Our team pushed Black History Month beyond a one-off campaign into community impact. This spot kicked off an initiative designed to increase African-American representation in the music chosen for Nissan advertising. The commercial also educated viewers on the impact that Black musicians have had on rock & roll music, and leveraged up and coming musicians both in the talent and in the original soundtrack.
Agency: fluent360
Role: Creative Director
Client: Nissan
Music is deeply woven into the soundtrack of America. But often times, the credit goes to the artists we see on stage. But behind the scenes, technology professionals are the geniuses that determine what we still sing along to decades after a song is released.
We created this campaign to tell these stories of the producers and audio engineers behind America’s biggest hits and musical moments.
The campaign featured Just Blaze (producer for Jay Z, Beyonce, Kanye West), Ebonie Smith (audio engineer on Hamilton the Musical, and founder of Gender Amplified), and Willie Green (producer for the Roots, Whiz Khalifa and creator of the Press Play project).
Learn more at https://www.nissanusa.com
Agency: Draftline NYC
Role: Senior Copywriter & Consultant
Client: Budweiser
Only .6% of American brewers are Black. In the wake of the 2020 fight for racial justice across the U.S., Budweiser felt the need to step up their efforts to address inequity within the company. The result was a new scholarship and internship program, and an opportunity to do some storytelling to launch the initiative.
I was brought on as a consultant with Draftline NYC to bring the story of Natalie Johnson, the company’s only Black Senior Brewmaster, to life in a way that was both authentic and impactful. The final film not only honored her legacy of 20 years at the company, but also allowed the brand to lead the beer industry in acknowledging its history and taking steps towards positive change.
Agency: Curly Girl Collective
Roles: Co-Founder, Executive Producer, Social Media Strategist, Marketing Director
For decades the beauty industry has been lacking in diversity and representation, especially for women with darker skin and textured hair. The natural hair movement was one of the first among many communities served by this industry to take a stand, and demand to see their reflection in magazines, on shelves and runways around the world.
My co-founders and I started Curly Girl Collective in 2011 to be an advocate for this rapidly growing community, and create spaces for them to be seen and celebrated. For years we hosted intimate events in New York, but as the demand grew, we scaled our vision in 2014 to what is now known as CURLFEST, the world’s largest natural beauty festival.
As of 2019, CURLFEST is now a destination experience that has been attended by over 75,000 people in over 40 countries worldwide.
Production & Event Design
CURLFEST is intentionally not a music festival, so I’ve curated the space to feel more like a picnic or family reunion than a concert. Since people attend the festival for different reasons, the space is organized in zones that cater to the different activities available to the different types of consumers in the space. We maintain a uniquely branded event design by keeping participant brand signage to a minimum, and allowing the colors and energy of the CURLFEST brand to guide the visual identity of the experience.
Marketing & Social Media
For years we actually didn’t need marketing, but in 2019 we were tasked with selling more tickets in a larger venue in NY, and taking the festival to a new city for the first time. In both cities, we used primarily social media marketing, including geo-targeted ads and influencer marketing to get the word out. Along with local promoters, radio placements and guerilla marketing efforts we were able to sell out the New York festival (30,000 guests) and welcomed approximately 10,000 guests to our first Atlanta festival.
Client: Cantu Beauty
Agency: Show & Tell Creative
Role: Executive Producer; Creative Director
At their first ESSENCE Festival in 2016, Cantu was competing for attention with some of the biggest beauty brands for Black women in the country. As a newcomer to the festival, our team created an experience that not only gave consumers what they all wanted (free samples!) but also provided opportunities for product education and consumer engagement.
Event Design
In 2017, we created a new style guide for their festival activations that was used throughout their summer tour across the East Coast. A bright orange and yellow tribal pattern brought the brand colors to life in a new and fun way, and was leveraged both at the Convention Center activation and at the “Curls & Waves” rooftop pool party that Saturday.
The Experience
In 2016, we produced a dynamic performance by the Emmy-award winning Syncopated Ladies on the ESSENCE Beauty & Style Stage, breathing new life into a day full of typical tutorials and celebrity panels. The dancers had their hair styled in the Cantu salon prior to their performance, and they went on to produce additional lifestyle content for the brand the following year.
