If you’ve been staving off boredom by dancing the night (and maybe even day) away to an array of amazing DJ sets on Instagram Live of late, and looking for a local version of the virtual party, you’ll love this.
ChooseATL has partnered with a trio of Atlanta tastemakers to help the tech community celebrate this year’s 404 Day with a special set from legendary artist and producer Jermaine Dupri this Saturday, April 4.
ChooseATL teamed up with social media channel Butter.ATL, creative consultancy Atlanta Influences Everything and retail concept FLR-PLN, to plan what was initially a live event but had to make a very timely pivot to Instagram Live due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B-dQEk8JDld/
Despite the move, the ultimate goal remains the same: to celebrate Atlanta in conjunction with some of the city’s well-known brands and artists and shine a light on a tech hub gaining increasing national prominence.
“These [partners] are cultural players in the market,” says Choose ATL and Metro Atlanta Chamber senior director of PR and programs Ashley Tanks. “We’ve already partnered with them and looked for ways to collaborate. It was just a natural fit and we felt like it would be really great to bring our audiences together to help celebrate and lift up the culture of Atlanta.”
“In recent years, we’re seeing that the world, quite honestly, is paying more attention to Atlanta, as an up-and-coming tech hub,” Tanks adds.
“In general, we think that this is just the right moment for the technology industry here in Atlanta, particularly in this time, when we are all at home and utilizing technology in so many different and creative new ways. We felt like we can utilize some of the tech tools that are out there to really showcase how technology can bring everyone together.”
In the spirit of camaraderie, partygoers are encouraged to share everything they love about the city by using the hashtag #404Day and tagging @ChooseATL on social media throughout the day. And the event’s hosts are particularly excited to feature someone who has served as an ambassador for the city for so long.
“JD, he loves Atlanta,” Tanks says. “When we shared that we wanted to do something for the community to bring everybody together, he was excited to join on. Everyone is looking for an opportunity to kind of give back and connect and I think that he felt the same way.”
At 4pm Saturday, many eyes will turn to Atlanta (and Dupri’s Instagram page) for a much-needed distraction from the COVID-19 crisis – and some believe that distraction will show people both in and outside Atlanta what makes the city special.
“If you didn’t think it was real yet, for whatever reason, you’re definitely going to figure it out, says Butter.ATL executive director Brandon Butler. “We believe that culture is our number one export and our culture is going to be on display for the entire world to see this weekend.”
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