For many years, TikTok has served as a platform for Black innovators, influencing worldwide culture through trend-setting and viral moments.
After less than a day, TikTok was temporarily taken down, much to the relief of its users. In order to keep TikTok running for 75 days, President Donald Trump pledged to halt the prohibition by executive order. ByteDance may have additional time to find a buyer as a result of Trump’s decree.
Since nothing is set in stone, creatives must be astute in spreading their work across several platforms and looking for substitutes that provide both artistic freedom and just pay. You say, one of the most promising options? In 2018, Isaac Hayes III, the son of the renowned R&B artist Isaac Hayes, created Fanbase, a Black-owned social networking company.
Fanbase combines content monetization with social networking. Fanbase provides a mechanism where users can directly support influencers, in contrast to TikTok’s algorithm, which has come under fire for allegedly censoring Black material and neglecting to give credit to Black producers.
Hayes posted on his Instagram page that “Black culture has always been a blueprint, but for too long, our innovation was hindered by infrastructures that required heavy hardware, construction, and manufacturing spaces we didn’t own.” Now is our time to invest in and develop our own infrastructure so that the platforms that benefit from our innovation work for us.
Users can interact with postings by liking or loving material, which is a monetized action that lets content producers get paid directly by their followers. For access to unique content, the app provides subscription packages ranging from $2.99 to $99.99. This approach shifts the power dynamic, ensuring Black creators are fairly compensated for their work rather than relying solely on brand deals or unpredictable algorithmic boosts.
Fanbase also lets users invest in the business if they want to help the platform even more. The starting minimum investment is $399. For users that are dedicated to creating a sustainable environment for Black digital producers, the chance to own a portion of the platform adds even more allure.
According to a 2021 study by The Influencer League, influencers of color make 29% less money than their white colleagues, and when only Black innovators are included, the difference rises to 35%.
Social Media Users React
Numerous Black people have shared their opinions about TikTok on social media in response to the possible ban.
One user stated on TikTok, “We are going to an app that does not shadow ban POC (people of color) and suppress us from uplifting our voices and sharing our stories going on in the community.” The number of times I’ve heard Black individuals on this app claim that TikTok isn’t for them is incalculable. They simply have a tendency to censor your content.
Another user said, “I don’t recall what Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook were expected to do when they first started.” I don’t recall having such high expectations. However, when Fanbase first launches, expectations are extremely high for some reason.
A TikTok user informed his followers that he had been banned for seven days for reasons he did not know. With the belief that there is always a bright side to circumstances like his, he happened into Fanbase.
