In this interview, Kevin Mayer—former Disney executive, former TikTok CEO, and now founder and co-CEO of Candle Media—discusses his career transition, the mission and strategy of Candle Media, and its recent successes. He explains that Candle Media aims to tell deep, authentic stories that can be extended across social media, creating long‑term franchise value and commerce opportunities. Mayer attributes the company’s growth to acquiring brands with strong existing products and emotional resonance, citing Hello Sunshine’s women‑focused storytelling and Moonbug’s dominant YouTube presence with shows like Cocomelon. He details a strategic partnership with TikTok, positioning Candle Media as a content‑to‑commerce platform that keeps audiences engaged between streaming releases. On technology, Mayer sees AI as a powerful tool for creators but insists it will never replace human creativity. He emphasizes staying innovative by remaining curious, monitoring new platforms, and understanding cultural trends. Finally, he advises entrepreneurs to keep the customer at the center of product, pricing, and marketing decisions.
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Kevin Mayer. He's the founder and co-CEO of Candle Media, a next-generation media company that's revolutionizing the digital sector as we know it. I'm going to speak to the former TikTok CEO and former Disney exec about the world of AI technology and how he's making his mark right here on Taking Stock. So Kevin, you have an extensive You have an extensive track record of success. You were the former CEO of TikTok, former COO of the parent company ByteDance, former Disney executive. Tell me about your transition now as the founder and co-CEO of Candle Media.
Well, it was interesting. I spent most of my career at the Walt Disney Company, 27 years. I had the privilege of launching Disney+ around the world. So that was a great run at Disney. TikTok was also a very big company. It was a much different company. It was a tech company versus an entertainment company. But I love the notion of being an entrepreneur. Do something new and build something that's, I think, built for the future.
Tell me about your mission with Candle Media. What is it trying to accomplish?
Our mission is to speak to audiences in a very deep and authentic way, to tell great stories. Those stories are extensible to social media where you can engage a two-way audience in a very, very big way and keep those franchises alive over the long term. That creates a really great opportunity to have commerce associated with your brands and storytellers.
And speaking of brands, Candle Media, I mean, it has already had huge success in the digital space. It owns Moonbug. It owns Hello Sunshine. What do you attribute the success to?
We try to buy companies that have great product already and the burgeoning nature of a brand. So Hella Sunshine, a company built by Reese Witherspoon and her executive team that had done some great things, including The Morning Show, but they put women at the center of the story. And that's something that speaks to a female audience in a deep and emotionally connected way that you otherwise wouldn't have. You're right about Moonbug. You know, we have the largest YouTube channel in Cocomelon, and that's the number 3 or 4 show streamed on Netflix year in and year out.
I want to talk about your recent partnership with TikTok. As a former CEO, what was the decision-making process behind that?
TikTok is a platform that's doing social media storytelling in a way that's never been done before. We are a content-to-commerce company at Candle, and all of our properties, we want to have a social media storytelling component that bridges the gap from when you launch something on streaming, you know, until you launch the next season. That can be a year, year and a half. What you really want to have is that ongoing presence with telling that story, connecting your audiences on social media. So we want to be connected to that. I know the team, very comfortable with it. So that was why we made a nice substantial deal with them.
Now let's talk about all the advancements happening in the digital space, right?
AI, technology.
What do you think the most exciting things happening right now in the sector are?
You're taking AI and using it in the entertainment world. That's pretty unprecedented stuff. And I think as a tool, it makes a ton of sense. I don't believe that AI is ever going to replace human creativity. It's not going to tell the great new stories of our generation and the generations to come. You need human beings to do that. But as a tool in your toolkit, it's great.
In this ever-changing landscape of technology innovation, how do you remain innovative from where you sit? How do you stay ahead of the curve?
When new technology comes out, when new paradigms, when new platforms are launched, just pay attention to it. Like, I'm a natural, you know, naturally curious person. So when things are happening, I want to know about what they are, then I want to experience them. In the entertainment industry, we're trying to make culture, we're trying to move culture. And to do that effectively, you need to know what people are paying attention to, what matters to people. You just have to be curious and have to take it all in and care about things.
You could tell as I'm speaking with you how passionate you are about this topic. What would be your one piece of advice For businesses or entrepreneurs who are embarking on this digital media journey, how can they be successful?
Pay attention to your customer, learn about them, know what they want and what they need, and how that intersects with your product and your service offering and your pricing strategy and your marketing strategy. Customer at the center, blinders on to everything else. I think you're in good shape.
