While becoming an influencer is often cited as a popular dream job, many professionals are also flocking to behind-the-scenes work, helping creators grow their digital presence and earn more money.
“It’s a really personality-driven industry, and it favors the hungry and the people who are interested in being part of an industry that is constantly evolving and changing,” Al Baker, talent manager at G&B Digital Management, told Business Insider. “There’s no barrier to entry. You could find someone on Instagram who you think is brilliant and hasn’t really been discovered by the wider general public and start representing them, and no one in the industry, if you did it well, would ever know that it was just you sitting in your room doing it.”
In our second annual list of rising stars in influencer management, BI is highlighting professionals who are helping creators across platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok grow their digital brands. BI chose these rising stars based on reader nominations, as well as our reporting and conversations with industry professionals.
“Every day as a manager is exciting to me because you never know what you’re going to get,” Slash Management’s Asia Gousse told BI. “I really don’t represent anyone that I’m not absolutely head over heels for.”
Here are the 15 rising stars in influencer talent management, listed in alphabetical order by first name:
Baker joined G&B Digital Management in 2021. He’s a talent manager representing creators in content verticals spanning luxury fashion, beauty, lifestyle, and pets.
Serving such a variety of creators has allowed him to foster long-term relationships with brands such as Ralph Lauren, PetSmart, and American Express, he said.
Beyond helping clients get brand deals, Baker supports their entrepreneurial ventures like Purrfect Pulse, a cat multivitamin developed in collaboration with Abram Engle.
Baker, who’s from London, moved to California in 2017 to study film and TV. Inspired by the friends he made in college who were pursuing careers in entertainment, he founded a boutique talent-management company for actors, writers, and directors. Shortly after, he pivoted to digital-talent management.
G&B is a talent-management company founded in 2015 representing influencers in fashion, beauty, family, food, and hospitality.
Clients include: Abram Engle, Riley Simpson, Melissa Vale, Merv The Pet, and Mandy Cox
Gousse joined Slash Management in 2021 after following the company’s president, Jake Webb, for a few years and being impressed by the firm’s rapid growth.
“I didn’t want to land somewhere where I might get ‘lost in the sauce,'” she said. “I wanted to be a part of a small family that believed in my personal mission and gave me the freedom to run my business the way that I see fit.”
Gousse had been looking to transition into talent management after kickstarting her career in 2018 with Artistry Group Management as a day-to-day artist and product manager for musical acts, including Saweetie, Sean Garrett, and Omeretta the Great. Her work with singer and rapper Saweetie, in particular, developed Gousse’s love of working with brands on campaigns. In 2021, she started representing digital talent in the hopes of building a diverse roster of influencers and content creators in the lifestyle, beauty, and comedy spaces.
Her 10-creator roster at Slash is all female. She discovered each of them through TikTok’s For You Page.
Gousse has helped her talent secure and execute successful campaigns with brands such as Eli Lilly, DirecTV, NYX, L’Oréal, and CeraVe.
“I’ve really decided now that I have my footing, to become a force and an advocate for equal pay amongst Black and brown creators,” she said. “The state of the influencer industry for creators of color is a bit of a land mine. If I can help someone get paid what they’re worth, I’m happy to do it.”
Wilson started her talent-management career at Found Entertainment, working across its talent portfolio. She joined YMU Group in November 2022 as an assistant talent manager based in London.
Since then, Wilson has secured a long-term partnership with Stella Artois for the UK-based food and travel creator group TopJaw.
YMU Group is a global talent-management company that represents both digital and traditional talent from YouTube creator Patricia Bright, to celebrities like Simon Cowell, and the pop group Take That. YMU Group has several business verticals, including global entertainment, music, sports, literary, and business management.
Clients include: TopJaw, Sophie Hinchliffe known as Mrs Hinch, Dr Julie, and Lily Pebbles
Clarke started her career at A3 Artists Agency in 2019, focusing on digital and unscripted talent.
She was the youngest employee at A3 to rise to talent agent, a role she was promoted to in 2021, and she’s now the youngest talent manager at Currents Management.
Clarke joined Currents in 2024 as a talent manager and continues to work with clients in digital and unscripted TV.
She manages the businesses of her talent roster, including all their communications. She also counsels on business matters, including social-media strategy, branded partnerships and negotiations, business development, and day-to-day operations of influencer businesses.
Currents is a Los Angeles-based talent-management firm founded by husband and wife duo Cameron Ajdari and Nilou Ajdari.
