Welcome to Deadline’s International Disruptors, a feature in which we spotlight key executives and companies outside the U.S. disrupting the offshore market. This week we speak to Jordan Schwarzenberger, one of the founders of Arcade Media, a London-based management company that manages YouTube megastars Sidemen. Schwarzenberger has used his skills as an agent to help the group of creators reach new levels.
The Sidemen are, in their words, “a group of friends with a few videos online.” These “few” videos have generated six billion views on YouTube and spawned chicken shops, a vodka brand, hotel projects, clothing and a film that tells the story of how a group of friends who started playing video games together became the biggest crew became the digital creator in Europe. Their management company is Arcade Media, founded by Jordan Schwarzenberger, Aaron O’Neill and Sam Unwins.
From Vice to YMU via LadBible
Schwarzenberger was still in his teens when he got a job at Vice, before then landing a job as a strategist at digital content giant LadBible. The next step was to set up his own agency before moving to James Grant, which later became talent management agency YMU. There he became the agency’s first Chief Creative Officer and worked with a number of established stars and breakthrough talent.
Arcade launched in 2021 and Schwarzenberger set about applying what he’d learned strategizing for British presenters Ant and Dec and boy band Take That to YouTube creators KSI, Miniminter, Zerkaa, TBJZL, Behzinga, Vikkstar123 and Wroetoshaw – better known by their collective name Sidemen.
They accepted Arcade’s vision, which meant setting priorities. “We created a chart with different focus areas and then the guys ranked the things they wanted to do on a scale of one to 10,” Schwarzenberger says. “The two best ideas were a restaurant and then launching an app, which we did first, and then also launching a members’ club, which wasn’t at the top of the list but still managed to catch on.”
When several ideas have been checked off, the template remains. “Things come and evolve over time, but if you set the strategy right at the start, it shouldn’t change much because the ideas are all big enough that they take a lot of time to implement.”
Focus on individual IP
Arcade focuses solely on the sidemen and the idea was never to build a management business with dozens of other clients. Schwarzenberger counts former James Grant and YMU standout Neil Rodford among his mentors and says he gave advice that has stuck with him. “He always told us all that the definition of management is making things happen that otherwise wouldn’t be possible. I think that’s exactly right, it’s basically about being proactive and making something out of nothing. And when you have a group of creators like the Sidemen, such strong intellectual property, there are so many creative possibilities if you’re proactive. If you have an IP that is strong enough, focus on that single IP and don’t push yourself too hard.”
Being proactive means doing more than what Schwarzenberger describes as “inbox management,” which in the creator economy means fielding calls from brands looking to work with influencers and digital talent. The Arcade boss gives the following advice when meeting YouTubers who have great potential: “Fire your agent, fire your manager if he’s just managing your inbox, if he’s not being proactive.” That’s the whole game, the point. And I think we’ve done that to a certain extent with the guys.”
Although the sidemen are only in their late 20s and early 30s, they are considered veterans on YouTube after ten years in the game. As their audience grew, they made the videos they released weekly bigger and crazier Sidemen Sunday still show a cornerstone of their work. Their entrepreneurial spirit coupled with the expectations of the YouTube audience means that when Sidemen launch food, clothing or liquor brands, it is part of the fabric of the business and not just a clunky, bolt-on piece of merchandising. “You invest in their lives, their growth, how they came about, and building the businesses is part of the content,” says Schwarzenberger. “People are invested in the story of their success.”
The business side includes subscription service Side+, which launched in 2021 with uncut and uncensored footage of Sidemen content Try not to move, Cheap vs. expensive vacationAnd Strange hotels. There is also the vodka brand XIX, the fast food restaurant Sides and even a hotel company. They also host a large charity football game. At the last edition, the Sidemen competed against the YouTube AllStars, which included Mr. Beast, in front of 67,000 fans. The game will of course be streamed on their YouTube channel.
