INTERVIEW: The Small Business Committee brought creators to Congress. Here are their messages.
Rep. Roger Williams brought creators to Congress to learn what the government can do to help these new-era small businesses flourish.
Rep. Roger Williams (R., Texas) and the Small Business Committee brought three creators to testify to Congress about “small businesses in the age of digital influence.”
Following Williams’s hearing, in which the witnesses testified about the importance of everything ranging from LLC configuration to the tax code to tariffs and more, the three GOP witnesses spoke with the Washington Reporter about their message to Congress and to the nation.
Williams, for his part, told the Reporter that “the creator economy represents the new generation of American entrepreneurship — building companies, supporting jobs, and driving innovation across every industry.”
“But digital small business owners face unique challenges,” Williams continued, “from unpredictable revenue streams to costly intellectual property protections. To keep America competitive, we must ensure creators have the freedom and opportunity to thrive in the digital economy.”
The three witnesses he brought — Kayla Moran, an attorney; Christina Brennan, the president of Renegade Talent Mgmt; and Nick Luciano, the CEO and founder of Tratter House — all embodied the new generation that Williams spoke about.
Moran, who has wanted to be involved in politics since she was if fourth grade, told the Reporter that testifying in front of Congress was a “full circle moment.” She went from watching Scandal to telling lawmakers about the need for “Congress-backed support and protection for creators and creative entrepreneurs in this industry. They need the same protections that Main Street mechanic shops and restaurants and mom and pop stores have.”
“We talked a lot today about tax breaks for business owners and small business owners, because we don’t have the same resources as the big tech companies and the big monopolies,” Moran said. “For me personally, having guidance on who to go to when I need professional services that are dedicated to the creator economy is important.”
Moran got involved in the creator economy during her time in law school, which was derailed by the coronavirus pandemic.
“I was on Zoom School of Law all day, and I would share a day of my life about getting ready with me to go to law school and other law students started connecting, and it kind of just went from there,” she explained. “I really realized there was a need for creators, dedicated service professionals, lawyers, accountants, wealth managers, for creatives and creative entrepreneurs. And I thought I could combine my my legal career and my interests and passions. And why not?”
Now, law schools are starting to adapt to the need for classes that will accommodate the industries of tomorrow, today. “There’s starting to be a lot more entertainment law or intellectual property classes, trademark, copyright, things like that,” Moran said. “Entertainment law is a great start. I would love to see a social media class. There are universities now starting to offer those.”
Brennan, for her part, left corporate America for a career in the creator economy. “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get some looks when I went to represent an influencer, especially when people didn’t even know what an influencer was,” she said. But now, “it’s been really cool to see its growth and see its expansion.”
One of the policy issues that Brennan grapples with in her day to day job is name, image, and likeness (NIL) debates. The main questions she handle with NIL are “who’s using this? How long are they using it? Are you earning revenue on it, and are they changing it?”
Moran noted that the Small Business Committee describes itself as a “happy” committee; Brennan experienced something similar. “Everyone took notes on what we were saying, and what the fellow witnesses were saying when we’re talking about creators in relation to small business and small business growth,” she said of her time testifying.
Luciano, for his part, emphasized to lawmakers that “creatorpreneurs” like influencers aren’t that different from traditional small businesses.
He wanted “to show our congresspeople that we are small businesses…We create jobs, we influence the economy, just like any other small business.”
“I just really hope that we as creators are more represented, more understood, because I’ve had to do a lot of teaching moments; they tend to run when they hear the word influencer,” he said. “We do just what every other small business does. Just because you don’t see us on a corner as a brick and mortar store, that doesn’t mean that we’re not in our living rooms going live and making sure that we’re paying our bills and, in turn, affecting the whole economy.”
The message those witnesses brought to Congress resonated with those in attendance. Maria Giannopoulos, the founder of Right Click Advocacy, told the Reporter that “creators powering small businesses from their phones is the ultimate American Dream. I’m thrilled that lawmakers are dialed in to the power of the creator economy.”
“Now,” Giannopoulos said, “digital creators have the platform to discuss and shape policies that will affect businesses, culture and media for years to come.”
