Ashanté Thomas-Burton

“Growing up in South London, there’s a great sense of pride and unspoken rules that are part of the culture,” says copywriter, poet and Channel 5 social media executive, Ashanté Thomas-Burton. Since dropping out of a degree in nutrition, learning what it was he actually wanted to do, alongside how to advocate for himself, network and seek out opportunities, has all been part of the learning – or unlearning – curve. Below, he shares his journey, from the D&AD Shift programme that changed everything to imposter syndrome and finding your niche.

What I do

My creative practice
My creative practice is copywriting, and I’m currently the Social Media Executive at Channel 5. This consists of community management (replying to comments), caption writing (for posts and subtitles) and helping out with ideation (new ideas to push the brand).

Influences and inspiration

Ashanté with his fellow Shifters

My training
I don’t have traditional training. I went to the University of Westminster, but to study Human Nutrition, and dropped out in my second year. I carried a bit of shame around that for some time, but felt I needed to follow an actual passion of mine and not others’ (sorry Mum).

My one constant in life has been writing/poetry. I stumbled upon an ad for D&AD Shift and thought, ‘There’s no way I’m making this programme’, but lo and behold, I did. It was here that I was able to hone my craft and build a creative community, which has been super important.

Favourite recent project
I was part of V&A Inwrds working with writer Yomi Sode and theatremaker Tristan Fynn-Aiduenu. Alongside 13 poets, we performed a spoken word piece inspired by artist Mimi Ọnụọha’s 'The Hair in the Cable’. This was then published as a poetry anthology – a big dream of mine.

On Shift, my favourite project was working with DIAGEO’s Captain Morgan brand. The brief was to create an impactful campaign in the UK that gets 18 to 24-year-olds thinking of Captain Morgan as the first choice for fun times with friends. My team researched that on average, we say more in an hour of face-to-face conversation than in a month of back-and-forth texts. The idea was about maximising that and building deeper connections with our friends, so we pitched a three-part activation: a YouTube series with celebs and real friends, a day party at 93 Feet East and playing cards with a twist.

A day in the life
I work hybrid (three days in office, two days WFH). The first thing I do when I hit the office is say hi to the front desk. Then, depending on how bad the overground was, I'll pick up an iced vanilla matcha as a treat. I’m at my desk by 9:30am and log on with an excessive amount of passwords and codes. In the morning, I track the growth of 5’s social channels, seeing what posts have done well and curating an email review to send to my manager. Afterwards, I’ll see what’s outstanding in terms of copy and scheduling, making my way down the list before lunch.

I try to get outside for a bit and just walk around; as my office is located in Camden, there’s no shortage of food spots. After lunch, there are usually a few meetings with the team to see where priorities lie for the channel as a whole and what social media can do to boost that. Then, home time pretty much!

A starter pack for my job:

How I got here

Starting my creative journey
Trial and error. I think many look for their purpose when, in reality, purpose finds you. That’s not to say don’t search, try new things, or go with what feels right for a time until it doesn’t. For me, most of my early work consisted of teaching children in some capacity (tutor, workshop leader, presenter), which I enjoyed but kind of fell into. Then around 2023, I started to feel stuck and unfulfilled. At a crossroads, I decided to go for whatever felt scary-good: I found courses, went to poetry jams, helped friends with their projects, etc.

It took some time to get to this moment, and to be completely honest, I still feel new to this and am continually learning on the journey.

Landing my first few jobs, clients and/or commissions
Growing up in South London, there’s a great sense of pride and unspoken rules that are part of the culture. What I will say is don’t be afraid of looking like a beg.

After Shift, there were so many contacts and opportunities available that it got kinda overwhelming. Also, because I wasn’t tied to one path, I was looking to soak up as much knowledge as I could. A lot of people say that to make it in the industry, it's who you know not what you know, but it's equally as much who knows you! If your face/name is around, people are way more likely to remember you. This could look like follow-up emails, setting up coffee meets, attending networking events (and actually networking), asking for feedback on an interview/portfolio and posting on LinkedIn/professional account. Nothing is wasted time.

I got my current role because Paramount was one of the D&AD partners in my cohort – they liked a brief my group presented and thought the idea would work with the channel’s rebrand. I applied to two other jobs at the company, then they came to me with something that was a better match.

Biggest challenges along the way
The first month I started, I had the most insane imposter syndrome – like I’d made the wrong choice or that I needed more time. Luckily, I had a great support system in my girlfriend, my friends and family who championed me, allowing me to settle in and not spiral.

Now, the challenges are more tangible, such as Excel spreadsheets and emailing external people (why is that so scary?!)

My social media and self-promotion vibe is…
Before this role, I didn’t really post on social media; I would just look up funny cat videos and food recipes that I never made. I am proud to say that I know a lot more about what I can do on there now, like scheduling and creating mixed media assets. Still, I don’t really post much – tryna keep my cool, mysterious vibe (I’ll get better, I promise, maybe).

On a real note, I still struggle with self-promotion. I could blame this on being humble and whatnot, but Shae Universe said it perfectly in this video describing some differences in self-expression between LA and the UK. As I mentioned, being a beg isn’t a bad thing, and embarrassment is what you make it, so who really cares?

Three things I've found useful in my career:

Courses, programmes, initiatives, access schemes or job boards I've found helpful

My greatest learnings when it comes to making money and supporting myself as a creative:
When I was freelance, I had a couple of part-time jobs at random places (trial groups, survey taking, VO work, workshops, security). That way, I was able to get consistent money from inconsistent opportunities.

Try to figure out a rate so when you are chasing up those contacts, there’s less opportunity to fumble the bag. We all move through things quite fast, so if you’re able to offer something with little guesswork, it will get you ahead!

My advice

My most useful career tips
Your work and time are valuable, so treat them as such. If you feel like you’re spreading yourself thin, prioritise and preserve!

What I'd say to someone looking to get into a similar role
I am learning that copywriting isn’t just one thing. It manifests in different industries and you gain so many transferable skills. However, if you can find your thing to specialise in, whether it's longer poetic pieces, journalism, theory, or a comedic or satirical tone, that’s useful.

Find a collaborative partner to work with – this might make you feel more comfortable if you’re just starting out. And remember, words are supposed to make you feel something, even in your CV or LinkedIn posts. If it doesn’t move you, it's not going to move anyone else.