Issa Rae explains why organic audience word of mouth mattered more than SEO or marketing optimization for her web series.
Opinion
Rae: LA's entertainment scene is significantly slower and flakier than New York's
“I left New York and came to LA, and LA felt so slow to me. Like, LA people will be like, I'm working on a script, and you'll be like, where's the script? And they'll be like, oh, it's coming, I got you. New York, I'm working on the script. Where is it at? It's…”
Insight
Issa Rae: Self-producing and publishing online is viable path to bypass gatekeepers
“Because I had spent all this time trying to write and send my work to either producers, executives, contests, whatever, in an attempt to get it made, to get it seen. And I was either told why there wouldn't be an audience for this particular work, or that, you…”
Disclosure
Rae avoids sharing finished scripts immediately to protect her initial confidence
“It is, and you don't want, and even now I feel that way. Like, I don't want it, I don't want any negative energy. I don't want anybody to tell me it's not good, or that it doesn't resonate with them. It's always better when you feel good about it. Like, that m…”
Assertion Supported
Rae raised $60,000 on Kickstarter for 'Awkward Black Girl' in 30 days
“And we asked for 30,000 dollars, and then over 30 days, you know, people almost helped us to raise almost 60.”
Assertion Supported
Pharrell Williams funded Awkward Black Girl's second season through I Am Other
“He had one of those channels and was able to fund our second season via his I Am Other company.”
Insight
Rae: Prioritizing big names over a clear creative vision ruins TV shows
“I was just like, I just want to make a show. I just want to work with these people. And I don't really care about what I'm making. I just want to make with them. That is not, that's not, those aren't the right ingredients to make a good show.”