The Ebony Power 100, Celebrating the 70th Anniversary of Ebony Magazine
On December 2, 2015, EBONY Magazine presented the 4th annualEBONY Power 100 Gala, honoring the nation’s 100 most influential AfricanAmericans and celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the publication.
This year’s Ebony Power 100, livestreamed on ebony.com, tookplace at the historic Beverly Hilton's International Ballroom and washosted by Johnson Publishing Company Chairwoman, Linda Johnson Rice, and CEO Desirée Rogers.
Following red carpet arrivals and an elegant VIP cocktail reception, the 500+ guests were seated for adinner program emceed by television and movie star Arsenio Hall. Attendeeswere entertained by a wide array of musical performances, each one representingthe music industry over the past 70 years. Performers included child phenom,Bobby Hill (who recently serenaded the Pope), Jidenna, who wowed with hits like“Classic Man", vocalist Judith Hill (whose forthcoming album is produced byPrince), and a rousing finalé performance by none other than George Clinton andthe Parliament Funkadelic.
DJ Kiss performed throughout the event and spun at the post-reception in the InternationalFoyer and Terrace.
Celebrities and A-listers in attendance included Zendaya andJesse Williams (who graced the cover of the annual issue), as well as AnthonyAnderson, Tracee Ellis Ross, Tina Knowles, Loretta Devine, Holly RobinsonPeete, Ledisi, and Verdine White of Earth Wind & Fire. Harry Belafonte, who also appeared on the cover, sent a heartfelt video tribute for the occasion.
The Ebony Power 100 was presented by Nationwide Insurance, with othernoteworthy sponsors and partners including United Airlines, Cadillac, Hennessy, HiltonWorldwide, Twitter, and Home Depot.
Empire was honored to once again serve as event producer forthe Ebony Power 100, responsible for venue selection, décor, production, talentbooking & coordination, registration, livestream, videography, eventlogistics and onsite management.
Empire is a leading producer of branded entertainment and broadcastand non-broadcast, celebrity-driven media events.
Guests received their first taste of technological innovation at registration, where they were welcomed by name on a reactive LED screen installation covering the full width of the entry wall. A large lunch café was created with a décor scheme that incorporated custom-built, ceiling-high steel LED frames draped with foliage to create smaller, intimate restaurant-style spaces that displayed both technology and nature.
A series of breakout sessions presented content targeted to attendees’ varied interests, while imagery displayed throughout the venue showcased real-life applications of how products designed to empower developers help to unleash the power of data and reimagine possibilities that will improve our world.
Every element of Microsoft Connect(); from registration, breakfast and keynote, to lunch and evening cocktails, were custom-designed to communicate exacting brand messaging and to deliver a high-touch guest experience to this important audience. The keynote and breakout sessions were livestreamed through an onsite studio built for this purpose and content was watched online by millions around the world.
Empire is proud to collaborate with Microsoft on this annual, top-tier business communication event.
To view excerpts of Connect(); 2017, please visit https://www.microsoft.com/connectevent