Clients include: Chelsea Lazkani, Josh and Sav, Julie Sousa, and Shannon Willardson
Struck founded Viviene New York, a product-marketing agency focused on Gen Z, in 2021 as a student at New York University.
She had been working in the influencer and climate-change industries and wanted to create a unique space for people of her generation.
Viviene focuses on helping her clients land partnerships with sustainable brands across sectors that include makeup, food, and financial institutions.
In her role as a founder, Struck handles inbound brand deals, pitches clients for paid partnerships and sponsored trips, and supervises merchandise launches. She’s also helped clients manage initiatives like the Champion No Permission Collection, which showcases designs from streetwear brands, and get featured in outlets such as CNN and NBC.
Pepe started working in July 2022 in the digital department at Range Media Partners, where he’s built a roster of talent in the culinary, fashion, lifestyle, and podcasting niches.
In the past year, Pepe has helped many of his clients secure lucrative deals, such as launching an apparel and merchandise line for gaming personality Valkyrae, helping Brooklyn Beckham close an equity agreement to join sake brand WeSake as a cofounder, and working with Tony Ozkan to double his Instagram following since October 2023, leading to contracts with brands including Prada, Fendi, and Ralph Lauren.
Range’s clients include prominent social-media personalities and those in film, TV, music, sports, and gaming.
Prior to joining Range, Pepe worked in the talent department at the Hollywood agency CAA and in film production and development at Thunder Road Films and Warner Bros.
Clients include: Brooklyn Beckham, Tony Ozkan, Eitan Bernath, Kevin Lee, Kevin Noparvar, Nigel Kabvina, Gray Fagan, and Ggiata Delicatessen
Pownall joined Shine Talent Group in 2023 as one of the inaugural talent managers in its UK branch.
The global talent-management agency, which launched its London office last year, helps its talent to partner with brands such as Amazon, McDonald’s, Hilton, and Clinique.
Keys has worked in talent management for four years. She uses her knowledge of London’s changing culture to secure the most relevant and promising talent, such as the Sharp Twins, and help them land paid opportunities.
In her role at Shine, she scouts influencers, cultivates relationships with brands, pitches companies, negotiates rates, and oversees campaigns.
She told BI she’s particularly passionate about helping more Black men and women in the industry. Her skills include artist and digital-talent management, branding, culture, marketing, and creative direction.
Clients include: Becca Eats Everything, the Sharp Twins, Shanice Cox, and Jawahir Khalifa
Stevens is a talent manager specializing in comedic and lifestyle creators at Underscore Talent.
Stevens is especially focused on short-form comedy creators and helping them build well-rounded careers that include TV, film, touring, hosting, and podcasting.
Stevens has helped her clients with multiple projects in various stages of development, including fragrance lines, clothing lines, podcasts, live comedy tours, and script development — and even helped produce an original web series.
Before joining Underscore Talent, Stevens was a talent manager at Slash Management and worked in talent relations at Brat TV.
Underscore Talent is a Los Angeles-based management firm and a division of TheSoul Publishing. Launched in 2021, the company represents YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitch, Snapchat, gaming, and podcast content creators.
Clients include: Zachariah Porter, Whitney Cummings, Kendahl Landreth, and Evelyn Ha
Colwell began her career as a talent coordinator at the creator and brand-influencer agency Semaphore before joining Night in 2020.
At Night, Colwell, who’s based in Los Angeles, collaborates with her clients to build out new business strategies while managing their day-to-day needs, whether that be a content strategy, advising on current trends, or fostering brand relationships. Internally, she has also mentored junior staff.
Night is a talent-representation platform that helps creators become entertainers and entrepreneurs. It was founded in 2015 by Reed Duchscher, a former sports agent turned talent manager.
Clients include: Safiya Nygaard, Kendall Rae, and Best Ever Food Review
George, a Zimbabwean-American creator, has been in the influencer industry for more than nine years and has worked at companies including DraftKings, Chick-fil-A, and Gopuff, as well as on campaigns as a creator with brands ranging from Kevin Hart’s Gran Coramino tequila to Kendall Jenner’s 818 Tequila.
Earlier this year, George joined Agency Cliquish, an advocacy-led influencer-management agency for Black digital talent that focuses on categories including beauty, lifestyle, fashion, tech, fitness, and family. He said he shifted into the talent space because Black influencers often lack adequate representation, and he wanted to play a larger role in advocating for creators of color to brands.
