Jamie Jessup
VERO’s Creative Partnerships Director talks about the value of genuine connection and the opportunities for creators on the platform.
Photo: Arman Naji
What does it say on your business card?
Jamie Jessup, Creative Partnerships Director.
I head up creator and content partnerships at VERO, and I’m also working across our music label’s artist partnerships.
Right now we’re focused on growing our creator network, most specifically in music, so a lot of my time is dedicated to building our partnership network there.
Where is home?
Home is wherever my spirit takes me. I love to move between cultures, taking in the different city’s creative heartbeats. You’ll find me mostly in London, a bit in New York and Los Angeles, with some stopovers in between.
Can you describe your professional journey and how you ended up at VERO?
It’s all about relationships. Before joining VERO I spent 4 years working for the world’s Specialty Coffee Association, where I was responsible for building a global partnership network that supported the growth and development of the industry.
I was working with marketing and sponsorship partners across all sectors; talent (yep World Barista Champions), brands, producers, and consumers, to connect, educate and grow the global community.
With a passion for innovation and creativity, I took this experience to Fearlessly Frank, the agency VERO brought on board to take the VERO platform to market. I worked on the partnership launch strategy that would build the foundations of VERO’s communities and user base.
That brings us to today, where I collaborate with partners of VERO that share our values and goals to create a healthier more true online social network. It’s a BIG challenge, that is anchored in human connection, responsible technology, and building sustainable creator communities. A passion-led culture that I’m here for!
“We’re trying to build something new, that’s not been done before, that will be better for us all. ”
As a lover of new music yourself, who’s on repeat for you right now?
A friend hit me recently with Cleo Sol’s 2021 album ‘Mother’ and I’m in love with it. I also have cktrl, Alfa Mist, and Mansur Brown on rotation. And so many of the artists we have featured in VERO’s New Music Moves playlist.
We have some amazing talent coming through and some exciting shifts in music genres breaking back into the culture.
What do you look for in a creative partnership? And how does one get a proposal on your radar?
Passion, shared values, collaborative attitude, and trailblazer energy. What we are doing at VERO is no easy thing. We’re moving alongside some of the biggest tech companies in the world and we’re trying to build something new, that’s not been done before, that will be better for us all.
The people we collaborate with need to also believe in what we’re trying to do. It’s a two-way thing; We support and nurture you, your passions, your art, and your success and in return, you help us build the future of social, through how you build your community on the platform and how you tell more people about it.
We’re always looking in our community first to support those artists and creators doing this work. So if you want to get a proposal on my radar I’d say start with a VERO profile and come say hi!
Who is your dream creative partner and why?
My dream creative partner is someone who likes to think outside the box. Who is passionate about what they create, who values collaboration, and who impacts their community in a meaningful way. They recognize the best partnerships and creative relationships come from a mutual exchange of respect and value.
A dream collaborator for me would be Little Simz, for her hustle, her authentic emotionality, and her ability to create art that connects us.
You’re the brains behind a number of creator programs on VERO that spotlight emerging talent. Can you tell us a bit more about these and how they came about?
We’re looking for ways to create connections and tell stories. Whether that’s with creators and artists or with communities and their creators.
VERO Amplify was the first of our creator programs to launch in 2019 - a platform for new music discovery, spotlighting some of the world’s most exciting emerging talent, including Arlo Parks, Josie Man, Sports Team, and Powers Pleasant.
This is a program that presents promotional, content, and collaboration opportunities to emerging talent to connect with and build new music communities online. It’s also a space for our global music fans to discover and connect with new music talent.
#NewMusicMoves is our weekly playlist & music recommendation program co-curated by ex-Billboard and Sirius XM’s Larry Flick and our music community. To make new music recommendations and connect to one another through conversation and a shared love of music discovery.
Launching soon is Let’s Talk Music. A digital talk show where we dive deeper into music culture, our love of music, and how it impacts and connects us. We’ll hear from artists new and old, industry mavericks and veterans. You can expect to jump into some of the culture’s juiciest topics. I can’t wait!
And then there’s Deep Dives. Something we kicked off last year with Kelis and a program I am very excited about. This is all about taking a deeper dive into the creative worlds of some of our most influential tastemakers, artists, and creators.
You’re passionate about the ‘Deep Dives’ element of VERO’s feature set. Can you tell us why this has you fired up?
VERO has always been about building deeper connections and more meaningful interactions. Deep dives are what demonstrate these values through behavior.
When we share the things we love and the art and culture (music, books, places, movies, etc) that inspires us, we open up an opportunity to find people who share our interests. When you connect people this way you create a shared space, a community with purpose. That excites me because that opens up lots of creative and meaningful possibilities. That’s the vibe on VERO.
“VERO has always been about building deeper connections and more meaningful interactions. ”
What can artists and creators look forward to?
So much! We’ve been ahead of things innovating quietly for some time now, building a platform that puts our creators and members first.
Tech is moving into pioneering new spaces with Web 3, NFTs, and metaverse possibilities, and the culture is catching up. We want better spaces to connect with our communities online. To better support creators, provide the tools to be in charge of our online selves, to find our people, and to keep creating together.
VERO is building better. And you’re all invited to the party, so come and see!
What’s your favorite VERO feature?
I love VERO’s Collections and Recommendations functionality, especially Place posts which I use whenever I am traveling or on the move to see what my community suggests for each city stop.
VERO’s Global opinions is another. I love to see who else in my network has shared or recommended the same things as me. Always on the hunt to make new friends and find more of my people.
Where can we find you on VERO?
Road to Belonging