It's No Fluke

Mike Nellis is a leading political strategist, social impact entrepreneur, investor, and the founder of Endless Urgency. Over the past two decades, he has helped elect leaders including Vice President Kamala Harris, Adam Schiff, Gretchen Whitmer, Jon Tester, and Lauren Underwood, while raising more than $1 billion online for campaigns and causes.

He also built one of the nation's leading social impact agencies and has earned an unprecedented election win rate for his clients. Drawing on that experience, Endless Urgency is where Mike offers unfiltered analysis of American politics and the Democratic Party and challenging conventional wisdom, demanding...

Emilia Costa has spent nearly 20 years in media and advertising, watching the digital landscape transform from the earliest days of podcast sponsorships to the rise of AI-enabled platforms. She currently serves as Senior Manager of Member Engagement & Development at IAB, where she works with some of the biggest companies shaping the future of digital media and advertising including TikTok, Pinterest, Reddit, Beast Industries and OpenAI.

An optimist at heart with a love for trend spotting, she serves as IAB’s category lead for the Creator Economy and AI member companies, alongside influential publishers, and broadcasters, and has le...

Camille Dagorn, VP of Creator Partnerships, McCann New York, is an award-winning creator and influencer marketing expert with more than a decade of experience building high-impact campaigns for global brands including L’Oréal, Unilever, Pernod Ricard, GoPro, and Mastercard.

She is known for scaling social-first programs, designing creator-led brand initiatives, and driving measurable growth across beauty, lifestyle, tech, and consumer verticals. Camille is passionate about creating meaningful, unforgettable moments for creators and audiences.

Margarita Neymark is a brand executive and community builder who operates at the intersection of strategy and human behavior, connecting physical media to the evolving landscape of technology to create experiences that resonate, while benefiting local communities. 

Having spent the majority of her life building communities from the ground up, Margarita is passionate about reframing soft skills and principles like inclusion, belonging, care, clarity, and compassion as the most essential skills in business. Her current work focuses on bringing more humanity into how we lead, collaborate, and show up for each other.

She is presently t...

Spy Ninjas Entertainment is a creator-led media company based in Las Vegas, and is home to Spy Ninjas, the longest-running serialized narrative show on YouTube, which has 47M+ subscribers and 18B lifetime views since its launch in 2018. Founded by creators and entrepreneurs Chad Wild Clay and Vy Qwaint, the company recently announced it is investing $25M into its content pipeline and production capabilities, and aims to hire 50 new employees this year.

Shelly Soriano is President of Spy Ninjas Studios, part of the creator-led media company, Spy Ninjas Entertainment, which reaches tens of millions of fans, anchored by...

Travis W. Keyes makes images and films that live in the spaces most people miss. Cinematic, story-driven work that celebrates connection, character, and the beauty of being seen.

From film sets to nightclubs, studios to streets, Travis has always chased moments with energy, intention, and story at their core. Based in New York City, he is a cinematic portrait photographer, filmmaker, and content creator whose work now lives under one roof: Travis W Keyes Creative, a creative house spanning photography, film and motion, live events, content creation, and brand partnerships.

A proud alumnus of NYU's...

Josiah Hritsko is a leading YouTube strategist trusted by the platform’s top creators and companies, including JesserCo, CrunchLabs, Theorist Media, Home Renovision DIY, Contrarian Thinking, and Blueprint.

Over the past decade, he has shaped the ideas and thumbnails behind videos with 4 billion views. Through thousands of rigorous, data-driven A/B tests he has built a reputation around creating banger thumbnails.

Kaleigh Moore is an AI search strategist who helps B2B SaaS content teams show up in AI-generated answers. She is now researching LLM information retrieval at Harvard, she advises content teams on AI search strategy, and publishes the Context Window newsletter.

Corey Martin has spent over 25 years contributing to powerful integrated earned communications programs – connecting influencer marketing with earned media to effectively take advantage of an ever-changing media landscape. Press + media influencers as well as social + cultural influencers create a media dynamic that requires a cohesive strategy and as Managing Director of Media & Influence at Allison Worldwide, Corey focuses on bringing an evolved approach to an expanding media universe to deliver clear impact for his clients.

He has built PR and influencer strategies for a variety of brands across CPG/personal care, beauty, food & beverage, consumer health, tech, ph...

Jeffrey Matisoff is CEO & Managing Partner, North America at The Brandtech Group, the world's leading Gen AI marketing company. Over more than two decades, he has helped global brands including IBM, Nestlé, and Verizon navigate major shifts in media, technology, and consumer behavior. Before joining Brandtech in 2021, he served as Global President of WPP's dedicated IBM agency, where he led an 800-person global organization spanning creative, media, technology, and analytics. Since joining Brandtech, Jeff has played a key role in the acquisition and transformation of Jellyfish and the development of the company's agentic media platform, helping marketers harness AI t...

