate themselves enough to become disliked by the internet. This doesn’t happen on social media or live-streaming platforms. We see them every week (or even every day) when we scroll through our feeds.

Part of being an actor/musician is leaning into the mysteriousness of it. There’s still a lot of the craft that isn't shared with the public. In today’s economy, you have to fight the urge to be everywhere once you’re at the top. Some people would make the argument that Denzel Washington or Tom Cruise were becoming irrelevant because they weren’t using social media, but I would argue the opposite. Tom Cruise is still putting out box office hits and captures a tremendous amount of attention when he decides to step out of the spotlight. He’s done a good job of picking his moments to show up on the internet. This is part of the equation that creators still don’t understand.

Timothy Chalamet, I know you read this newsletter. Congrats on the Oscar, the Marty Supreme marketing was a masterpiece. I think you should step out of the limelight for the next six months.

I think creators can learn from celebrities over the last 50 years and fight the urge to be everywhere once you’ve become a household name. Create scarcity around your content and how you choose to show up on the internet.

Someone is slowly adding together their used contact lenses every day to create a ball. The ball’s name is Eyesha.

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