At our 2017 activation, guests could either spin the wheel for a prize, or get one-on-one consultation at the Cantu Refresh Bar with our team of stylists, influencers and scientists. The back wall had a video reel we produced, that showed guests waiting in line how to use the products featured in the booth.
Our team won “Rookie of the Year” for the Cantu brand in the ESSENCE Festival Sponsor Awards in 2016, and drew 15-20k guests to the activation in both 2016 and 2017.
Credits: Candace Queen (Art Direction); The Grant Access (Event Production)
Agency: Walton Isaacson
Client: Courvoisier (Beam Suntory)
Role: Creative Director
After years of battling a perception of being an older cognac brand, our team was tasked with creating new energy and launching 3 new variants that appealed to a younger audience.
Creative & Design
Instead of visually emulating the leading spirit brands in the category, we chose the opposite. Our “Be the Exception” campaign was a call to action for our millennial audience to embrace their originality and dare to be different. Visually we chose a brightly colored, artistic design system to set the brand apart, and bold headlines to draw attention to the campaign. The tone was daring and unapologetic, and gave the brand a new attitude.
Media
Billboards and wild postings were placed in key markets around the country, and a partnership with Complex magazine amplified the campaign with print, digital, and a multi-sensory experience called the Courvoisiology Lab that launched their new, unique beverages in a powerful way.
Click here to view full agency case study
Credits: Shain Wahlen, Senior Designer
Client: Cantu (PDC Brands)
Agency: Show & Tell Creative
Role: Creative Director; Executive Producer
With every beauty brand for multicultural women in the same city at the same time for ESSENCE festival, how does one stand out from the noise?
With the first rooftop pool party the festival weekend has ever had!
My agency was tasked with launching the new Cantu “Refresh” collection for scalp care & hair extensions, but the product benefits weren’t clear for the brand’s core consumers that were most familiar with their products for natural hair.
Strategy: Create a connection between the new collection and the popularity of “protective styling” with hair extensions during the summer season.
Execution: “Curls & Waves” Rooftop Pool Party at Essence Festival in New Orleans with social media campaign and video content.
Creative & Design
To transform the Ace Hotel into a branded experience, we loaded the space with memorable, instagrammable elements including poolside lettering, branded towels and cocktail glasses, and a custom hedge wall for photo opportunities.
PR/Influencers/Social Media
We worked with a local PR team to connect with influencers in town for ESSENCE. The event was so well-shared that staff from other events were drawn to it from official events! Each attendee went home with a branded bag full of Cantu products and information.
We extended the campaign on social media with vacation-themed product photography and influencer tutorials around protective styling.
Credits: The Grant Access (Event Production); Candace Queen (Senior Designer)
Client: Cantu
Agency: Show & Tell Creative
Role: Creative Director; Art Director & Copywriter
Photography: Emmanuel Hahn
Cantu hair products have been a favorite among textured hair care consumers for over a decade, but as the natural hair aisle grew, their image was in need of an update to overcome perception of being a legacy brand for previous generations.
Additionally, the account lacked a content strategy, with the majority of content being reposted consumer photos.
Strategy
Shift from a lifestyle-focused content strategy to a product-focused one, and refresh the creative.
Execution
A new brand style guide with a more modern look, new photography and an influencer program to create fresh content. We also shifted from a 20% to a 70%+ product focused content across social media and YouTube.
Results:
200%+ increase in followers on the @cantubeauty page, and a pronounced increase in sales in 2016-2017. Our social media strategy and growth also helped elevate the standing of the brand within the textured hair category from #4 to #2.
Client: Cantu
Agency: Show & Tell Creative
Role: Creative Director; Copywriter; Executive Producer
While the rest of New York was sending models down runways to walk and smize, our team started a whole dance party on the catwalk at Naturally Curly’s annual Textures on the Runway fashion show!
We partnered with the Emmy-nominated dance team the Syncopated Ladies, and use them as both models and entertainment for the show. With 5 different hair textures, we were able to demonstrate the versatility of Cantu Beauty products, and show off the styles in a fun way through dance.