Seth Akkerman is a creative technologist driven by curiosity, humor, and a desire to leave things better than he found them. With a background in architecture, product design, UX, development, and motion, he thrives on cross-disciplinary collaboration and complex challenges.

Instrument's Playspace is a living archive of in-progress experiments: a home for scrappy builds, tiny tools, and interactive sketches that explore new patterns, technologies, and creative directions

Eva Nassery is a public relations professional specializing in media relations, influencer partnerships, and brand storytelling. Her passion for PR began at a young age through building online fan communities for her favorite artists and TV shows, where she developed an early understanding of audience engagement and digital culture. Today, she serves as a Senior Account Executive at APC Collective, helping brands connect with audiences through culturally relevant campaigns and strategic communications.

Kenny Gold is Edelman's Global Chief Creator Officer, leading Edelman Creator, the firm's global creator marketing offering. In this role, he is responsible for advancing Edelman's creator-first approach to communications and marketing, helping clients harness the power of creators, culture, and emerging technologies to drive business impact.

Kenny joined Edelman from Deloitte Digital, where he served as Managing Director and Head of Social and Creator. There, he built the practice from the ground up, developing a differentiated offering at the intersection of consulting, creativity, and creator-led marketing. Throughout his career, he has led transformative work for some...

Jason Y. Lee is the Founder and CEO of Jubilee Media, a digital media company with a mission to provoke real human conversation. Under his leadership, Jubilee has grown into one of the most recognizable digital-first media brands for Gen Z, reaching more than 380 million monthly views across platforms through flagship series including Middle Ground, Surrounded, Odd One Out, and Versus 1. Jubilee’s format-driven content brings people with differing perspectives into direct dialogue on the issues shaping culture today. Jason also launched Nectar, Jubilee’s sister channel and mobile app focused on love and dating, and executive produced the docu...

Zach Blume is the co-founder and president of Portal A, an award-winning brand and original content company built for a social world.Portal A has been named Campaign’s Brand Entertainment Agency of the Year, Digiday’s Video Agency of the Year, the Streamy Awards Agency of the Year, and Cynopsis Digital Studio of the Year. The company's work has been viewed over 4 billion times online and received recognition by the One Show, the Clio Awards, Tribeca, Brand Storytelling at Sundance, the Webby Awards, the Shorty Awards, and many others.

Portal A has been independent since its found...

Michelle Makasini is a D1 All-American soccer player turned award-winning digital marketer who has built social ecosystems from the ground up for some of the world's most iconic brands; Hilton, American Airlines, and Asana. As the architect behind Hilton's first-ever Shorty Award, Michelle proved that the most powerful marketing moments aren't bought, they're earned through authentic storytelling and community trust.

Now Head of Social Intelligence, Engagement & Advocacy at Asana and founder of Makasini Group (makasinigroup.com), Michelle brings the same grit, film study, and team-first mindset from her days on the field to every brand she champions...

Wes Elder is an entrepreneuer, filmmaker and actor. He's the co-founder of Creatorspace, a marketplace connecting brands with creators for everything from standard sponsorships to ambitious branded productions. His background is in film and TV. He co-created and starred in the 2016 romantic comedy The Matchbreaker (a two-year Netflix title) and produced the renovation competition series Gutted, the experience that ultimately inspired Creatorspace. He continues to work across entertainment and tech helping creators get funded to focus on what they're best at, creating.

Nia Testamark is the Director of Strategy and Client Leadership at We Thrive Media, a millennial-led, Gen Z-powered digital marketing agency specializing in digital & social media, influencer marketing, and creative production across culture, entertainment, education, healthcare, sports, and social impact.

With nearly a decade of experience across marketing, creative strategy, and digital storytelling, Nia has helped brands, organizations, and cultural campaigns build work that feels relevant, thoughtful, and culturally aware. Her work has contributed to nationally recognized campaigns, including a 2026 Shorty Award-winning campaign.

Born in New York, raised in the South, and influenced by her...

David Clarke leads communications at Oh Hello Agency, specializing in public relations, strategic messaging, and brand storytelling. His career spans NYC Public Schools, NYC Pride | Heritage of Pride, Inc., The WNET Group, and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, earning high-impact media coverage and shaping resonant campaigns.

A published journalist in OutSmart Magazine, BroadwayWorld, and others, David blends strategy and storytelling to elevate diverse voices with authenticity and purpose.

Sara Currie is a video editor for MrBeast turned founder and CEO of the trusted creative agency, Rich Bear Brandworks. She has her finger on the pulse of the real inner workings of the creator economy. And now she's here to share it with you.

