The creator, DJ and entrepreneur has joined Passes as the platform positions subscriptions, exclusive content and direct messaging as alternatives to algorithm-dependent social reach.
Sommer Ray is moving part of her online business beyond traditional social media by launching a subscription-based community on creator platform Passes.
With more than 43 million followers across her social channels, the creator, DJ and entrepreneur will use the platform to share studio and tour footage, early previews of new music and more personal updates. Subscribers will also be able to communicate with her through direct messaging. Ray said:
I’ve shared so much of my life online over the past decade, and social media has changed so much in that time, that it doesn’t always leave a lot of room for real connection anymore. I’m excited about Passes because it gives me a more personal way to connect with the people who have supported me.
Ray began building her Instagram audience in 2015 before expanding into fitness, activewear, skincare and music. Her recent activity includes releasing LaLaLa (Everybody’s Up) with Danish producer HEDEGAARD, collaborating with Martin Jensen and DJ PRESS PLAY, and securing a Las Vegas residency at LIV Beach and LIV Nightclub at Fontainebleau.
Founded by Lucy Guo, Passes allows creators to earn through subscriptions, exclusive content, paid messages, livestreams, one-to-one calls and merchandise. The company charges creators a 10% platform fee and offers instant payouts. Guo said:
Sommer has spent over ten years knowing where the internet is going before the rest of the world catches up. She has never once stayed in the box people put her in. She sees where the creator economy is headed, and we’re glad she’s building with us.
For artists and creators, the wider significance is ownership of the audience relationship. Social platforms can provide enormous reach, but access remains controlled by algorithms and shifting distribution models. Paid communities offer a smaller yet potentially more valuable audience built around recurring revenue and direct communication.
Ray’s move shows how those models are increasingly merging music, lifestyle content and personal branding within one digital business. The real test will be whether creators can convert a fraction of their public following into paying members; and keep those fans engaged once exclusivity becomes a monthly product.