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If you’re finding value in our Creator Economy newsletter, I encourage you to consider subscribing to The Information. It contains exclusive reporting on the most important stories in tech. Save up to $250 on your first year of access. Hello! Podcasters are a visible presence at Cannes Lions this year, joining the several hundred creators in attendance. I caught up with three of them—Jake Shane, Rachel Lindsay and Morgan Ashley Absher— at Spotify’s beachfront event, and asked them what features they’d like to see Spotify roll out next. Their answer surprised me: They want Spotify to bring back its Clubhouse competitor Greenroom, later renamed Spotify Live, so they can host live versions of their podcasts on the app. Spotify shut the standalone Spotify Live app down in 2023, though it said at the time it would continue to “explore” live features. Other platforms also shut down their live audio features after excitement around the format—which surged during the pandemic shutdowns—fizzled. “I want to do a live, late-night version of Therapuss twice a week,” Shane said, referring to his talk show podcast. He envisions a variety-like show during the Spotify livestream with a musical guest. “That’s my dream.” I think such a stream could also help him extend the buzz over his live podcast tour, which is scheduled to wrap up in July in Omaha, Nebraska. Another reason the group is excited about a live option is because they see themselves and other podcasts as a modern version of a morning show or late-night show. Live encourages more people to tune in at a certain time. Absher said when she posts her show late, fans will appear in her comments asking when she’ll post because it’s become their routine to watch at a certain time. What’s old is new again! Appointment viewing that was a hallmark of TV is also making a comeback on streaming services (Think: White Lotus). “If networks want to save day time and save late night, podcasting is the place to look,” Shane said. The three top podcasters had appeared on stage together ahead of our interview, where they underscored the importance of longer-form video content to attract loyal fans, who feel like they get to know them better by listening for hours than just through short video clips on TikTok or YouTube. That played out after the panel when Shane was mobbed by a group of at least a dozen college fans, mostly young women, who had passes to Cannes Lions through the University of Florida, according to their badges. In one exchange, a fan referenced Shane’s comment on stage that he was embarrassed that he had invited the pop singer Arianna Grande to “hang out and watch TV” with him when he met her. “Don’t be embarrassed!” one assured him. While it may sound obvious, podcasters at Cannes drove home a key point for why they like the medium: It gives them an opportunity to better control their public image, which is why so many A-listers are also opting to launch their own shows, in addition to other social media accounts. “My story was told by other people who didn’t know me,” Paris Hilton, an early influencer who now also has a podcast called “I Am Paris,” said on stage this week. “Everything was really controlled by the media and now people can be their own media, in a way.” Lindsay, who starred in “The Bachelorette” in 2017, had a similar experience. “I had no control over my narrative,” while filming the show she said, which also only captured a few hours of the day. “There’s so much more to that. With podcasting, none of that is there… [Listeners] say they really get to know you.” Other Cannes happenings: • YouTube CEO Neal Mohan announced during a keynote presentation that Shorts now averages 200 billion daily views on YouTube, up from 70 billion in 2024. He also said the latest version of Google’s AI video generator Veo 3 will be available to use for Shorts later this summer. Alex Cooper also made a surprise appearance on stage during Mohan’s presentation, alongside Amelia Dimoldenberg, who is known for her YouTube series “Chicken Shop Date.” Cooper told the crowded auditorium that when her three-year exclusive deal for her podcast “Call Her Daddy” was coming to an end on Spotify, it became “very apparent” to her that next she wanted to push her “show wide,” so she brought it to YouTube. • Candle Media CEO Kevin Mayer said in interviews he thinks the company, which owns Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine and Moonbug Entertainment, will operate more like a holding company that will likely sell off its individual assets rather than an IPO or sale of the entire company. • Alex Warren performed in front of a packed house at Spotify’s party on Tuesday night. The former member of the TikTok collective the Hype House has seen his music career skyrocket with his hit single “Ordinary”. • Overheard: Twitch CEO Dan Clancy said he refers to the platform’s creators as “people who game” instead of “gamers,” as the streaming service has expanded into other categories of content. “They also put on makeup. They also eat food. They also like to listen to music,” he said at an Axios event at Cannes. “I use the term people who game, because I think that term gamer gives you the wrong image of who these people are.” Here’s what else is going on… See The Information’s Creator Economy Database for an exclusive list of private companies and their investors. President Donald Trump will sign an executive order this week that will again delay enforcement of a law to ban or force a sale of TikTok in the U.S. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to CNN that President Trump “does not want TikTok to go dark.” Pinterest is partnering with YouTuber Emma Chamberlain’s Chamberlain Coffee on a limited-edition coffee that is sea salt and toffee flavored. It’s the first time Pinterest has ever launched a co-branded product. Instagram is testing the ability for users to repost posts to the main feed, a company spokesperson confirmed. Currently, users can only repost someone’s disappearing Story. Substack is in discussions to raise between $50 million and $100 million, Newcomer reported. A Substack spokesperson declined to comment. Brandon Bauman is the new chief strategy officer of Loti AI, a deepfake detection startup. Previously, he spent eight years at Spotify, where he was global head of original content and creator business and legal affairs. Robert Graham is membership platform Fanfix’s new chief strategy officer. Most recently, he was chief talent officer at Afterparty, a crypto startup he co-founded that connects creators and artists with fans. Fanfix also announced Wednesday that it has paid out more than $170 million to creators to date. Thank you for reading the Creator Economy Newsletter! I’d love your feedback, ideas and tips: kaya@theinformation.com. If you think someone else might enjoy this newsletter, please pass it forward or they can sign up here: https://www.theinformation.com/newsletters/creator-economy
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