Ben Lashes

Ben Lashes (born Benjamin Clark[1][2]) is an Internet meme talent manager whose clients include Keyboard Cat, Nyan Cat and Grumpy Cat.[1] Lashes specializes in cats but also manages Scumbag Steve and Ridiculously Photogenic Guy.[1][3] His philosophy is "What would Walt Disney do if he created Mickey Mouse and it went viral on YouTube?"[1][4]

Career

Lashes started in the music industry as the singer of The Lashes, signed by Lookout! Records and Columbia Records then moved "after a decade" to A&R and marketing.[4][5][6] He took his professional name from the band.[2]

Charlie Schmidt, a friend of Lashes' father contacted Lashes in 2010 about Keyboard Cat's sudden popularity on YouTube.[1] Lashes advised making new videos with another cat, creating licensed merchandise and negotiating paid appearances.[1] They landed commercial deals with Wonderful Pistachios, Nokia and Starburst.[4][6] According to Schmidt, he has earned over $300,000.[1][7]

Lashes next approached Chris Torres, Nyan Cat's creator forming a successful relationship.[4] Lashes did A&R for Rebecca Black and her "Friday" single.[5][6] Lashes signed Scumbag Steve, Success Kid and Ridiculously Photogenic Guy.[4]

Lashes signed Grumpy Cat in October 2012 soon after her debut.[1][1][4] According to his clients Lashes' fees are about 20%.[1][7]

Client's rights

Lashes lets his clients keep more rights and controls than traditional licensing agreements.[4] He maintains a fiduciary relationship with his clients.[7] Lashes collaborates with Kia Kamran on legal issues.[1][4] Kamran had warned Schmidt about being exploited.[4] In May 2013, Torres and Schmidt jointly sued 5th Cell and Warner Bros. for copyright infringement and trademark infringement over the appearance of Keyboard Cat and Nyan Cat without permission in the Scribblenauts series of video games.[1] Torres and Schmidt have registered copyrights on their characters and have pending trademark applications on the names.[8] The suit was settled in September 2013, with Torres and Schmidt being paid for the use of the characters.[7]

Client appearances

In March 2013, Grumpy Cat, Nyan Cat and Scumbag Steve attended SXSW Interactive, hosted at the Mashable House.[9][10][11] CNN, CBS, and CNET called Grumpy Cat the undisputed "biggest star" of SXSW Interactive over Elon Musk, Al Gore, and Neil Gaiman.[10][12][13]

Lil Bub & Friendz has appearances of Keyboard Cat, Nyan Cat and Grumpy Cat and an interview with Lashes.[3][14][15]

Clients

Client Creator Date Revenue
Chuck Testa[7]
Grumpy Cat Tabatha and Bryan Bundesen October 2012[1] $100,000,000
Keyboard Cat Charlie Schmidt 2010[1] $300,000[1]
Nyan Cat Christopher Torres
Ridiculously Photogenic Guy Zeddie Little
Scumbag Steve Blake Boston 2011
Success Kid

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 Rosman, Katherine. "Grumpy Cat Has an Agent, and Now a Movie Deal". Online.wsj.com. Retrieved 2013-05-30.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Behind Every Great Meme There's a Marketing Whiz: Grumpy Cat's Agent - The Culture Files Blog - Los Angeles magazine". Lamag.com. 2013-07-25. Retrieved 2013-09-09.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Sykes, Tom (2013-04-19). "Lil Bub, The World’s Cutest Cat, Stars In Documentary Lil Bub & Friendz at Tribeca". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2013-04-24.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 Knibbs, Kate (2013-08-09). "Meet Ben Lashes, meme manager to the Internet's stars". Digital Trends. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Christine Erickson2012-04-17 19:47:14 UTC (2012-04-17). "Meme Management: Meet the Man Who Reps Internet Stars". Mashable.com. Retrieved 2013-09-09.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Sykes, Tom (2013-08-25). "Ben Lashes, Meme Manager for Internet Celebrities". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2013-09-09.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 Van Syckle, Katie (2013-09-26). "Boom Brands 2013 - Grumpy Cat - New York Magazine". Nymag.com. Retrieved 2013-09-30.
  8. ↑ Adi Robertson (2013-02-12). "Nyan Cat and Keyboard Cat creators sue 'Scribblenauts' studio for using their memes". The Verge. Retrieved 2013-05-03.
  9. ↑ "Grumpy Cat: The Internet’s Favorite Sour Cat Draws Crowds at SXSW - ABC News". Abcnews.go.com. 2012-04-04. Retrieved 2013-03-11.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "The unlikely star of SXSW: Grumpy Cat". CNN.com. 2011-11-14. Retrieved 2013-03-11.
  11. ↑ Dani Fankhauser (2011-11-18). "SXSWi Day 1: Grumpy Cat, 3D Printing and Other Highlights". Mashable.com. Retrieved 2013-03-11.
  12. ↑ March 11, 2013, 5:54 PM. "As SXSW Interactive winds down, Grumpy cat is clear winner". CBS News. Retrieved 2013-03-13.
  13. ↑ Terdiman, Daniel (2013-01-23). "If Grumpy Cat is the biggest news of all, is SXSW in trouble? | SXSW - CNET News". News.cnet.com. Retrieved 2013-03-13.
  14. ↑ "'Lil Bub & Friendz' Trailer: From Meme To The Movies (VIDEO)". Huffingtonpost.com. 2013-03-18. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  15. ↑ Rothman, Lily (2013-03-07). "'Lil Bub & Friendz': Internet Cats, Behind the Memes | TIME.com". Entertainment.time.com. Retrieved 2013-04-19.

External links