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On Jan. 15, actress, writer and producer Quinta Brunson won an Emmy Award for outstanding lead actress in a comedy series. This was the first time that a Black woman had won in the category in over 40 years.
Brunson’s win was one of many for the Black community that night. Joining other Black winners that night including Ayo Edebiri, Niecy Nash-Betts and Rupaul, the 2024 Emmys ceremony was seen as a night of Black excellence. The night was in stark contrast to the highly-criticized 2021 Emmys, where BIPOC individuals failed to win in most of the ceremony’s categories; the change in representation was welcomed online.
“So the majority of winners in the performance categories at the Emmys were Black women. Hollywood… it’s time to put your money where your mouth is. The film & TV industry is thriving off the backs of these talented melanated women. Pay them what they’re worth, THEN TRIPLE IT,” X user Oluwapelumi said in a Jan. 16 post.
One thing that hasn’t been recognized was the role social media played in helping BIPOC creators build a platform and gain enough attention to be on major entertainment platforms, particularly in Brunson’s case.
For Brunson, her journey to the Emmy stage started online. Her wins this award season for other Black individuals in entertainment showcase that social networks have impacted how BIPOC creators can make it inside Hollywood.
All about Brunson’s journey
As soon as Brunson’s win was announced, social media broke out in celebration for her, reminiscing on where it all began.
“TBH if you told me Quinta Bronson back in [the] BuzzFeed days if she was going to be a STAR! An Emmy x2 winner…. I WOULD BELIEVE YOU!” X user Amanda Rae posted on Jan. 15.
For arts and culture critic and “American Theatre Magazine” managing editor Kelundra Smith, Brunson’s win in the comedy category helped defy the “angry Black woman” stereotype.
“Often, Black women are not thought of as funny. We are thought of as angry, serious, unmovable. For me, Black women are the funniest people I know … We’re seeing this pure overwhelm and unadulterated takeaway of this win, while also facing the next fight, but our humor and our joy is how we maintain our resilience,” Smith said.
Host of “The Afternoon Special,” Bobbi Miller, sees Brunson and her work ethic as inspirational.
“She is one of my biggest inspirations and I’ve been following her journey for years. Seeing her accomplish this feat only further legitimizes the dream that so many Black women and girls have to work in entertainment, specifically comedy, and be recognized for it,” Miller said.
Brunson started posting comedy videos in 2013, the same year that she decided to move to Los Angeles in order to pursue her dreams. A year later, Brunson started her “The Girl Who’s Never Been on a Nice Date” series on Instagram and also was eventually hired as a Buzzfeed junior producer.
Screenwriter and journalist Rendy Jones remembers Brunson back from her “He got money” days.
“Everybody saw her have a meteoric rise from internet stardom and just be everywhere on YouTube and Facebook and even Vine from seven or eight years ago,” Jones said, noting her strong comedic timing and banter with her other co-stars.
Brunson’s work on the website BuzzFeed was able to provide a basis for her future endeavors.
In a 2016 interview with Vogue, Brunson talked about how the channel was full of “young people making and editing whatever they wanted” and a “wide-open space to create the kind of comedy and content I wanted to make.” From the Internet, Brunson moved on to star in the Emmy Award-winning HBO series “A Black Lady Sketch Show” in 2019 and eventually the ABC series “Abbott Elementary” in 2021.
How BIPOC creators are changing the game
Brunson isn’t the first to post her own original content on social media platforms. Actress, writer and producer Issa Rae who starred in the Emmy award-winning HBO series “Insecure,” also started on the YouTube website. Her series “Awkward Black Girl,” which started in 2011, “showed people that there was another way to break into the industry and you didn’t have to wait for someone to let you tell your story,” Rae said in a 2021 Forbes interview.
A 2021 study by Zippia found that about 31% of content creators online are BIPOC. Platforms like Youtube and TikTok have also been found by BIPOC youth to be seen as more inclusive and diverse, according to a 2022 New Content Creators Trend Report. It found that “70% of BIPOC youth create their own social media content for a broader audience than just their friends and family, compared to 61% of White / non-Hispanic youth.”
From Miller’s perspective, BIPOC creators gravitate to these platforms for reasons including creative control.
“Social media allows for visibility that is oftentimes not given to BIPOC. We’re kept out of so many spaces that can lead us to opportunities. Additionally, it allows for full creative freedom. Creators can tell the story they want to tell and truly flex their creative muscles,” Miller said.
However, there is also an opportunity to build a following as well as a portfolio, according to culture reporter and university lecturer Arionne Nettles.
“Social media gives them the opportunity to build an audience and, for example, like in Issa’s ‘Awkward Black Girl’ YouTube show, show a proof of concept, in which they are basically proving that a show can work long before they pitch their final idea to a network,” Nettles said.
Being able to post their creations through social media platforms has improved the chances of BIPOC creators like Brunson breaking into the entertainment industry and winning awards. Unfortunately though, this can also have its own share of obstacles, Miller said.
“On the one hand, social media increases visibility, but fighting with algorithms can be a whole other beast. I’ve observed it in my own niche. There are so many Black women who discuss film and TV but if you don’t seek them out, you’d never know it, due in part to the implicit biases baked into dozens of algorithms,” Miller said.
There is also an oversaturation issue and lack of original content from Jones’ point of view.
“It was best in the 2010s when it was still fresh. Nowadays it is way too oversaturated with everybody wanting to become a TikTok star. Social media has evolved. Issa started with her own YouTube web series. Nobody really does that anymore unless they’re like an indie animator,” Jones said.
What the future can bring
Nevertheless, BIPOC creators are seen as the trendsetters on social media and in entertainment despite how the public may treat them.
“I do feel that BIPOC creators are leading this new wave of creators on social media platforms and in movies and television. We are seeing an explosion of creative content that we’ve never seen before, and these creatives are truly creating work that is so amazing that we’ve never seen anything like it before,” Nettles said.
When it comes to the work that still needs to be done, Smith wants to see recognition be given sooner rather than later.
“What I would like to see is Black creators get the recognition in their prime when they can enjoy it … But I also want us to understand that the reward of being an artist is doing the work. You don’t need to have peer recognition from awards to validate your talent,” Smith said.
