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👋 This is Warner Bailey, your tour guide for the next 5 minutes as you get smarter on the Industry. Connect with me here
BREAKING: It’s now fully legal to push everything to after Thanksgiving. Maybe even the Holidays..
🎙️ MAJOR INTERVIEW ALERT! Today we sit down with Sean Atkins, CEO of Dhar Mann Studios, and former exec at MTV, Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, HBO, Yahoo!, & Discovery.
💼 Looking for open Entertainment jobs? Scroll to the bottom of this email. Our Job Board now has 155+ early career Entertainment roles as well.
📰 ‘New highest grossing tour in history. TikTok is running the Billboard charts. And who will buy (the other Warner).
Not subscribed yet? Join 31k+ of your peers. Your future self will thank you.
1) Warner Bros. Discovery is more sought after than the new transfer student at your high school, or the last piece of leftover Sugarfish in a signing meeting you weren’t invited to
Get caught up: Paramount, Comcast, and Netflix all submitted non-binding bids yesterday to buy pieces (or all) of WBD
WBD’s assets: HBO Max, Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros. Television, CNN, TNT, TBS, Discovery Channel, HGTV & a ton more.
The scoreboard: Paramount is the only one bidding for the entire company. Comcast + Netflix only want the studios/streaming side, meaning the cable networks would need a new home.
Big questions ahead: Middle East money (almost certainly)? Regulatory drama? Do I need to prep more David Ellison memes?
Takeaway: Whoever buys WBD changes the entire entertainment landscape again. More consolidation. Fewer giants. Higher stakes. And one of Hollywood’s oldest houses getting a new landlord
2) The Weeknd’s ‘After Hours Til Dawn’ tour grossed over $1 billion, making it the highest earning tour by a solo male artist in history
The tour began in 2022
153 shows
7.5 Million tickets
3) TikTok is officially running the Billboard Charts.
84% of songs that reached the ‘Global 200’ chart on Billboard went viral on TikTok first, according to Chart Data
4) Netflix and NBC both catch MLB streaming rights after the league’s 35-year partnership with ESPN ends
The big takeaway: Sports rights continue to dominate content budgets by streamers.
ESPN’s Sunday night games will be moving to NBC. Netflix will have the rights to the MLB’s opening night, a newly revived ‘Field of Dreams’ game, and the Home Run Derby.
5) Universal Music Group, Warner Music, and Sony all strike licensing deals with AI music platform ‘Klay.’
“These agreements establish terms on which KLAY will help further evolve music experiences for fans, leveraging the potential of AI, while fully respecting the rights of artists, songwriters, and rights holders”.
6) Amazon is beta testing generative-AI recaps to sum up previous seasons of shows.
More here
Every week we send podcast & book recs. Today, we have a powerful conversation between Shonda Rhimes and Mel Robbins on The Mel Robbins Podcast.
Iconic producer of Bridgerton, Grey’s Anatomy, and more joined Mel Robbins for a conversation about how you can change your life by believing in the possible.
Another *chefs kiss* episode booked by the team at Central Talent Booking.
Our new job board features 155+ early career roles in Entertainment, including:
💼 Content Creator - Sony Music - Apply Here
💼 Music & Comedy Touring Assistant - CAA - Apply Here
💼 Associate Producer, Narrative Games - Netflix - Apply Here
💼 Content Manager - HYBE - Apply Here
💼 Production Assistant (Part-time) - Golden State Warriors - Apply Here
💼 Feature Animation Coordinator - Paramount - Apply Here
💼 Music Research Senior Manager - The Walt Disney Company - Apply Here
💼 Business Affairs Coordinator - NBCUniversal - Apply Here
💼 Senior Account Executive - Fallen Media - Apply Here
💼 Music Operations Associate - UTA - Apply Here
💼 Podcast Social Media Producer - Vox Media - Apply Here
💼 Social Creative Producer - Create Music Group - Apply Here
🎒 Creator Partnerships Spring Intern - Wasserman - Apply Here
Today we sit down with Sean Atkins, CEO of Dhar Mann Studios. Dhar Mann is the creator mastermind behind a brand new 125,000-square-foot Burbank studio campus, creating scripted content for his 140 million fans across YouTube, Facebook and other platforms.
Atkins joined as CEO in 2024, and has 20 years of experience at the intersection of consumer, media, and tech. He’s held leadership roles at companies like MTV, Discovery, HBO, Dhar Mann Studios, Bertelsmann, Jellysmack, Yahoo!, and Disney.
As an entrepreneur, he launched one of the first ad-tech firms, a television startup that exited for nine figures, and raised $1 billion in financing. He has built multiple $100M+ businesses spanning consumer internet, the creator economy, ad tech, OTT/streaming, podcasting, e-commerce, and licensing.
TLDR: He’s insanely accomplished, and the fact he’s betting big on Dhar Mann, shows a clear shift by more traditional execs into creator-led studios, and creators being the now, and the future of our Industry.
Our conversation is below:
AvA: What was your first job in Entertainment, and what did you take away from that experience that still guides you today?
Atkins: My first job was as a temp at a production company that did documentaries. What I learned was to be curious, work hard and always ask for projects to stretch yourself.
AvA: You’ve worked at MTV, Discovery, HBO, Jellysmack, Yahoo!, Disney, and now Dhar Mann Studios. When you made those pivots, what signals told you it was time to move to your next venture?
Atkins: I've always been curious about consumer behavior change driven by the intersection of tech and media. So when I see an audience migrating, or a business model that needs to shift due to these changes, my curiosity drives me to want to be part of that change.
AvA: The creator-driven studio is rewriting the old Hollywood model. If you were a young assistant or creator trying to break in right now, what’s the smartest way to think about building a career in this new system?
Atkins: I don't think it is any different than the "old way." Focus on companies that are growing. Look for a way in. Be more concerned about getting on the rocket ship than what seat you get. Then look to help everywhere you can. That's the great thing about these young creator companies - you'll get to wear tons of hats.
Grocery Store On Set at Dhar Mann Studios - Credit LA TImes
AvA: Dhar Mann Studios has 143M+ followers and over a billion monthly views. Beyond the numbers, what makes it a durable brand, and why do you think creator-first companies like this are built for long-term growth?
Atkins: A few things: (1) Listen to your community and evolve with them. (2) Find ways to scale that don't require the founder. The capacity of the talent is your biggest limiting factor. (3) Be mission driven. You will have ups and downs. If you are only in it for fame or money, you will burn out.
AvA: What qualities do you look for when hiring new talent?
Atkins: I look for work ethic, entrepreneurial mindset, kindness, resilience, curiosity and positive attitude.
AvA: If you had to bet on one thing that will define entertainment in the next five years (platform, format, or cultural shift) what’s your pick?
Atkins: Creators becoming a bigger and bigger piece of time spent.
AvA: What is one piece of advice you have for someone early in their career?
Atkins: Always be learning and growing. This industry will continually be under change. So the more you can be comfortable and lean into change, the longer the career you will have.
👋 See you back here on Monday
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