How Gen Alpha Stardom Became Big Business
Salish Matter is a YouTube sensation, Sephora success story and coming soon to a streaming device near you.
Salish photographed on set of a Sincerely Yours campaign in Los Angeles.
Photographer: Elizabeth Weinberg for Bloomberg Businessweek
It’s a bright Sunday morning in Los Angeles, and a small film crew is following Jordan Matter as he darts around the amusement park on the Santa Monica Pier. The 59-year-old, tall and lanky with spiky ginger hair, looks like a mashup of Conan O’Brien and Sting. He’s attracted a group of excited kids, but they aren’t there for him—they know his presence portends someone better.
“Salish!” screams a small girl wearing glasses and an oversize hoodie when she spots Jordan. You can hear her over the clank of the roller coaster. Jordan’s 16-year-old daughter, Salish, is then wheeled onto the boardwalk, hiding in a garbage can. She pops out and waves at the kids, who absolutely lose their minds.