Rikki Lee: More Than an Influencer
If you take a look at Rikki Lee’s TikTok page, you’ll see rows and rows of mini vlogs, hauls, and other lifestyle content revolving around the theme of being “that girl”. Her Ohio State University dorm room is perfectly crafted with decor, mirrors, and plenty of storage for a girl who loves to shop. But as she sat on the other side of the screen of our Zoom call, she smiled brightly, casually wearing a hoodie with “In God I Flex” written across the front. Her hair was tousled, with loose curls falling around her face. Relaxed. Comfy. But, still as confident as ever.
Growing up in Cincinnati, Lee had a strong support system within her family, encouraging her to dwell in her gifts. She began making videos for YouTube when she was just thirteen years old.
“I had an iPhone. I had my mom buy me a tripod, and I literally just started making YouTube videos. I had the confidence because that’s really all that you need,” she said.
For years, she studied the art of content creation. At the time, YouTube was still a place of untold secrets and tips on the road to success, so Lee learned as much as she could from what little she had. Hours passed by as she went from one tutorial to the next, teaching herself how to edit, film and master her craft. A few years later during her junior year of high school, she applied those skills when she took on the role of brand manager for Sole Bros, Inc., a local nonprofit founded by other young teenagers. The organization aims to give back to children through donations of sneakers and other philanthropy. Lee’s responsibilities included revamping their Instagram and helping them gain a larger following.
“I took on that role and I absolutely loved it, telling their story and being able to go with them to Jamaica and take pictures during the entire mission trip,” she said.
During this trip, Sole Bros, Inc. donated 1,000 pairs of shoes to children in Montego Bay, Jamaica. While she was there, Lee realized that this was exactly what she was supposed to be doing with her life.
A local woman approached Lee in amazement, wondering if she would show her how to work the camera. She taught her how to hit the shutter button and watched as the woman practiced taking photos of her friends.
“She was so excited and proud of herself after she took the photo and that was confirmation for me,” she said.
Fast forward two year later, Lee is now running her own digital marketing agency, to equip other entrepreneurs and businesses with the skills she’s learned along the way. She was awarded a $5000 grant from winning first place in the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. pitch competition and used that money to take her business to the next level.
Lee has always been a hard worker and that didn’t stop when she stepped foot on The Ohio State University’s campus. She’s been able to cultivate her business, while growing her digital following through Youtube, Instagram, and TikTok. She serves on the board for three campus organizations: Undergraduate Society of Black Leaders, The Black Advertising and Strategic Communications Association and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. She is a campus ambassador for Curology, a customized skincare brand. Just when it seems like there’s no possible way for anything else to fit in her schedule, Lee is also a social media manager for SoLo Funds, a tech company.
“There’s a lot of different things that I do, but it all ties into providing visibility for Black people, curating brave, fun and safe spaces for us with the events that I host, and marketing,” she added.
At only 19 years old, Lee has dedicated countless hours into her craft and the results of that are clear. But it’s with all the time she has spent, that she is also familiar with the less glamorous side of content creation. Negotiating with brands, navigating pay wages, and experiencing racial disparities are things Lee knows all too well. She reflected on a Forbes article that highlighted the top earning TikTok creators of 2022 and how there weren’t any Black creators on that list. She quickly added that she can name so many Black creators who are the originators and creators of multiple trends on the app, and how much it frustrates her to see that pay gap.
Viral dances like “Renegade”, “Savage”, and many more were created by Black people, but they failed to see the same heights as other white creators who did their dances. This influenced the #BlackTikTokStrike of last summer, when many Black creators stood in solidarity and refused to create new dances on the platform. Since then, it’s more common to see dancer credits in the captions but the continual disparity in recognition, sponsorships and brand deals is undeniable.
Erick Louis, a Black TikTok creator with over a million followers, shared his disappointment with the platform. “Even in the spaces we’ve managed to create for ourselves, [non-Black] people violently infiltrate and occupy these spaces with no respect to the architects who built it,” he said in an interview with The Washington Post.
MSLGROUP, a public relations network, conducted a research study to understand the depths of the influencer pay gap. “According to the research, the racial pay gap between white and BIPOC influencers (Black, Indigenous & People of Color) is 29%. Focus specifically on the gap between white and Black influencers, and it widens to 35%,” they found.
Lee hopes that in the future brands will care more about the intention that creators dedicate to their videos, rather than just their popularity. Hopefully, this will bring more Black creators into the spotlight.
“We have to start looking at influencers and content creators and deciphering between someone just being an influencer and someone being influential,” says Rikki Lee.
Social media and content creation, for people like Lee, who have studied and executed it for years, are for more than what should be placed in the vague box labeled “influencer”. She explained that influencers are defined by their following, but she is much more. She’d much rather be known as a content creator and digital storyteller.
The same person you see in her videos, is the same person you’ll see in real life. In a world full of social media trolls and cyberbullying, Lee credits her authenticity to her well received work.
Her video comments are full of love, with other Black girls telling Lee how much her content inspires them.
So, the next time you find yourself scrolling through TikTok and you come across that page you love, the person you always go to for reviews, the girl who’s your best friend in your head, be sure to show support. Rikki Lee and other Black creators deserve it.
