Issa Rae has expanded her business empire with yet another venture that caters to creatives.
Business Insider reports that the media mogul has launched Ensemble, a company that works to connect brands with Black and brown creators. Moreover, the ultimate mission is to be a part of closing the creator pay gap between creators of color and their white counterparts.
Funded by Rae, the company is already working with 50 creators such as comedian Mark Phillips, who is co-founder of the popular social media collective RDCWorld. What’s more, several major brands have joined Ensemble’s roster, such as Pepsi, Chili’s, and Popeyes.
“We want Ensemble to be seen as a general market company,” said Montrel McKay, president of development and production at Hoorae Media, Rae’s media and entertainment company. “We want to go after media budgets. We don’t want to go after small allocations that are for diversity buys. That’s why it’s important to work with Pepsi out of the gate — we want to show the world we’re just trying to drive popular culture.”
McKay also shared that what sets Ensemble apart from traditional agencies is that its team not only has cultivated non-surface-level relationships with its clients but also teaches creators how to package and sell media to big-name companies.
Ian Schafer, co-founder and president of Ensemble, added, “We just see it as an evolution of the next generation of talent discovery, and the path is not obvious. People used to look at digital as the minor leagues. It’s very much the major leagues, but the thesis is that the future talent is much more likely to be discovered by audiences and financed by brands.”
The outlet details that the new company isn’t under the umbrella of Hoorae and has its own team.
Ensemble is far from Rae’s first instance of showing up for creators. From Raedio to Color Creative, she has joined forces with rising diverse talent across entertainment including film, television, music, and podcasting. In February 2024, Rae announced an upcoming project that is set to create even more opportunities for creators. As previously shared by AFROTECH™, she revealed that she has secured investors for a new studio.
“We have the investors; it’s just about locking in on that land,” Rae said during an interview with Time. “When I tell you we’re ready, we’re ready. …I have my little stake in this limited plot of land, and I’m gonna make sure that I bring in as many people to live on it as possible. So until we run out of opportunities, they’ll be good.”
