Authentic lands in your inbox every Tuesday, with the deals worth studying, the strategies worth stealing, and the shifts worth watching… all from the people building the brand-creator economy from the inside. If someone forwarded you this newsletter, you can find us at liveauthentic.io.
Trending The Market
Colin And Samir Hit The Road With Lexus
Top creators Colin Rosenblum and Samir Chaudry of The Colin and Samir Show are partnering with Lexus on a new digital series.
The Big Pitch: Brands are finally getting the message that inking long-term deals with creators is the best path forward for capturing the widest audience and increasing ROI. The Colin & Samir collaboration also reflects a deeper understanding of the brand-creator economy — the best partnerships are the ones rooted in authenticity for both parties.
The Fine Print: The new series, Colin & Samir Start Over takes the hosts across America in a Lexus GX 550 and a Lexus RZ 550e.
The duo will hit the road to “reconnect with the outdoors and try new things to inspire their creativity,” per THR.
Lexus will roll out episodes throughout the year on its YouTube channel and Colin & Samir’s channel. It’ll also live on a dedicated website that the creators built.
The first four campaigns from the partnership will “span ten assets, from cinematic hero ads to iPhone-shot spots,” the duo wrote in their newsletter, The Publish Press.
Colin and Samir hope that the journey also inspires other brands and creatives to join, potentially multiplying the campaigns’ reach.
Colin and Samir noted that the partnership was also fostered by Google’s in-house creative consultancy, Creative Works, which specializes in connecting brands and creatives.
The Analysis: Other than regularly doling out advice about the brand-creator economy on their channel, Colin and Samir have been open about how they lost their respective homes in the recent LA fires.
That inspired a desire for a creative reset — something the great American road trip has traditionally stood in for.
By getting out of their element, the hope is for new conversations to be sparked that keeps audiences engaged and shows a new side of the creators.
The hope is the final result will program ad spots on YouTube that not only feels native to the outlet but also just feels different than any other commercial playing on the platform.
It’s the type of ad that audiences may not even consider skipping — the holy grail of today’s digital ecosystem.
Together with Consumable
Audio For The Outcomes Era
Most media plans treat audio as a few line items: a streaming buy, maybe a podcast sponsorship. But the audio ecosystem is far bigger than that… and much of it is going untouched.
Mobile apps, addressable podcast audiences, and creator-led content extended across platforms — these are spaces where attention is intentional and trust already exists.
Consumable opens up that ecosystem.
The tool helps you reach 210M+ Comscore-verified monthly users across formats and channels.
It’s powered by listener intelligence, precision targeting, and modern identity infrastructure.
Every audio impression is measurable, addressable, and tied to real outcomes.
Consumable lets brands reach audiences wherever they listen, with the same precision and accountability marketers expect from their best digital channels.
Through immersive ad experiences that combine audio, visuals, and interactivity, brands can finally turn listening into engagement and business impact.
Building The Stack
YouTubers Become A Big Hit On Netflix
Netflix has been actively looking for ways to boost engagement on the platform over the past year… and creators have proven to be a bright spot. In its bi-annual What We Watched report, YouTubers Ms. Rachel, Mark Rober and Salish & Jordan Matter have all put up big numbers on the streamer. For example, the first season of Ms. Rachel was the ninth most-watched series on Netflix during the first half of 2026, racking up 37.3 million views. Expect Netflix to double down on this strategy.
Speaking Of Hit YouTubers On Netflix, Rhett & Link Expand To The Streamer
Wasting no time, Netflix has already signed Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal’s Mythical Entertainment to a big deal. The duo’s long-running and massively-popular variety show, Good Mythical Morning, will now debut on the streamer simultaneously with its release on Netflix. Additionally, their shows Mythical Kitchen and Last Meals, both hosted by Mythical chef Josh Scherer, will have a similar distribution. Are we seeing the birth of a premium YouTube?
Disney Wants Creators Too
Disney doesn’t want to be left behind in the brand-creator economy, so is launching an event this fall to kick off its ambitions in the industry. The company’s Created In L.A. will take place September 17-18 at the El Capitan theater, bringing together 350 top creators to discuss the evolving confluence between brand-creator economy and Hollywood. It’ll be hosted by known-creator-savant Jon Youshaei, who has worked inside both YouTube and Instagram… and is also a major creator himself. Definitely keep an eye on this event.
Do you think creators will change Hollywood?
Social Updates
TikTok has inked a wide-ranging global partnership with the NBA and WNBA to give users creator-access to live events and advertising opportunities.
TikTok is making a stronger effort to educate users about what AI-altered content looks like on the platform.
X will start routing monetized impressions of reposted videos to the original poster.
Roblox is rolling out a new feature that will allow creators to make experiences using AI from their mobile devices.
YouTube is cracking down on “inauthentic content” and videos of sensitive subjects that are discussed by AI personas.
Wrapping Up
Another week in the books. We'll be back in your inbox next Tuesday with more insights.
Programming for the Authentic Forum is going beyond our wildest expectations, and the room we're building in New York this November is shaping up to be something you won’t want to miss. If you're behind a brand-creator partnership worth the room's attention, we want to hear from you. Submit your work for consideration at authenticcall.aivanta.io. Submissions close August 1, and the right fits will earn a speaking slot at Authentic this fall.
And if you know someone this event wouldn't be complete without, a brand doing the work others are still trying to figure out, or a creator whose partnerships belong in front of this room, drop us a line directly at [email protected]
See you next week.
— The Authentic Team