From the script and flow to the wardrobe direction and styling, our team produced the show in its entirety, managing a team of 5 dancers, 2 recording artists, twin girl models (the McClure Twins) and our emcee, HGTV’s Maria Antoinette.
Client: Courvoisier
Agency: Walton Isaacson
Role: Creative Director
Courvoisier hadn’t been cool since Busta Rhymes passed it in 2001, so our task was to create an experience that reintroduced the brand to a millennial audience in an engaging way.
Concept & Experience
The Courvoisiology Lab was a multi-sensory, interactive experience that allowed guests to enjoy the spirit through the senses - taste, touch, smell and sound. Upon entering the venue guests experienced the new cognac blends via scented fog, and could sip at 3 Courvoisiology tasting stations for each variant (C by Courvoisier, Courvoisier Rose & Courvoisier Gold). They were also treated to Courvoisier-infused hors d’oeuvres crafted by Bravo’s celebrity Chef Roblé.
Consumers were invited to make their mark on a digital graffiti wall, and shared their photos to an interactive photo wall using the #CVology hashtag that allowed the brand to gather data and create a social media presence. The event was also promoted and streamed live on Complex.com via a media partnership with Complex magazine, extending the reach beyond our guests.
Results
The lab garnered a total of 250M impressions and helped reintroduce the brand to a new consumer within the cognac category.
Client: Degree Men (Unilever)
Agency: Walton Isaacson
Role: ACD/Art
To promote their partnership with the U.S. Soccer Team’s Clint Dempsey at the 2014 World Cup, our team was tasked with creating a digital program that galvanized their community and positioned Degree as the deodorant for athletes and “Doers.”
Since we knew most soccer fans would not be able to attend the World Cup in Brazil, our team found a way to send them their virtually by creating a tifo (huge fan flag) with fan photos.
Fans were invited to upload their photos on the Degree website, which was added to the large mosaic of the U.S. Soccer Team. At any point consumers could zoom in and see their photo and search for other fans on the tifo.
Once the tifo was completed, it made an unprecedented appearance on Good Morning America before heading to Brazil to cheer the team on. This campaign not only engaged their consumers in an organic way around a global sporting event, but garnered major PR impressions for the brand.
Client: Clear Hair & Scalp Ultra Shea (Unilever)
Agency: Walton Isaacson
Role: ACD/Art
CLEAR Hair & Scalp Care launched a new Ultra Shea collection targeting women with textured hair, and our agency was tasked with generating brand awareness among multicultural millennial women, and distributing over 2 MM samples of the product nationwide.
Strategy: Tap into the audiences of young African-American talent to increase awareness of the brand, and encourage trial through digital and event sampling programs.
The Experience
We launched the campaign with an exclusive, 3-city concert series featuring Grammy-award winning singer Elle Varner in Atlanta, and other artists in Chicago and NY. We used the concert as an opportunity to not only distribute samples, but create content leading up to Elle’s first Grammy Awards appearance.
Digital + Sampling Sweepstakes
Our team created an online sweepstakes that allowed fans to vote for the hair style she would wear at her first Grammy appearance. Each entrant was sent CLEAR samples, and was entered to win other prizes. Elle debuted the chosen look, created with CLEAR by celebrity stylist Oscar James, on social media at the Grammys, garnering valuable media impressions for the brand.
Client: AVYA Skincare (Global Beauty Science)
Agency: Show & Tell Creative
Role: Creative Producer & Copywriter
AVYA Skincare launched their skincare collection in 2018 with a focus on melanin-rich skin. With a premium price point, our launch strategy was to highlight the luxe product and packaging, and establish a high-end brand personality.
I worked with our photographer to create beautiful product imagery for the brand which had very few assets, and created a Mother’s Day campaign with beauty influencers that combined audio with visual design to tell real-life stories of beauty after motherhood.
Agency: Show & Tell Creative
Client: ESSENCE Beauty Box
Role: Copywriter
ESSENCE’s new beauty subscription box needed a fresh, slightly younger voice to differentiate the brand from their magazine and legacy brands. I worked with an Art Director to create a style guide that included guidelines on a new brand voice, crafted a fun brand manifesto for their platform, wrote a new tagline for the brand, and provided copy for the inserts for their Winter 2016 boxes.