%202023/logos/CreatorIQConnect_Logo_2023_Light.svg){kind=logo}
In a world full of media companies and streaming platforms, only a few stand out as leaders. One of those leaders is Paramount.
In Ep. 144 of Earned, Conor Begley sits down with RJ Larese—VP of Talent & Influencer Marketing for Paramount+, Nickelodeon, and Awesomeness. With over 14k followers on LinkedIn, RJ has also become an influencer in his own right, and a thought leader in the creator economy.
To start, RJ reveals his tried-and-true strategies for integrating creators into the brand ecosystem, redefining how traditional media competes with social media and gaming platforms for the attention of Gen Z and Gen Alpha. RJ explains how creators have become the heartbeat of modern media, from voicing animated characters to creating bespoke experiences at the Kids' Choice Awards. Next, we dive into RJ’s career journey, from getting his start in reality TV casting to climbing up to corporate leadership. RJ emphasizes the importance of a positive workplace culture and balancing hard work with leisure. To close the show, RJ shares his most transformative life lessons, including how his near-death experience reinforced the importance of a harmonious work-life balance.
We’ve included a couple of highlights from the episode below, but be sure to check out the full video above, or tune into the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen!
The following interview has been lightly edited for concision.
“Let's get their ideas, have them inform the format, have them inform the content”: RJ Larese on How Paramount Works With Creators Today
Conor Begley: How is your approach to creators different for Paramount+ versus Nickelodeon?
RJ Larese: Paramount+ is targeting different audiences. I'll work on projects that go beyond kids and family, but sometimes they are kids and family, and I think it's just harnessing a different type of creator. A lot of what Paramount+ produces is based on really popular IP. We're working on something with Star Trek right now that won't even come out until 2025. But that was another situation where Paramount+ came to me and said, “This is what we're trying to accomplish,” and we created a series around a creator and something that they do really interestingly that fits in with Star Trek in a different way, and they've never done anything like that before.
So a lot of times for Paramount+, it'll be a brainstorm of “Hey, what are you guys trying to accomplish?” And then my mind, or my team's mind, goes into, “Well, this is what you want to do. We should do this and this, and this is something so unique to Star Trek that no one else can do with this creator. Let's bring them in, let's do a deal with them, let's get their ideas, have them inform the format, have them inform the content.”
In this circumstance, it's a project in which we're helping ideate. The creator is scripting everything. It's going to live entirely on the creator's channel, but on top of that, they're editing it. So they have their in-house team editing it so that it feels like their content. Instead of us saying, “Hey, we're going to write the script for you, you're going to have to say it verbatim, we're going to edit it and then we're going to put it on your social platform and it's not going to look like your other content.” We don't want that. We want something that fits in with what the creator does.
Keep up with new episodes of Earned by following the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts, or if you prefer to watch these interviews, by subscribing to our YouTube channel.