Last week, a few conversations circulated on YouTube about brand partnerships and sponsorships and their minimal affiliations with Black Content Creators. The conversation was one that stimulated great thought, for individuals like myself, who identify themselves as such. Although I never felt as though I have ever been in an online situation where I was ignored or refused based on my sex or ethnic background, these videos each brought up great points – but for me two of the videos really stood out.

I’d say that the video I agree with the most is MissyLynn’s as she made valid points that touched along the lines of: not seperating yourself if your desire is to be included, presenting yourself in a relatable and personable light while still remaining professional, supporting others both in and out of your niche, and sharing other people’s content just as you would negative memes and things.

I also love what BronzeGoddess01, the one who started the conversation, had to say. She really hit it on the head by saying: Stop wanting what others want, it may not be God’s assignment for your life!

Awesomeness.

I’m a firm believer that when you’re passionate about something, you have fun with it and that having fun with it comes naturally. It’s during that time that you realize that you wouldn’t mind doing that thing even if no one is watching and even if no one is willing to pay you for it. That’s why I’m not offended if a brand doesn’t choose to work with me. After all, I don’t reach out to any. 99% of the brands that pay to work with me have contacted me via my site KimberlyLuxe.com. Getting paid to do what I love is definitely an added bonus but I don’t curl up into a ball at the thought of another person’s success because as BronzeGoddess01 says, God’s assignment for my life, is God’s assignment for me.

No one else’s agenda was Xerox’d and handed over my way.

So when it comes to whether or not brands want to work with Black Bloggers – my thought is: brands want to work with influencers they believe will bring them income and represent them in the best light. The companies that choose to miss out on such opportunities based on biases such as race, sex, or ethnicity – are brands that I appreciate not being contacted by. And the brands that don’t have such biases are the ones I would be happy to one day work with once my work is deemed as notable and worthwhile to them!

If you missed out on the discussion, I’ve embedded the videos below so you can draw up your own conclusions.

What are your thoughts? What do you believe to be true? What was your reason for starting a blog or YouTube channel? Do you feel like brands are not working with specifically with black bloggers and vloggers?

1 / The video that started it all:

2 / MissLynn keeping it real and talking about how you can help you:

3 / The video with the most views on the subject:

4 / Seven other video responses: 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7

What are your thoughts? What do you believe to be true? What was your reason for starting a blog or YouTube channel?