🐬 Why Zara Larsson x Depop is the Perfect Brand Partnership

Welcome back to Influencer Insider! I hope you're having a great week.

This week, Swedish pop star Zara Larsson wowed us all with her new Depop partnership. More on why it's the perfect collaboration below.

Secondly, we're delving into some insightful conversations from CreatorFest 2026 with Emily English, Hannah Saycell and the Charlie Oscar team. All the discussions seem to link back to one brutal question: have we lost connection with the real purpose of influencer marketing?

Finally, Rare Beauty has surprisingly handed over the reins to a new brand ambassador - keep on reading to find out who.

In today's newsletter:

Pick of the day: SoFire’s Hot Campaigns: Zara Larsson x Depop is the Never-Ending Midnight Sun of Brand Partnerships
Trending: YouTube Shopping Affiliate Programme Announces UK Rollout at CreatorFest 2026
Campaign of the week: Rare Beauty x Ella Bright

📝 Pick of the day

SoFire’s Hot Campaigns: Zara Larsson x Depop is the Never-Ending Midnight Sun of Brand Partnerships
In the creator economy, audiences can spot an overly polished corporate sponsorship from a mile away. Depop is dodging that trap with its new campaign starring GRAMMY-nominated pop star Zara Larsson. The team-up pairs creative storytelling with a real-life closet drop that fans can actually buy from.

Here's a closer look at why this collaboration hits the mark.

What's hot on Hello Partner right now

YouTube Shopping Affiliate Programme Announces UK Rollout at CreatorFest 2026
At CreatorFest 2026, YouTube’s Head of Creator Partnerships for the UK&I officially launched the highly anticipated YouTube Shopping Affiliate Programme.

What The New York Times AI Influencer Investigation Means for the Creator Economy
An investigation by The New York Times has pulled back the curtain on the rapidly growing and controversial world of AI wellness influencers.

CreatorFest 2026: Hannah Saycell on the Metrics That Actually Matter
At this year’s CreatorFest, we sat down with Hannah Saycell, the CEO and founder of Social Folk.

YouTube Shorts Under 30 Seconds Deliver the Strongest Results, Survey Finds
Creators looking to grow their YouTube channels may want to keep their Shorts brief, according to new research from Adobe Express.

🧑‍🍳

Emily English and Sasha Jeppesen on Why Creator Marketing Needs to Return to its Creative Roots

At CreatorFest 2026, I sat down with nutritionist, cookbook author, and Epitome founder Emily English (@emthenutritionist) alongside Sasha Jeppesen, Head of Influencer and Creative at social agency Charlie Oscar.

Together, they unpacked why creator content feels stale, how brands can rediscover their nerve, and why the future of the creator economy lies in intellectual property rather than short-term growth hacks.

✨ Campaign of the week: Rare Beauty x Ella Bright

Since its birth, the face of Rare Beauty has been Selena Gomez. It's worked incredibly successfully in the same way rhode skin has: consumers trust a face.

However, Rare Beauty just signed its first-ever brand ambassador deal with 19-year-old actress Ella Bright, one of the stars of Amazon Prime's Off Campus.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez (@rarebeauty)

A new, fresh move for a new, fresh star. Plus, the breakout actress has already raved on about how much she admires the Soft Pinch Liquid Blush, so what better natural way to turn it into a marketable moment?

👀 Algowatch: More vertical feeds

HBO Max is joining Netflix and Disney+ in offering its own vertical feed, featuring trailers and bonus content based on your watch history.

💭 Thursday thoughts

Is it just me, or has anyone else seen the amount of content creators Andy Burnham's cabinet is hiring? There are currently 12 open roles all in the content and video production team. It's a sign that creators are genuinely becoming a core part of any company in any industry. Exciting - let's see what the future holds for content creators in government. 👀

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