International African American Museum x #HipHop50
Two months after its 23-years-awaited grand opening in June 2023, the International African American Museum circled an opportunity to stake its place in the global conversation on the 50th Anniversary of Hip Hop. While other outlets and institutions celebrated with high-budget concerts and celebrity-driven campaigns, I conceptualized and creative produced a lean three-part, social-first rap cypher featuring influential, yet unexpected voices from across the museum’s host city of Charleston, South Carolina.
Reach extended to over 4 million through organic shares, with positive cross-generational and cross-cultural brand sentiment reflected in comments across the series. The campaign not only kept the museum top-of-mind in the early honeymoon phase following grand opening, it also affirmed the museum’s mission to honor untold stories of the past alongside living history being made today.
SOCIAL COPY
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SELECTED COMMENTS
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“While [Communications Manager] was her title, Jessica was truly so much more. She was a trusted thought partner, creative strategist, and an integral part of bringing our vision to life. She has a rare ability to balance big-picture strategic thinking with flawless execution, all while bringing creativity, calm, and positivity to every challenge. She was an absolute dream teammate.”
NATACHA MCLEOD
Former Senior Director of Marketing
International African American Museum
International African American Museum - Special Exhibitions & New Programs Digital Content
Special exhibitions and programs are key drivers for reaching new audiences, growing repeat museum visits, and increasing new and renewed museum memberships.
In my role as Communications Manager at IAAM, I talent sourced and led production teams of videographers and photographers to capture special exhibition promotional content and edited short-form videos for real-time/quick-turnaround social media posting. These efforts grew awareness of ongoing museum engagement opportunities beyond the permanent collection.
WORK SAMPLES
“Ming Smith: Feeling the Future” Opening Night
“Creative Gathering” Installation BTS
“Creative Gathering” Opening Night
“Fletcher Williams III: When It Rains It Shines” Promotional Video
Launch of IAAM School Tours
International African American Museum x Mia Saine
When the Education Department took to task to help make complex historical content lively and resonant for the museum’s youth visitors, they decided to develop a self-guided student activity booklet for school groups touring the International African American Museum.
I joined the project as art director, developing the creative brief and sourcing award-winning, Memphis-based illustrator Mia Saine (they/them) to bring the booklet to life. Mia’s exceptional ability to capture the intended aesthetic and direction meant their illustrations brought instant clarity and energy to the project. The collaboration successfully demonstrated how thoughtful art direction can help transform “hard” educational content into an engaging and culturally meaningful resource for young learners.
International African American Museum x Hadiya Williams
When the museum’s curatorial team began planning for an upcoming exhibition, "re/Defined: Creative Expressions of Blackness from the Diaspora," I served as artistic liaison and referred acclaimed DC-based artist Hadiya Williams to lead exhibition design. Hadiya’s global/diasporic aesthetic and background in pattern-making and textiles made her a perfect selection for executing the creative vision for the exhibition.
International African American Museum
Grand Opening Commemorative T-shirt
To help mark the 23-years awaited grand opening of the International African American Museum, I art directed and designed a commemorative event t-shirt worn by museum staff and volunteers facilitating grand opening events across the city on July 27, 2023.
Governed by IAAM brand guidelines, the shirt depicts a minimalist line drawing of the oceanfront museum alongside text identifying the grand opening date and historically-significant location at Gadsden’s Wharf in Charleston.
International African American Museum
Digital Asset Library
To support ongoing print and digital marketing collateral development, content creation, and press/media readiness, I led creative direction efforts to position the museum in alignment with its mission for both internal and external stakeholders.
I planned, casted and directed on‑campus commercial shoots, and also coordinated and creative produced other routine and project-based brand photo and video shoots to grow a robust digital asset library.
“Jessica led within a very small marketing and communications team to make IAAM shine through various social campaigns, the creation of important brand assets for internal use, as well as supporting the entire institution with needs from copywriting, to signage needs to high quality video production. The depth of her work could hardly be explained—her passion for the work allowed the institution to gain invaluable strategic detail in the way the brand showed up everywhere. It is because of that IAAM went on to have successful programming, capture new audiences, and win various awards and acknowledgements. Jessica represents the highest level of creative work come alive.”
KEIONA EADY
Special Events & Rental Sales Manager
International African American Museum