Jacques Keyser is the Director of Programming at VidCon, where he leads the strategy and execution of event programming across the US and international markets. With over 15 years of experience in music, entertainment, and the creator economy, he has worked with leading platforms, labels, creators, executives, and global brands. At VidCon, Jacques has helped launch and scale events worldwide, curating industry-leading programming that unites creators, executives, and fans on a global stage.

Previously, he held senior roles in talent management and artist development, shaping the careers of top UK digital and music talent while building strategic partnerships...

Drew Sutton is the founder of Drew Sutton Leadership and creator of Culture Systems — a proprietary leadership architecture that replaces force-of-will management with scalable systems for aligning people, culture, and execution across an entire organization.

This episode was recorded live at Innovate Summit in Louisville. Check out their next event in Nashville in October. Vibes improved by Old Commonwealth Kentucky Nectar.

A former Chief Engineer at Lockheed Martin, Drew holds 30+ patents in rotorcraft systems and composite structures, and has led cross-disciplinary engineering teams on multimillion-dollar U.S. defense programs spanning Air Force acquisitions, SOCOM prototyping, an...

Holly Hartman is an AI governance strategist and founder of FWS Enterprise LLC (Future Workforce Systems), where she works with enterprise leaders to build the guardrails, policies, and workforce readiness programs that make responsible AI adoption real, not just a talking point.

She is also the co-founder and President of The WO Network, Kentuckiana’s largest professional women’s community with more than 4,000 members, and an international bestselling author.

Holly is a NAWBO Women Business Owner of the Year 2025 honoree, a Louisville Business First Enterprising Women 2026 recipient, and a Bingham Fellow in the Class of 2026.

Whitney Belmonte spent fifteen years scaling marketing for category-defining brands, including Supergoop!, where she helped scale digital from a single channel into a multi-format engine. She has shipped campaigns, hired teams, and rebuilt operations from the inside.

Now she works with founders, marketing leads, and ops teams to put AI to work in the parts of their business that actually move revenue — without the buzzwords, without the gloss, and without breaking the parts of their company that already work.

Her clients tend to be the operators noticing what's quietly broken — content cycles that take three week...

Kimberly Bottom is a 15+ year veteran in storytelling and community initiatives. An award-winning broadcast journalist and video producer, Kimberly now focuses on helping nonprofits sharpen their messaging and amplify impact through modern fundraising technology.

In her current role as Director of Community at Velora, the nonprofit operations platform, Kimberly's north star is connecting nonprofit professionals to share ideas, elevate diverse voices, and celebrate the people doing the world's most important work.

Emily Benner Snyder leads social media at United Airlines, where she’s helped transform the brand into one of the industry’s most engaging and talked-about voices online. Named Ad Age’s 2025 Social Lead/Community Manager of the Year, she sets the strategy and turns everyday travel moments into scroll-stopping stories. Before United, she brought her storytelling magic to both Disney and Olive Garden—so yes, she knows how to make both planes and breadsticks go viral.

Paddy Smith is Chief Creative Officer at Born Social, where he oversees the creative output for the agency. He's spent his time at Born building a 60+ strong department spanning Creative, Design and Production, developing some of the brightest creative minds in the industry. He's pitched, won and delivered best in class creative across iconic brands like Guinness, Smirnoff, Mars, Uber and Ford, helping them transform into social-first brands. 

Paddy's work has collected creative awards from The One Show, The Creative Circle, The Webbys, Shortys, Marketing Week, Digiday and Campaign Awards and sat on juries with The Shorty Aw...

Asha Shivaji is redefining what it means to innovate in marketing effectiveness and ad tech. As a woman of color and former Google executive, she co-founded SeeMe Index in 2023 to help brands and agencies unlock growth with untapped audiences. Powered by its proprietary Responsible AI, SeeMe is building the industry standard for identity measurement and provides data-driven insights, benchmarks, and certifications that connect representation to measurable business outcomes, from creative effectiveness to long-term brand loyalty.

Before launching SeeMe, Asha led strategy for Google’s global marketing services organization, where she co-developed global initiatives with the UN’s Unst...

Taylor Cromwell is a writer, content strategist, and the founder of Creator Diaries, a newsletter exploring the stories and strategies behind the creator-to-founder transition. She works with companies like beehiiv and HubSpot, and previously wrote for The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg. She's obsessed with the intersection of media, storytelling, and the creator economy.

Emma Witkowski is Vice President, Media Solutions at WildBrain where she leads the advertising teams responsible for driving monetization through innovative video advertising and branded content strategies for WildBrain’s portfolio of iconic IP such as Teletubbies, Strawberry Shortcake, Inspector Gadget and more. Witkowski and her team deliver cross-platform digital campaigns across YouTube, FAST, social media and gaming platforms, including Roblox and Fortnite, to connect brands with kids and their parents worldwide. 

Based in Los Angeles, Witkowski brings over 20 years of experience in digital strategy, investment planning and revenue growth within the media and entertainment industry. She has...

