Guilty?

[00:00:00] Jessy Grossman: And it is so unfair because in many instances you’re doing the most. And what happens is if it’s, you know, a week late, a month late, six months late, like your time is money and there, you would rather be doing anything but chasing payments and you’re trying to find the right contact to get you what you need and you’re reaching out to all these people.

[00:00:19] Jessy Grossman: And in so many of these instances, I’ve heard that they were said, Oh, we’ll pay you on this date. That date comes and goes.

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[00:01:22] Jessy Grossman: Visit IamWim. com slash join. That’s I A M W I I M. I am a. com slash join today. And I so look forward to seeing you more around the community. You guys, I am in a bit of a tear today. First of all, I guess if you are new to this podcast, welcome. And anyone who regularly tunes in is welcome as well. It’s just been like a pretty insane day.

[00:01:48] Jessy Grossman: So I. Say that because I posted something on LinkedIn that got quite a big response. And I never have an issue being a pot stir if I think it’s warranted. And this is one of, those instances, and the amount of messages that I’ve gotten from so many people are, and the contents of those messages are pretty unbelievable.

[00:02:14] Jessy Grossman: So let me back it up because you probably have no idea what I’m talking about. So. In WIM, specifically in our Slack community, I would say like a couple, a few times a year, there’ll just be rumblings of something that’s up. And it’s one of the most powerful things I think about our community because you don’t feel crazy.

[00:02:31] Jessy Grossman: You can sort of say, is anyone else going through this? So is anyone else experiencing this? bunch of people chime in and this sort of sets off alarm bells. So something like that happened earlier this month, like two weeks ago. And I’ve been sort of sitting on it because I sort of wanted to see if it would resolve itself and if our members could help each other share resources and sort of figure it out.

[00:02:52] Jessy Grossman: And the issue was that allegedly the company Captivate, which is a huge major tech platform in our industry, it’s been around for a long time, was not paying its creators. And I just have to go on the record, I guess, to say that I am not someone who believes really in cancel culture. Like, that’s not me at all.

[00:03:16] Jessy Grossman: I think that our industry would, as a whole, benefit if captivate, I think that our industry would, as a whole, benefit if captivate. Rights, they’re wrong. And if this all is figured out a bull and if there aren’t any bad actors at all, people fix the problems and learn from them. And like, that’s more of the society that I want to live in.

[00:03:35] Jessy Grossman: So in the post that I shared on LinkedIn, I meant it when I said like captivate, I am rooting for you. I’m hoping that your company is in good financial shape. I hope that you can rectify these incredibly late payments for a Huge amount of people. I just can’t sit around and not say anything. Why? I don’t have any skin in this game as as an organization, we’re advocates for our members and for things that we’re seeing in the industry.

[00:04:04] Jessy Grossman: Like I don’t do, I haven’t ever candidly done business with Captivate. I know people who work there and I kind of, make it uncomfortable truthfully because I don’t want to disparage anybody. Nonetheless, of course, people that I know and am connected with. But when I see something that’s wrong like it’s wrong.

[00:04:24] Jessy Grossman: And I just like, I have to say something about it. And it’s frigging that one of the power of social media is when you have a platform and you’re able to use it for good. I’ve preached this for years to creators that I used to manage, right? Like you, it’s just, that you’re having a big platform. It’s just an opportunity.

[00:04:38] Jessy Grossman: You can do with it what you will. So I posted today. It wasn’t a long post. It just said like, what’s going on, captivate a lot of. Our members are, you know, saying that you haven’t paid them. And in like, we’re talking about a year, you know, like we’re not talking about like a week or two overdue here. We’re talking about months to a year plus that I’ve heard from some people.

[00:05:00] Jessy Grossman: And we’re not talking about one company or one creator. We’re talking about hundreds is my estimation. And then like, that’s only what I’m privy to. So I can only imagine it’s. More than that. We’re not talking about small amounts of money. And again, like, I have to say that this is all alleged, but I’ve just heard this from so many people that I just personally couldn’t stay quiet anymore.

[00:05:21] Jessy Grossman: So yeah, there’s something that might be brewing and immediately. I mean, I would say within 10, or 15 minutes of posting that post. People from Captive reached out to me personally as of right now, which is the end of this day. And I posted it this morning. Nothing substantial was told to me, but I hope that I can help people get paid.

[00:05:43] Jessy Grossman: I mean, here’s my issue. You guys, like my biggest issue is that, and I’ve experienced this. If you are a talent manager or a creator, like You know that this is what happens, right? You’re the lowest person on the totem pole. So like, you’re the last person who’s going to be getting paid, right? And it is so unfair because in many instances you’re doing the most.

[00:06:01] Jessy Grossman: And what happens is if it’s, you know, a week late, a month late, six months late, like your time is money and there, you would rather be doing anything but chasing. Payments and you’re trying to find the right contact to get you what you need. And you’re reaching out to all these people. And in so many of these instances, I’ve heard that they said, Oh, we’ll pay you on this date.

[00:06:22] Jessy Grossman: That date comes and goes, they reach out to follow up and crickets. I mean, we’re taught, like I’ve heard people were there that they were originally corresponding with and aren’t there anymore. I mean, I’ve just heard wild. Stories. And so time is money. And so if they’re wasting all of this time chasing you for money that they are already owed, this is something that they have a full right to in the first place.

