In 2025, fame can take many forms.
It can arrive in a single viral clip or be built over a legacy of work. But staying power takes more than social media momentum, a long career takes strategy. And at the centre of that strategy? Public relations.
Take Taylor Swift. She hasn’t just released albums; she’s created cultural moments. From re-recording her masters to creating a global tour that dominates headlines, and most recently her record breaking appearance on boyfriend Travis Kelce’s podcast – New Heights where she gave audiences a first look at her new album The Life of a Showgirl. That’s PR as power: controlling the story rather than letting the story control you, telling your story before someone else tells it for you.
From Visibility to Opportunity: Why PR Matters
There’s a misconception that PR is just about creating headlines and scrambling for column inches. In reality, it’s about career building. Public Relations shapes a talent’s story, gives them visibility, credibility, and opens doors. It also acts as a safety net when things go wrong, managing reputation and strategically controlling a successful comeback story. Most importantly, great PR creates staying power, turning a flash of fame into a career with real longevity and legacy.
Every individual’s goal is different, so every strategy must be different. PR is not a one-size-fits-all, one-stop shop. Or as Ashley Rudd puts it HERE: “It’s not Amazon Prime, babes.” You can’t just click and demand coverage tomorrow.
Effective PR takes time, patience, and a team willing to tell you the truth. You don’t need to be at every event or photographed at every party. You need to be in the right places and seen by the right audience to make an impact.
Adele is a perfect example. She’s not everywhere all the time. Her career is built on scarcity: carefully chosen interviews, music awards appearances – rare but impactful appearances. An authenticity that makes every return feel like an event. We all remember that episode of Carpool Karaoke with James Corden, right? Beyond being one of the most-watched series of recent years, their real-life friendship and trust shines through. That authenticity is exactly what gives her cultural cut-through
Building a Narrative, Not Just Getting Press
There’s a big difference between chasing press and building a career-defining narrative. When PR is done right, it creates consistency across interviews, partnerships, and personal brand – and that often takes a team aligned on the same goals.
Quality over quantity is key. A throwaway showbiz interview done purely for clickbait won’t build credibility, at best it racks up empty clicks, at worst it twists your story and undermines the reputation you’re working to build.
Smart PR means being intentional. Carefully selecting the right outlets, considering the audience, and asking whether a moment actually serves your long-term goals is what separates the short-term noise from lasting impact.
Maya Jama is a great example. Her rise hasn’t come from saying yes to everything; it’s come from curating projects and platforms that align with her personality and vision. She’s not just another presenter, she’s a style icon, brand favourite, and trusted public figure.
On the flip side, we’ve seen talent who overexpose themselves with every red-carpet invite, reality TV cameo, or tabloid exclusive that eventually ends up diluting their brand. The short-term buzz is tempting, but audiences soon stop taking them seriously, and their name becomes more associated with noise than value.
Managing Crisis and Reputation
No career is without bumps, and in the spotlight, they’re magnified. On this occasion, our role here isn’t about headlines, it’s about protecting the person behind them.
Crisis management isn’t spin; it’s strategy, empathy, and timing. The right PR team helps talent take control of the narrative before it takes control of them. That might mean crafting a clear statement, limiting speculation, or advising silence until the right moment to respond.
We’ve seen situations or even careers unravel when crises are handled poorly – through overexposure, lack of accountability, or no protective structure. In an era of relentless social media scrutiny, a misstep left unchecked can snowball fast. Strong PR safeguards wellbeing, preserves opportunities, and ensures talent emerges from crisis with credibility intact.
And from a publicist perspective, it can be incredibly obvious when someone hasn’t had the right guidance in these situations.
The Secret to Success? A Great Publicist–Manager Relationship
Finally, where would we be without giving a shoutout to the Managers and Agents. Behind every successful talent is not just one person, but a whole team, and the relationship between a publicist and a manager can be a make-or-break factor.
The manager focuses on the business of the career – negotiating deals, securing opportunities, mapping long-term plans etc. The publicist ensures those opportunities land with impact, protecting reputation and positioning talent strategically.
When aligned, the talent benefits from a shared vision: every project supports the bigger narrative, every deal has strategy behind it, and there’s mutual respect. When misaligned, cracks show: mixed messaging, missed opportunities, or reputational risk. The most enduring careers happen when manager and publicist operate in tandem – one driving forward, the other shaping how it’s seen and remembered.
Lessons for Talent
So, what can talent take away?
- Be real, not everywhere. Authenticity outlasts overexposure.
- Curate, don’t scatter. Every opportunity should serve your bigger picture.
- Legacy beats hype. The goal isn’t just to be famous today; it’s to be remembered tomorrow.
PR isn’t about chasing headlines – it’s about shaping careers.