Below are transcripts of our interviews with Nick Luciano, Kayla Moran, and Christina Brennan, lightly edited for clarity.
Washington Reporter:
Nick Luciano, what brings you here today to testify in front of the Small Business Committee?
Nick Luciano:
Honestly, to show our congresspeople that we are small businesses. I refer to us as creatorpreneurs. We create jobs, we influence the economy, just like any other small business.
Washington Reporter:
What was your takeaway from both hearing from the Republicans and the Democrats throughout this hearing today?
Nick Luciano:
I really appreciate that it like it felt bipartisan; it didn’t feel like one party against the other. It felt like it was about what can we do to make sure that the people digest content are safe, and the people who create content are safe, and I learned so much.
Washington Reporter:
How have you seen the industry that you’re working in in this content creation changed since you first got involved?
Nick Luciano:
Rapid Growth. Rapid growth. Going from 2019 when I started, to now 2025, I’m proud of it, because America was founded on the backbone of small business, and now that we’re able to bring that into the digital landscape, and me being one of them, it makes me proud.
Washington Reporter:
Is there a message that you hope that Congress does that will help let you and others like you grow your businesses? What do you want to see them do from here? What would you hope their takeaway is?
Nick Luciano:
Honestly, I just really hope that we as creators are more represented, more understood, because I’ve had to do a lot of teaching moments; they tend to run when they hear the word influencer. And I’m like, we do just what every other small business does. Just because you don’t see us on a corner as a brick and mortar store, that doesn’t mean that we’re not in our living rooms going live and making sure that we’re paying our bills and, in turn, affecting the whole economy.
Washington Reporter:
What do you wish you knew in 2019 when you started down this path that led you here to Congress today?
Nick Luciano:
I wish I knew that one day I’d be sitting in front of a congressional committee.
Washington Reporter:
How’d you prepare for that? I assume that wasn’t something you were planning on doing when you started.
Nick Luciano:
No, it wasn’t something I was planning on doing. But I’m here, and we’re doing this for America. I love this country. I’m an absolute patriot, and the fact that we can all work together to make social media a better place for creators and consumers, that’s the end goal.
Washington Reporter:
Kayla, tell us about your experience testifying in Congress today. Was this your first time doing that?
Kayla Moran:
Yes, it was my first time. It’s a full circle moment. Honestly, since I was in fourth grade, I started watching detective shows, and then it moved up to Scandal and political shows, and I’ve always wanted to be in politics. I actually campaigned for a senator and then worked in his Orlando office in college.
Washington Reporter:
What was your impression of hearing from both Republicans and Democrats on the committee today about how they view this creator economy?
Kayla Moran:
I think it was overall very positive. They seemed very happy and excited to be here. They describe themselves as a happy committee, and they’re a bipartisan committee. And I think that energy really came through overall.
Washington Reporter:
What is your message to these policymakers?
Kayla Moran:
I think the most important thing that we need is Congress-backed support and protection for creators and creative entrepreneurs in this industry. They need the same protections that Main Street mechanic shops and restaurants and mom and pop stores have.
Washington Reporter:
What does that mean for you?
Kayla Moran:
I’m a lawyer in the creator economy. So I am a small business owner. I’m moving from an LLC to an S corp. We talked a lot today about tax breaks for business owners and small business owners, because we don’t have the same resources as the big tech companies and the big monopolies. For me personally, having guidance on who to go to when I need professional services that are dedicated to the creator economy is important.
Washington Reporter:
What made you want to shift your own professional career to get into this space? Is it before or after law school?
Kayla Moran:
I was in law school. Covid happened seven months into my 1L year, and I was stuck back home in Florida, and I wanted to connect with my audience and community members and talk about things I was interested in, passionate about, because I was on Zoom School of Law all day, and I would share a day of my life about getting ready with me to go to law school and other law students started connecting, and it kind of just went from there. But I really realized there was a need for creators, dedicated service professionals, lawyers, accountants, wealth managers, for creatives and creative entrepreneurs. And I thought I could combine my my legal career and my interests and passions. And why not?
