Speaking at the Forbes 30/50 Summit in Abu Dhabi Monday, supermodel Paulina Porizkova, TikTok star Loren Gray, and Britney Spears’ manager Cassie Petrey talked about how they became accidental influencers and how authenticity is the new social media strategy.
When Paulina Porizkova began modeling at 15 years old, she often felt more like a puppet than a person.
The rise of social media companies like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram gave celebrities like Porizkova power over their brands and images for the first time. Like Porizkova, TikTok star and singer Loren Gray and Crowd Surf cofounder and co-CEO Cassie Petrey happened into social media stardom by accident.Assistant Managing Editor Diane Brady about how social media has shaped their careers, personal lives and industry clout.Forbes Assistant Managing Editor Diane Brady speaks with Loren Gray, Cassie Petrey and Paulina Porizkova at the inaugural Forbes 30/50 Summit.
Like Porizkova, Gray was also in the limelight from a young age, gaining a large social media audience at age 13. The Pennsylvania native quickly grew her fanbase, amassing over 75 million followers across TikTok and Instagram combined, calling her popularity an “awesome accident.” To take cash in on her digital stardom, Gray has, &always, and has partnered with brands Alphabet’s Android, Revlon and Clarins to power social media campaigns.