Ep. 16 Clicks vs Classrooms #Businessofinfluence

CLICKS VS CLASSROOMS: DOES FORMAL CREATIVE EDUCATION STILL MATTER IN THE AGE OF INFLUENCERS?In this episode of the Business of Influence Podcast, hosted by Leroy Marc, Kamva-Eliqaqambileyo Namba, academic and head of programmes, sits down for one of the most relevant conversations in the creative industry right now. Can a traditional degree compete with a TikTok following? Does formal education still have a seat at the table in an economy where a ring light and a smartphone can generate a six figure income? The answer is more nuanced than either side of the debate wants to admit.The conversation opens with the tension that most creatives are living in right now. Social media moves faster than any curriculum can keep up with, and for a generation that has watched peers build careers on content alone, the value proposition of spending three to four years in a classroom is increasingly difficult to justify on face value alone. Kamva does not dismiss that reality. Instead, she reframes it.What formal education offers that the school of Instagram cannot is the infrastructure around the influence. Legal contracts. Business management. Tax compliance. Long-term career strategy. The ability to contextualise your work culturally, socially and philosophically so that it contributes to something larger than the next viral moment. These are not glamorous skills, but they are the ones that determine whether a creative career lasts five years or twenty-five.The longevity conversation is particularly sharp. Kamva makes the case that education builds the kind of versatility that allows creatives to pivot as they evolve, because the performer who is relevant at twenty-two is not always the same performer who is relevant at thirty-five, and the ones who survive that transition are the ones who understood their industry as a business from the beginning.The episode also holds academia accountable. Kamva acknowledges that institutions have historically been reactive rather than proactive, slow to integrate social media, performance analytics and influencer strategy into their curricula, and even slower to respond to the rise of AI. However, the conversation ends with a clear directive. Academic boards are beginning to change: shorter courses, vertical content formats, real industry insights built into programmes, and the institutions that remain agile are the ones that will continue to matter.This is not a conversation about choosing between a degree and a following. It is a conversation about what happens when you have both.If you are a content creator, an aspiring creative, an educator or anyone thinking seriously about the future of the industry, this episode will challenge how you think about knowledge, longevity and what it actually takes to build a career that lasts.Business of Influence is brought to you by Style ID Africa.-----Enjoyed the podcast? Join the conversation using #BusinessOfInfluenceListen and Follow UsApple: https://tr.ee/7S9Qw2RYaBSpotify: https://tr.ee/8yFVYiaInstagram: https://tr.ee/9MFBqITikTok: https://tr.ee/F5wHS1LinkedIn: https://tr.ee/72U7z0Follow Our Host and GuestLeroy: https://www.instagram.com/leroymarcn/Kamva-Eliqaqambileyo Namba: https://www.instagram.com/kamvalethu_eliqaqambileyo/Email: [email protected] Produced by Emcee: https://www.instagram.com/emceeiii/#ClicksVsClassrooms #CreatorEconomy #FormalEducation