Celebrities today make sure to keep in close touch with their fans. Social media, such as Twitter and Instagram, allow them to keep their fans updated on what they are doing, where they are going, who they are dating, even what they are eating, as well as to post photographs to illustrate their activities. All day long. Social media accounts keep the spotlight on the celebrities, keep the conversations about them going, so the celebrities can grow their brands and promote their products. The platforms are also used to explain, apologize or atone for some (illegal or immoral) activity for which they are being vilified. So much more effective for the fan to see the celebrity in the throes of remorse rather and hear the “mea culpas.”
No matter what kind of message is being sent by a celebrity, fans love the “attention” they are receiving from their idols—no matter if the same message is going to millions of fans at the same time, no matter if the message is sent by a social media manager.
Imagine how much more thrilling it would be for a fan to connect virtually one-on-one with a celebrity in real time. Quiante and Keithan Hendrick imagined that and created Candi (Celebrities and Influencers), a social network on which fans can chat directly with celebrities.
Celebrities already available for a chat via Candi include:
- Actors from TV shows, such as Orange Is the New Black and Game of Thrones, films and Broadway
- Comedians, such as Chris Kattan from Saturday Night Live
- Grammy-winning musicians
- Athletes, including members of the Football Hall of Fame, championship basketball players and Olympians
- Chefs with best-selling books and popular TV shows
- Fitness Gurus
- Top Fashion Models
- Influencers, such as Justina Valentine and Kyle Massey
How Candi Works
Select a celebrity and purchase a Meet & Greet. (The cost is set by the celebrity who receives 75%; Candi receives 25%.)
A Candi rep will coordinate a time convenient for you and the celebrity and send you both a Zoom link.
Another feature is the Go Live. Celebrities can post Meet & Greet sessions for which multiple fans can sign up to attend.
The Candi Team
Keithan is the CEO, Quiante the COO. They have been a team since high school, when the captain of the football team asked the captain of the cheerleading squad to help him with homework. Keithan adopted his two younger brothers when he was 19 years old and raised them as he earned a degree in Applied Engineering and a JD degree. When they thought of Candi, Keithan was a corporate attorney and Quiante was in law school.
With no connections to any celebrities at all, they spent hours searching the Internet and social media for contact information. It was a massive task, and they needed to hire a team to search with them. They managed to recruit 26 celebrities the first week. Buoyed by the success, they continued to search day and night and had 350 celebrities on board in a year. In a short time, Quiante and Keithan went from watching celebrities on TV to having virtual meetings with them and texting back and forth.
Candi has sold thousands of Meet & Greets, in part thanks to the celebrities promoting the platform on their social media accounts.
