Premiere Party for Oxygen's Running Russell Simmons Reality Show

For the launch of new docu-series Running Russell Simmons, Oxygen Media enlisted Empire Entertainment to design and produce a party for 300 clients and friends of Russell Simmons at New York City’s newest hotspot Lavo. Empire worked closely with Oxygen to create an event that would provide access for their top clients to the highly exclusive celebrity party scene of entertainment and fashion mogul Russell Simmons. This goal was also coupled with seamlessly integrating the Oxygen and Running Russell Simmons brands within the event’s design. Taking cues from Russell’s well-known fondness for argyle patterns, Empire designed a green and yellow argyle print carpet for the press tent, which hosted Russell, his friends Nick Cannon, Tyson Beckford, and Al Sharpton, as well as models Petra Nemcova and Selita Ebanks, and many more. Outside on 58th Street, yellow Oxygen “O” projections on the sidewalk created a whimsical pathway leading guests to Lavo’s unmarked doorway.

Guests then descended into the subterranean nightclub through a mirror-paneled stairwell stunningly adorned with hundreds of yellow and silver Oxygen O’s bubbling upwards like effervescent champagne. Inside the party, celebrity DJ Cassidy kept the mood high with a mix of contemporary hip hop and classic tunes. Through Cassidy’s clever coaxing, legendary rap icon Rev Run – of Run DMC fame, and also Russell’s brother – took the mic and wowed the house with several of his iconic hits including “Walk This Way” and “It’s Like That.” An hour later, a second impromptu performance of “Shoop” and “Push it” by Pepa of Salt-n-Pepa, left guests feeling they had just experienced hip hop history. To further amplify the party atmosphere, Empire flanked the DJ booth with twin 10-ft LED video walls flooded with animated graphics and audio visualizations tied into the music. To enhance the adjoining VIP lounge, Empire built two shadowboxes into the corners, featuring professional dancers, backlit by green LED lights, creating the effect of sexy silhouettes grooving to the music. Throughout the evening, guests feasted on an entirely vegan selection of passed hors d’oeuvres and sweets, inspired by Russell's personal diet and devotion to animal activism. The customized menu surprised even the most skeptical of carnivores, many of whom remarked that the food was so good they didn't realize it was vegan.

To give party-goers further immersion into the event, guests were encouraged to tweet their experiences to Running Russell Simmons' twitter feed. These comments and shout-outs were displayed on plasmas throughout the space as well as on stage with the DJ. A photobooth was also on hand to capture stylish poses and handsome mugs of guests and celebrities, leaving them with printed photos they could take with them along with their memories of the engaging evening.Empire served as overall event producer and was responsible for technical production, event design, and signage design and production.

Empire is a leading producer of custom events and is a creative partner for companies seeking to deliver original and trendsetting events.