The world of Instagram serves as a hub for inspiration and aspiration which I love. I think of Kim Kardashian years ago where she posted a picture of herself in a white swimsuit after she gave birth to North West where she captioned #nofilter. Kim’s post went viral and dozens, dare I say hundreds of people, became inspired and copied her exact post down to the same hashtag. This is a prime example of Kim inspiring others because she looked hot and snapped back after being pregnant and giving birth to North.
I recently went into my saved items on Instagram and noticed that at least ten of my saved items contained a person posing in front of a vintage car. And what was funny to me, was that I hadn’t remembered saving any of these pictures. This picture concept was and still is inspiration because I think it’s dope.
For me, I’m only a mircro-influencer and I’ve witnessed people blatantly copy my post using my same concept and same exact words. My friend and I recently talked about this and his response was “congrats you’ve arrived! You’re an influencer. Expect more of this!” He and I then laughed because I don’t take myself too seriously and I’m not the Instagram police.
So when does inspiration become plagiarism? I think the answer lies in intent and purpose. I also think it is important to give a person credit if you are using their idea or concept. Even if a person tries their absolute best, it’s impossible to duplicate another person. God made us all wondrously and that’s what makes us special and unique. And that’s just that. People will often be imitated but never duplicated.