[00:06:46] Jessy Grossman: And now they’re investing more time in it, which is depleting the value of that money anyway. And then yeah. A lot of people have got to get lawyers involved because it gets to a point and if, you know, have the means you involve lawyers. And so there’s been demand letter sent and some people have gotten progress with demand letters, but that costs something.

[00:07:06] Jessy Grossman: Of course, lawyers are not cheap. Lawyers are in fact, pretty expensive. It’s just not right. It’s not right. And I have to say this out loud to like, this is not just captivating. And again, like, this is all alleged. I’ve got no skin in this game. I’m just sort of reporting on what I hear from our members. And then, you know, comments to that post on LinkedIn, direct messages that I’ve gotten based on it.

[00:07:31] Jessy Grossman: Like, it’s just, it’s been a lot of people who’ve been saying this so many that it’s hard to believe it’s not true, but this isn’t just them. This is an issue in the creator economy. That’s. All this time. And I hate that for us because I mean, I can go on and on about all the reasons, but I think you know why it’s just like, it’s the most fucked up thing.

[00:07:52] Jessy Grossman: And we have to have change. There has to be better than this because it’s just diminishing our entire industry and it, the people who are the hardest working, the lowest people on the totem pole, like they’re the ones taking the biggest hits. And. So many big companies will preach like, we’re all about the creator first.

[00:08:16] Jessy Grossman: We’re, you know, we’re all about the creator yet. I know. And many of you know that behind the scenes, it’s all talk. It is all talk and they will notoriously pay late. They’ll, you know, like rush to for nothing, right? This is due tomorrow. And then you sit around for like, Two months or something on approvals.

[00:08:38] Jessy Grossman: Like there’s just, there’s so much hypocrisy and there’s so much just maltreatment of people still. Nothing’s changed that significantly. And so while I’m certainly not justifying what would captivate is allegedly doing. I’m also saying that, unfortunately, they’re not the first and they won’t be the last.

[00:08:59] Jessy Grossman: And I think that like, I don’t necessarily have answers. I just think that we have to hold ourselves to a higher standard at the very least and have our, have run our businesses smoothly so that you’re not hiring people for jobs that we don’t have the money to pay them. If you have a cash flow problem, you need to address that before it gets so far ahead of you.

[00:09:21] Jessy Grossman: And morally speaking, like. You should practice what you preach. You should really if you’re saying that, you know, it’s creator first and, you know, you’re an ethical company and most people should be, right, then you have to put actions behind those words. Otherwise, stuff like this is going to come out.

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[00:11:40] Jessy Grossman: So I think maybe that’s my parting message for you guys. You look, you don’t want to raise a flag if something is a week late, two weeks late. You should message me about it. You should ask for an update, but I wouldn’t post anything on social media about it. You know, I wouldn’t like to accuse anybody of anything huge, you know, if they’re, I would say even like under a month late, but like after a month and certainly after six months and certainly after a year late.

[00:12:09] Jessy Grossman: Oh my God. What? Like, I just, I think people are just nervous. Like, why wouldn’t you have said something publicly and made a stink? I think too many people are. I understand, but they’re trying to handle things behind closed doors by sending a letter, a demand letter from a lawyer and, you know, not sharing enough about this in communities like WIM or on social or what have you.

[00:12:36] Jessy Grossman: But I will tell you multiple people messaged me and were like, We just signed an agreement with them last week, or someone I know is in talks with them to work on something, you know, that they want to sign that like in a couple of weeks or an hour ASAP basically, and they’re like, I don’t feel comfortable working with them anymore.

[00:12:55] Jessy Grossman: So thank you for sharing that because you should very least be armed with the information and then you make a conscious decision of whether or not. You’re comfortable giving it a shot, or you’d rather not, and you’d rather spend your time in another way. But if we all sort of keep things hush, and we don’t speak up about issues that we’re having, then just more people are going to be susceptible to falling into these patterns of, you know.

[00:13:20] Jessy Grossman: Problems. So that’s my parting words. You guys like, don’t be afraid to speak up, and share when you’re having an issue. You don’t need to be an alarmist. You’re not going to be an alarmist and you’re not going to be like, let’s cancel this company. Like, please don’t do those things. But if you’re rightfully owed something, speak up for yourself and those who have nothing to hide, hide nothing.

[00:13:44] Jessy Grossman: And I have always lived by that. I’m someone who Went through some crazy shit in business years ago, and I needed people to advocate for me. And nobody did. And everybody stayed quiet. And I just, I won’t do that anymore. I won’t do that for myself. And I certainly won’t do it for other people that I care about.

[00:14:06] Jessy Grossman: So again, All legend, but I’m waiting to hear from them. And if I get any updates, hopefully, I’ll get one soon. I’ll certainly share it on our podcast. I’ll share it on social because I hope that there’s good news to share. And I hope that they can fix this problem because a lot of people have been affected by this.

[00:14:25] Jessy Grossman: So thank you for listening. I hope this helps someone who’s tuning in. You know, hit the subscribe button on YouTube, subscribe on Spotify and iTunes, and I will be with you next week like I am every week. We release episodes on Tuesday, and hopefully, I’ll have a good update for you next time.

[00:14:46] Jessy Grossman: All right, guys. Later. If you enjoyed this episode, we gotta have you back. Check out our website for more ways to get involved, including all the information you need about joining our collective. You can check out all the information at iamwim. com. Leave us a review, or a rating, but the most important thing that we ask you to do is to share this podcast.

[00:15:08] Jessy Grossman: Thanks for listening. Tune in next week.