Rodney’s South by Southwest Journal Part II
DAY 3 (Sunday, March 11)
eMarketer, SmartBrief and AdCouncil Brunch
· Talk about delicious: shrimp n’grits, bananas foster, the best bacon I’ve ever had in my life and mimosas. I was in heaven. Swift’s Attic definitely does brunch right.
· Between stuffing my face and listening to the amazing local artist playing during brunch, I met some smart visitors who were very interested in the work that Weber Shandwick does and the type of projects I worked on. This was a great event to both indulge in amazing cuisine and build connections with leaders in communications across the globe.
Walking to my first session, I received this photo from mom regarding the weather in St. Louis.
To say I laughed out loud would be an understatement.
First session of the day: How Brands Who Speak to Gen Z Slay
· This session caught my eye because of the title. Honestly, it’s always our goal to “slay,” whether it’s an event, our content, or brand perception. But specifically, what does this new generation like and how do we as communications experts connect with that? What gets this generation going? I’m talking deeper than Tide Pods.
· We discuss the Gen Z audience and some of the psychological drivers of this generation when it comes to communicating with brands. The speakers then categorize these drivers in marketing into six sets:
o Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) — a cultural event, something that’s outrageous and groundbreaking
o Altruistic — something that speaks to social good, strong values
o Hedonistic — mindless fun, a silly good time, or a guilty pleasure
o Relatable — same age, same challenges, relevant social/cultural experiences
o Aspirational — specific trains, abilities, lifestyles and adventures
o Discerning — strong plots and relationships, substance over style, and doesn’t pander.
· “When something is relevant, they will be moved. Prove to me it’s worth leaving the house for.” A great quote by one of the speakers. Unless you give them reason to care, this generation is perfectly fine with staying at home. They have no real brand loyalty and considering this generation shapes the future of commerce, we have to start caring how to connect with them tomorrow, today.
· 97% of them have smartphones and 42% say social media has an impact on how they feel about themselves. They are addicted to validation and there is a strong dichotomy between addiction, tragic news, and a lack of understanding of fake news.
· Generation Z is looking for authenticity efficiency, transparency and customization. They understand advertising and how influencers work, but they care more about the content. In fact, they are mini content creators themselves and understand how to produce content that people react to.
Next session: #OscarsSoWhite: What’s Next for Entertainment
· To say I was excited about this one would be an understatement. The creator of the #OscarsSoWhite hashtag was joined by two black entertainers to discuss trends and what can be done to ensure diverse and equitable change in the future of entertainment. This was especially relevant to me because my master’s thesis, #blackhumor: Cultural Exchange & Critique, was being written as this hashtag was trending.
· This was a great dialogue that touched on a number of topics including the hashtag being a driving force in the Academy changing its structure to be more inclusive.
· We also saw more films and television shows representing multiple voices and identities, resulting in more opportunity for actors, directors and writers of traditionally underrepresented groups.
· I was wearing one of my many paisley shirts and one of the panelists, comedian, writer, and late night host Robin Thede, poked fun at me before answering my question about fellow comedian Mo’Nique’s boycott of Netflix. It was an insightful answer that brought attention to pay disparities, especially amongst black women in entertainment. It has also been a dream of mine to be roasted by a professional comedian.
Walking the streets of Austin, I decided to stop by YouTube’s Story HQ activation. For this event, YouTube partnered with creative minds to take classic, well-known fairy tales and turn them into interactive, short-form modern stories. Also met up with other Weber Shandwick employees within the network including colleagues from New York, Chicago and Boston. It was great to chat over drinks and get a feel of everyone’s experience at SXSW and in their different offices.
Final event of the day was an invitation-only party thrown by Social Native.
· The event was at Justine’s Secret House, a Victorian style house with a New Orleans vibe. This house was literally a secrete meaning the Uber driver and I searched for a good five minutes for it. Once we finally found it hidden behind greenery, we realized it was gorgeous.
· Cocktails and hors d’oeuvres were served and made for easy conversation with other industry professionals.
The hors d’oeuvres weren’t enough for me and it was time to venture out and find more food. Ended up at Whataburger, my first experience. It was delicious, but they’re right: everything is bigger in Texas.
DAY 4 (Monday, March 12)
Began my day with brunch at 1886 Café & Bakery. There are no words to describe the deliciousness of the Smoked Brisket Hash. I feel like brisket is Austin’s provel cheese. I had it in some form in most of my meals: tacos, sandwiches, hash, you name it.
Stopped by the Land O’Lakes activation and was amazed at how interactive and informative it was. Not to mention, free drinks were available!
· This event was called The Food Effect and is part of a larger campaign from Land O’Lakes to evolve the narrative of modern food production.
· The exhibits were completely immersive. For one, I got placed inside a giant head of lettuce and was given a virtual reality experience to innovative farming techniques.
· Another installation urged us to pick up phone receivers and listen to messages from people struggling with hunger. It was a heartbreaking and humbling exhibit, but provided us to immediately help those in need. Every time a story was heard, a meal was donated to those struggling.
· This was one of my favorite activations throughout the festival as not only was it completely immersive, but it used technology to enhance our understanding of something that is crucial to every living person. It helped bridge the gap between farming, feeding, and everywhere in between.
Next session was Journey to Star Wars.
· Admittedly, I was a little late to the Star Wars obsession. But after re-watching all of the films last month and seeing Star Wars VIII: The Last Jedi in theaters twice, there was no way I was going to miss this session with Rian Johnson, director of The Last Jedi.
· It was great to hear about Rian’s journey to becoming a writer and director and some of his past projects. He had a lot of insight to offer aspiring filmmakers as they work to become the innovators of tomorrow.
· Surprise! Luke Skywalker is in the building. Actor Mark Hamill makes his way to the stage and adds even more humor to the session.
· Hamill talks about his vision for the Star Wars saga and some of the, in his own words “awful” ideas he had for The Last Jedi. I won’t run through them here, but I must agree, they were pretty bad…
The final session of the day is the world premiere of Tracy Morgan and Tiffany Haddish’s new show, The Last O.G.
· Directed by comedian Jorma Taccone and produced and written by Academy Award winner Jordan Peele, this show has the potential to be one of my new favorites.
· Not only is this show funny, but it is relevant and raises important questions about interracial relationships, gentrification, prison, and criminal rehabilitation.
· The show was a breath of fresh air. Characters were complex, the writing was sharp and witty yet sometimes tragic. Overall, this just seemed like a very heartfelt production. I can’t wait for the show to air regularly!
· The screening ended with a panel and Q&A with Taccone, Morgan and Haddish, all bringing their own brand of funny to the table to keep the audience entertained. It was an emotional rollercoaster as each gave sincere answers to fans questions and encouraged them to always follow their dreams. At times that may seem corny, but for some reason, it worked here.
Ended my day at The Best Wurst, the first and longest running mobile food vendor in the city of Austin. Check here for a recap of my final day in Austin!