Washington Reporter:
How did Law School prepare you or not prepare you for going down this route? Were there classes that you wanted to take that weren’t offered yet?
Kayla Moran:
There’s starting to be a lot more entertainment law or intellectual property classes, trademark, copyright, things like that. But I think entertainment law is a great start. I would love to see a social media class. There are universities now starting to offer those. The University of Miami being one of them; I didn’t go there, but I do live there and work with them a lot. I know New York Law School does as well. I would love to see some schools on the West Coast, or maybe in Chicago, do things as well, because there are big creator communities there. There was not a lot of resources in 2019 to 2022 when I was there, because this is so new, but I think advertising and marketing law classes would be really helpful. The best thing I got was a traditional IP course and an entertainment law course. But entertainment law is a starting point, but it’s not the best guidepost.
Washington Reporter:
What do you wish you knew when you started down this route?
Kayla Moran:
Keep showing up no matter what; there are days where you don’t want to get up, you don’t want to post, there’s nothing to share, but the consistency of every single day is important; if you want something badly enough, you will make it happen.
Washington Reporter:
You showed up and it led you to Congress.
Washington Reporter:
We are here with Christina Brennan, who was one of the witnesses in today’s hearing. Tell me what was your takeaway from both the Republicans and the Democrats as they approach this new and growing sector of the economy?
Christina Brennan:
Thank you for that question. This was a really incredible experience where everyone took notes on what we were saying, and what the fellow witnesses were saying when we’re talking about creators in relation to small business and small business growth; it was very impactful and very insightful.
Washington Reporter:
How did you find yourself getting into this space?
Christina Brennan:
That’s a great question. So our agency, as far as influencer management, was actually one of the first. When we started, we were under a different name, but the agency actually was formed in 1995 and I want to say aggregate, we represented over 500 Olympic athletes. So there is a CEO involved. I was born in 1995 so I started as a baby, but from there, we transitioned through a series of different versions, so to speak. In 2008 we signed one of our first influencers and one of the first influencers ever, which was really exciting, and it’s been an honor and a privilege to see these different iterations and see this business grow. I left corporate America, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get some looks when I went to represent an influencer, especially when people didn’t even know what an influencer was. So it’s been really cool to see its growth and see its expansion.
Washington Reporter:
You did not create the agency in 1995, but as you’ve talked with people, maybe your colleagues, or others in this space, how have their policy needs changed in the past 30 years to where we are now?
Christina Brennan:
Because of how long we’ve been in business, our CEO had a number of different resources. We’ve worked with pretty much the same attorney for almost 30 years. And when we’re talking about name, image and likeness and things like that, whether it’s with athletes or whether it’s with creators, that framework is really very close to being the same. Now there are increased obstacles and new challenges that creators may face with the start of AI and things like that. But it goes back to the fundamentals and owning your name, image and likeness.
Washington Reporter:
Can you talk a little bit more about that similarity? I think when most people think about NIL, the extent they do, it’s all just about college athletes. But how else does that pertain that policy to the Creator economy more broadly,
Christina Brennan:
As far as policy, that’s different than, let’s say, a definition. NIL is name, image and likeness. And when we look at name, image and likeness that can pertain to anyone; it’s the right to be able to use your name, your image, and your likeness. Likeness can be in various different attributes. Who’s using this? How long are they using it? Are you earning revenue on it, and are they changing it? Those are the big questions.
Washington Reporter:
If you could tell yourself, when you left corporate America to go down this career path, something that you wish you knew then, what would that be based on your years of working here?
Christina Brennan:
That’s a great question. I was very, very privileged to learn from some of the top salespeople in the world at the New York Yankees. I actually came from the New York Yankees, and what’s been really cool is to apply those sales principles and build an organization around driving revenue and doing it in a way that’s impactful, controlled, and achieving goals, whether that’s personal goals, ethics goals, things like that, but really having the ability with social media to really construct that narrative.
Washington Reporter:
Finally, what would your advice to the New York Yankees be?
Christina Brennan:
Go Yankees. That’s my advice.