In Conversation with Tom Burrell & McGhee Williams Osse

Held on the first day of the Lake FX Chicago Summit & Expo in the Claudia Cassidy Theater at the Chicago Cultural Center, an intimate conversation took place with marketing pioneer and founder of Burrell Communications, Tom Burrell and Co-CEO of Burrell Communications, McGhee Williams Osse. The panel discussion, introduced by Kris D. WIlliams, Founder and CEO of FAME Enterprises and moderated by Robin Robinson of WVON/WBBM, offered insight into the similarities and differences of multicultural advertising past and present.

The seasoned executives offered a close look at the milestones of Burrell with clients including McDonalds, and the company’s impact on the African American advertising industry through the years. In a room of new and old-school marketing professionals, creative freelancers and diverse bloggers, the panel parallelled history fueled by examples such as the Black Power Movement in the1960s and #BlackLivesMatter movement today. We also took a peek into current digital campaigns such as the Burrell’s “Black Is Human” Campaign. The evolution of digital media also themed the conversation, which left the audience left with their own opinion of where the state of African Americans in the media and advertising will be in the future.

MADE by Chelsey Little