The Nextdoor 100 Neighbor Awards
Nextdoor, the neighborhood social network, recognized some of their super amazing, never-not-there-when-you-need-them neighbors from across the country with a nationwide awards program called “The Nextdoor 100”.
After almost 50,000 nominations were submitted, a panel of celebrity judges selected 100 winners from across the country. Judges included singer Tim McGraw, FIFA Women's World Cup champion Brandi Chastain, comedian Cedric the Entertainer, President of Gannett Maribel Perez Wadsworth, Editor-in-Chief of Woman's Day Meaghan Murphy, Founder of Operation HOPE John Hope Bryant and CEO at URL Media S. Mitra Kalita. To celebrate the initiative and bring neighbors together in real life to promote kindness, Nextdoor partnered with Empire to produce three, simultaneous Nextdoor 100 Block Parties across America - in Atlanta, GA; Indianapolis, IN; and Sacramento, CA.
Each free and open to the public event featured hyper-local hosts, multiple vendors and small businesses, food trucks, arts & crafts, family-friendly activities, live music, and award ceremonies to honor finalists in each market for their acts of kindness.
In Atlanta, the stage program was led by Heather Catlin, local host and reporter from WSB-TV, and featured performances by Atlanta native and American Idol contestant Andrew Weaver, hip-hop artist Svnday, an all-female a cappella group Octave Atlanta and music spun by Atlanta-based DJ Wally Sparks.
In Sacramento, the host was Mark S. Allen, a local celebrity and anchor at ABC10 and the DJ throughout the day was Eddie Z who is the former in-game DJ for the Sacramento Kings. There were also performances by Ryan Hernandez & Friends, a rock band whose members are all Sacramento natives; Consci8us, a rapper and youth educator; and The Gold Souls, a soul & funk band based in Sacramento.
In Indianapolis, the day was led by local host, reporter Rashika Jaipuriar from IndyStar. Throughout the day Indianapolis-based DJ B-Rad spun hits that got the crowd dancing all afternoon. There were also performances from Indianapolis natives including soul artist Bashiri Asad and soulful singer / songwriter The Girl Called BOOKS.
Empire worked closely with the Nextdoor team as well as other creative and production partners from the initial phases of concept development through final execution. Among other roles, Empire was responsible for site selection & contracting, tenting, staging and technical production, signage and branding, staffing, security, talent contracting, stage management and the creation of media and promotional content.
Empire is extremely thankful to have been a part of these celebrations and congratulates all the Super Amazing neighbors who were honored.
Visit https://thenextdoor100.com to learn more.
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
