There are many influencer agencies that connect talent with brands, but few have had the continued success of BCL Entertainment, a talent production, events, and brand partnerships company that has helped improve campaigns by matching the best brands with star-level talent.

BCL Entertainment is led by Bettie Levy, who didn’t set out initially to be an entertainment talent broker, but her business savvy and connections have helped the agency rise to the top. Her success comes down to authenticity and strong relationships when trying to find the best celebrity for a campaign.

“The most important thing is the authenticity of the pairing, whether it’s the event or the partnership, and that’s what we do,” Levy told ADWEEK.

A knack for connecting talent

Levy started her career as an intern at Sony Music, which led to her first job out of college in the television and video booking department. From there, she transitioned to Columbia, then Epic and Sony Urban, before following Don Ienner to his new venture, IMO Entertainment.

During her time at the labels and at IMO, Levy learned both the corporate and entrepreneurial structures and built up a rolodex of artists she could count on for events. Eventually, she decided to start her own venture, which became BCL Entertainment.

It’s now been 15 years, and Levy has built a reputation for finding the right celebrities for the right events and campaigns.

While BCL Entertainment specializes in live events and branded partnerships, “the function in both silos is very much the same, which is coming in and taking a client’s creative budget and deliverables, and authentically devising lists of names and ideas that make the most sense,” Levy explained.

Ludacris meets Jif

One of BCL’s most public successes has been the ongoing Jif campaign with Ludacris.

In a spot by Publicis, “The Return,” Ludacris is back in the studio to record his next hit. After some trouble finding his groove, he breaks for a scoop of peanut butter. The snack gums up his flow but ends up sounding fresh enough to be a hit, with the track becoming the rapper’s single, “Butter.ATL.” 

BCL Entertainment was instrumental in landing Ludacris for the role. The brand had to find an artist that would have the talent and creative contributions to handle not just the acting but also the songwriting and ability to collaborate with all stakeholders.

“A lot of these campaigns are all about the creative, and you really need the artist’s involvement from the inception. Oftentimes, the talent has great ideas that also can contribute to great creative,” said Levy.