At Cliquish, Lloyd aims to merge his interests in influencer marketing, tech, and culture with his focus on Black tech and gaming influencers. Since joining the company, he’s managed the tech for the Dignity Museum, a museum for the unhoused, and the “Friend Forward” podcast by Danielle Jackson.
George began his tech career at Roadie, a delivery startup that was acquired by UPS, and he has also worked at the digital agency AKQA.
Davey is a talent manager at Digital Brand Architects, where he’s built his career in talent representation across the digital and traditional media landscapes.
He specializes in the culinary, design, and lifestyle sectors. His roster of talent has a collective following of over 13 million.
Davey manages and advises clients on all of their business endeavors, including brand partnerships, TV, literary, product deals, podcasts, and beyond. He specializes in strategically diversifying their businesses and providing counsel across brand matters, including social media, industry trends, brand extensions, and growth trajectory.
Clients include: Aisha Ruperto/FoodGotMeWasted, April Lockhart, Bilal Rehman, Jeremy Scheck/ScheckEats, and Taylor Nakamoto/Tay BeepBoop
Gaston is the head of talent at 1AM Country, an arm of the management firm 1AM Management.
She’s worked in the influencer world since 2009, starting as a YouTuber who collaborated with creators like Ricky Dillon and Jack “Thats0jack” Baran.
After years in front of the camera, she began working for a media company in Los Angeles to produce short-form content with influencers.
1AM Country, based in Las Vegas, manages Western influencers who promote country artists and attend country-music festivals like Stagecoach, as well as work with Western brands.
Some of Gaston’s responsibilities include scouting new and upcoming talent and streamlining the production of activations throughout the company.
For example, in April, 1AM hosted 20 country and Western influencers at its activation at Stagecoach. Each December, the firm also hosts influencers in Las Vegas for The National Finals Rodeo, during which the creators partner with hotels, restaurants, artists, and brands.
Clients include: Chase Chrisley, Luke Scornavacco, Cameron Payne, Mackenzie Holton, Chloe Trujillo, Nick Luciano, and Tyler Nolan
Hubschman began her career in marketing at NewBeauty magazine and later joined the Mixed Makeup team from beauty YouTuber Susan Yara, managing brand partnerships for the channel and production clients.
In 2021, Hubschman and Yara launched GlowLab Collective, a boutique agency that manages creators, primarily dermatologists, across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. GlowLab merged in October with the influencer-marketing and talent-management company The Digital Department, where Hubschman is now leading the firm’s beauty roster.
Together with Yara, Hubschman built and oversees TDD’s skincare vertical, which the firm said is one of the top-monetizing verticals in its portfolio. Hubschman manages digital businesses for dermatologists and estheticians, including Dr. Daniel Sugai, Dr. Jenny Liu, and Dr. Angelo Landriscina, among others.
Clients include: Susan Yara, Charlotte Palermino, Dr. Angelo Landriscina, and Dr. Samantha Ellis
Thompson-Gray majored in theater at Bath Spa University and was a stage manager on several productions before joining Ziggurat XYZ.
She started as an assistant and worked her way up after helping diversify Ziggurat’s roster.
Thompson-Gray is based in the UK and began signing creators as an assistant, including her clients Xyla Foxlin and Uncarley.
Clients include: Xyla Foxlin, Uncarley, Shanspeare, Rowan Ellis, Mike Boyd, Bourbon Moth Woodworking, Plasma Channel, and Ivan Miranda
Before joining Kensington Grey, Thomas worked in the talent division at Canadian media company Corus Entertainment.
At Corus, Thomas helped sign Canadian talents such as Kenny Song, Grace Black, and Lisa Corbo and led creator relations. His work there piqued his interest in talent management, and he was hired at Kensington Grey to help build up the company’s men’s roster.
So far, at Kensington Grey, he’s helped creator Malik McIntyre pitch to attend Art Basel, managed McIntyre’s photoshoot for the launch of Warby Parker’s SS24 eyewear collection, and assisted creator DeAndre Brown in expanding into the lifestyle category and securing partnerships with brands like Expedia, LVMH, and Drunk Elephant.
Clients include: DeAndre Brown, DevanOnDeck, Maurice Kamara of The People Gallery account, Malik McIntyre, Najm Loyd, Joekenneth Museau, The Victorious Valentines, Clinton Moxam, and Khiari Barino
