Content creator and University of Michigan-Flint alum Tamara Emerson is competing for a $100,000 Xfinity brand deal on the show “Best in Class”. The seven-episode vertical reality competition show created by Xfinity features six college students who are also content creators from across the country.
Emerson, who was born and raised in Ann Arbor, graduated from the University of Michigan-Flint in May 2026 with a bachelor’s in marketing and a minor in communications. She is one of the six content creators on the show, which premiered on Aug. 5 and is available exclusively on Xfinity’s TikTok and Instagram pages.
The show is hosted by Katie Feeney, a sports and lifestyle content creator for ESPN with over 14 million followers across all platforms. Feeney chooses the winner who is crowned “Creator Valedictorian” and receives a $100,000 Xfinity brand deal. In the two-minute episodes, contestants compete in challenges that test their creativity, collaboration and ability to capture attention online.
Emerson started her content creation career in 2022 by posting drawings of characters from the video game Overwatch and others from shows and anime she enjoyed.
She then transitioned to streaming on Twitch and uploading gaming clips to other social media platforms, along with content creation advice videos.
Now, with over 28,000 followers across all platforms, Emerson still posts content creation advice videos and streams video game plays such as Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy and Crazy Taxi.
“I really love playing games that are known towards like the older generations like Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, even Crazy Taxi,” Emerson said. “When they see someone like me who isn’t born and raised with gaming, they think, ‘ Oh, I can relive it another time’.”
While building her content creation career, Emerson was also pursuing her degree at UM-Flint, where she studied marketing with a minor in communications.
“I was born and raised in the city for the main University of Michigan campus but then decided on the University of Michigan-Flint because of how close-knit it is,” Emerson said.
Throughout her time at UM-Flint, Emerson credits four people who have influenced her career. Jasmine Jackson, social media marketing and communications specialist; Don Martel; Becky Armour Standell, associate director at the student success center; and Antonio Riggs, associate director for the Office of Student Career Advancement and Success.
“They were the ones that helped me truly get acclimated to the because I’ve never been to Flint before,” Emerson said. “They were there when I got my first-ever travel deal, and they helped me basically prepare to be, you know, the great young woman that I am postgrad, so I’m very, very grateful to have them as my mentors.”
Riggs first met Emerson when she worked the front desk at the Student Success Center. He said her proactive, inquisitive personality helped build a mentor/mentee relationship between them.
“I’ll ask her questions, not to challenge her or not to make her feel like she’s behind, but to drop those small nuggets,” Riggs said. “I would try to encourage her to attend different events, maybe consider joining a club or organization.”
While the six contestants competed against one another for the six-figure brand deal, Emerson said she also formed close connections with her competitors such as Trenton Sandler, a sports content creator, and Sarah Crist, a lifestyle content creator.
Sandler said he enjoyed working with Emerson on the show.
“Working with Tamara was great; she is one of the hardest workers I’ve ever met,” Sandler said.
Although Emerson is expanding her career in content creation, her end goal is to become a marketing specialist or social media coordinator for a tech or gaming company.
The final episode of “Best in Class” airs Sept. 10 at 10 a.m. Eastern on Xfinity’s Instagram and TikTok pages.
Hello my name is Ramla Ouedraogo and I am the editor-in-chief of the Michigan Times.