Creator Economy: Stay connected
The Sidemen
Arcade Media
While it is said that in traditional television loyalty now lies with a specific show or celebrity and no longer with a specific channel, things have also shifted in the creative economy. Schwarzenberger says it has become more difficult to build a lasting connection between creators and fans.
“The landscape has changed since COVID, we’re at a point where there’s a pretty disjointed, transient and transactional relationship with content. It’s much more about the video than the person creating it. Now anyone can get 100,000 followers and I think celebrity is almost extinct.”
In this environment, the Arcade boss says the Sidemen stand out for the connections they made with fans in that earlier moment, which he defines as a time before COVID and before TikTok.
“If you have intellectual property like the Sidemen, which existed in a more connected time, that’s the equivalent of Bob Dylan, Prince or Michael Jackson… those catalogs are forever.” It’s the same for YouTube . They have created a generational connection that will last long because they emerged at a time when such a connection could be made. I don’t think that’s possible anymore.”
TV executives are hungry for younger demos and one of the most frequently used words among TV commissioners is authenticity. The demo the sidemen attract and their authentic on-screen personas mean the crew should be TV gold. But when the sidemen and top creators can make a fortune working with brands and put in huge amounts of effort without spending weeks filming, the question arises: why should they do that? Making YouTube famous can be a route into traditional TV and film – UK writer-director Rapman is making big-budget Netflix series Supacell after the online success of his web series Shiro is greatYes, but – YouTube and digital are no longer just a means to an end for top talent.
“The real downside to television is that it just can’t break the 16×9 format,” says Schwarzenberger. “Coding has to be attractive to young people, and they want something that’s real, but they also just want it where they consume it, which is on their phones, and they want it on demand and in a short-form format.”
The numbers continue to rise, but there have been missteps. In the unregulated world of YouTube content, KSI made a racial slur in one of the group’s videos. “I’m not perfect, I’m going to mess up in my life, and I’ve messed up a lot lately,” he said in a subsequent apology posted on social media. The group also apologized and acknowledged the offense caused. The video in question has been removed. The commotion led to a brief collapse Sidemen Sundayswhich had previously fallen weekly since 2018.
Netflix and what’s next
Jordan Schwarzenberger
Internet talent rarely equates to longevity, but ten years later, the sidemen are still doing their thing. Schwarzenberger says his job is to create an environment in which the seven-member group wants to continue producing content.
“It is very easy for the management, the agents and the employees around the talent to make their lives difficult,” says Schwarzenberger. “It’s very easy to help your customers lose love for what they do if you push too hard and chase money and make missteps.
“They have families, they want to enjoy time with their girlfriends, their partners, their wives, their children, that is the phase they are in now. Our job is to ensure their lifestyle is protected. And so it’s still seven guys having fun, feeling in control and doing what they do best.”
But what happens when this approach and the making of a traditional documentary collide? It helps that the producer of the film in question, The Sidemen Storywas Pangea, a producer founded by a former YouTube content manager, Luke Hyams, and Sunita Mirchandani Hyams. The timing was crucial as the Sidemen’s tenth anniversary approached. Schwarzenberger told them he needed two days of their time, which in Pangea’s hands was enough to create a 99-minute documentary.
Netflix acquired it for the UK – “which was great because the boys wanted Netflix” – and Fifth Season is handling international distribution. “I think it’s perhaps the beginning of a wider range of content or opportunities, whether with Netflix or other partners,” Schwarzenberger said. “If we can make it so that the sidemen can stay in control and work with the people they want to work with, then I think it can work.”
As the Sidemen enter their second decade, much of what was on the list they formulated with Arcade has happened. There is now talk of a VC fund that will enable the sidemen to invest directly in interesting start-ups, news is expected soon.
Schwarzenberger sums up the overall plan: “For us, the main thing is to never do things for their own sake, but always do something that causes disruption in categories that are stale, boring and old, with products and Approaches that are lively, young and dynamic.”