Rio Wilson is the founder of Brain-Body Therapy, a mental health app rooted in the powerful connection between movement and emotional well-being. Her path into this work was deeply personal. After navigating several traumatic experiences, Rio began to notice the profound impact exercise had on her own nervous system, clarity, and healing. What started as a personal coping tool evolved into something much bigger -- a belief that mental health support should engage both the mind and the body.

That belief became Brain-Body Therapy: an accessible, therapist-informed app designed to help people regulate stress, anxiety, and depression...

Colin Petrie-Norris, Founder & CEO of Fairground Entertainment, is a pioneer in streaming TV. His new AI studio and global platform unite creators and technology to redefine entertainment.

Previously, he built and sold Xumo to Comcast, expanding it with Charter into a global FAST ecosystem. Earlier, he helped grow Advertising.com, later acquired by AOL.

Meredith Levine is a Fanthropologist, studying fans and fandom and doing strategic audience development research and strategy work at the intersection of Hollywood and the Creator Economy. She is also the VP of Audience Development at SuperBam, helping media companies adapt their back catalog and currently airing content for social digital video distribution.

Prior to SuperBam and her consultancy, Meredith worked in strategy at Theorist Media and in fandom research at Troika and ZEFR. Meredith has her M.A. in Critical Media Studies with an emphasis in Fan Studies from UCLA, and has spent time as a prof...

Glenn Ginsburg is the President of QYOU Media, a media and entertainment company powered by the creator economy. QYOU specializes in developing, creating, and distributing creator-centric campaigns that help brands connect with audiences and make a cultural impact across social and digital platforms.

With more than 25 years of experience across the creator economy and wider entertainment and media industry, Ginsburg has been instrumental in building and optimizing the QYOU team since he joined 2015 and currently oversees brand partnerships, strategy, creative content development and distribution with a client portfolio that includes Hulu (Paradise), Paramount Pictures (A Quiet Place...

A proud California girl, Louisa Frahm was born and raised in San Diego. She received her undergraduate degree in journalism from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2012. Throughout the past decade, she's built a booming career in the news SEO world, conducting search efforts at E! Online, Yahoo!, TMZ, People Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, the Los Angeles Times, and ESPN. She also served as a Trends Curator on the Google Trends team. 

To bolster her communications skill set, she acquired a master's degree in communication management from the University of Southern California in 2021. Leadership development and mentoring a...

Jenn Herman is a social media consultant, speaker, and globally recognized Instagram expert. She is a sought-after and international speaker providing tips, resources, and training for organizations of all sizes that need to structure their social media strategies.

Her business background includes Administration, Sales, Human Resources, and Marketing and she enjoys bringing all these skills together to help you grow your business. Jenn has been featured in Inc., Fox News, BBC News, Yahoo Finance, Entrepreneur, HuffPost, The Verge, CBS Radio LA, and numerous other podcasts and publications. She is the author of “Instagram for Dummies”, “Instagram for Busine...

Rachel Simon is a journalist and author whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Cut, Glamour, Vice, and many more outlets. A former editor at Bustle and Mic, her debut book, Pickleball for All: Everything But the "Kitchen" Sink was published by HarperCollins in 2022.

She also teaches writing with Redbud Writing Project and Gotham Writers Workshop, and constructs crossword puzzles through her business Clue & Brew. A New York native, she earned a B.A from Boston's Emerson College and now lives in Raleigh, NC.

Jeff Tousignant is Head of Marketing at Air, where he leads brand and go-to-market strategy for the company’s creative operations platform. Based in New York, he brings experience from leading technology and consumer brands including Figma and Duolingo, with a focus on helping teams scale high-quality creative work in an increasingly AI-driven content landscape.

Luke Smith is the co-founder and Global CEO of Croud, a leading independent digital agency he founded in 2011. Under Luke's leadership, Croud has become a full-service global business, delivering innovative marketing solutions to top brands like Amazon Prime Video, Nespresso, and Ford.

Luke has grown the Croud team to over 600 employees across offices in the UK, US, and MENA, with a global network of on-demand digital experts known as "Croudies" providing coverage in 118 markets and 86 languages. Through strategic acquisitions like Born Social and Vert Digital, Luke has further expanded Croud's capabilities.

Beyond...

Ryan Stern is Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Collectively and Alexa Tonner is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Collectively, a global leader in creator marketing that transforms brands into social-first enterprises, part of the Brandtech Group.

Collectively quickly rose to prominence as a strategy-led data-backed creator marketing partner to some of the world’s leading brands including Unilever, Dove, TRESemmé, Intuit QuickBooks, Salesforce, Meta, Converse, Delta, and many more. Collectively was the first creator marketing company recognized by Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies list and has earned Cannes Lions, Effie, Webby, Glossy, Shorty, and O...