About

Sucka Free Derby Day is an annual cultural celebration in San Francisco reclaiming Kentucky Derby Day as a moment of Black excellence — honoring the first jockeys who were Black and won the first 15 Kentucky Derbies—then were systematically erased from the sport's history. What started as a community gathering became a sold-out cultural event powered by the kind of creative strategy that makes people feel something.

The Bust Down

Challenge

The untold stories of Kentucky's first jockeys—13 of the first 15 Derby winners were Black jockeys—needed care and reimagination. Transform Kentucky Derby Day into an inclusive celebration honoring Black jockey heritage while maintaining broad appeal—a project that required both historical reverence and contemporary courage.
‍

Approach

We developed a cultural positioning strategy and integrated marketing campaign that sold out a heritage event while increasing brand engagement. Our research revealed a gap between historical significance and contemporary cultural representation. From the signature rose motif reimagined in bold red graphics to historical photography integration, we crafted artwork that felt both premium and accessible.  

Results

38% increase in online brand interactions
100% event capacity (sold out)
Significant RSVP surge attributed to creative campaign
Enhanced cultural awareness of Black jockey legacy

Branded
Assets

Finding historical images to capture the authenticity and depth of each jockey's story was an obstacle course. We looked deep into archives that had small repositories of images. Once we sourced the right photos, we hit the ground running and produced rich assets alongside compressed timelines.

Content
Strategy

With assets approved and a clear direction based on the artist’s vision, we proceeded with producing content for both digital, social and print specimens of the community to share. We set our sights on creating content that felt more like “artwork”, with each subject owning their own moment—both in history and in the present.