Red, Blue, and Brady

25: Getting Fired Up

November 27, 2019 Brady
Red, Blue, and Brady
25: Getting Fired Up
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Show Notes Transcript

JJ and Cordy call Davida Hall, VP of Content at Studio 71 and founder and creator of The Lipstick Lobby...and the special Brady shade, "Fired Up!"The Lipstick Lobby is a social justice movement for change, progress and equality, that seeks to empower women through statement lip products to fight for the issues most critical to their lives. 

Today in this Minisode, we cover:

  • how the Lipstick Lobby came to be;
  • why corporations need to be looking into gun violence prevention;
  • how a little lipstick can lead to big change;
  • how it feels to do a photoshoot with activists and survivors;
  • and why "Fired Up" makes such a great gift. 

100% of all proceeds from the "Fired Up" lipstick go to supporting Brady! Right now, Red, Blue, and Brady listeners get 15% off with the code "Brady15." Go forth! Shop! Check out https://thelipsticklobby.com

Some of the links mentioned in this episode :
"
Fired Up Lipstick."
"
Kris Brown."

For more information on Brady, follow us on social
@Bradybuzz, or via our website at bradyunited.org. Full transcripts and bibliography available at bradyunited.org/podcast.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255. 
Music provided by: David “Drumcrazie” Curby
Special thanks to Hogan Lovells, for their longstanding legal support 
 ℗&©2019 Red, Blue, and Brady

Support the show

For more information on Brady, follow us on social media @Bradybuzz or visit our website at bradyunited.org.

Full transcripts and bibliographies of this episode are available at bradyunited.org/podcast.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255.
In a crisis? Text HOME to 741741 to connect with a Crisis Counselor 24/7.

Music provided by: David “Drumcrazie” Curby
Special thanks to Hogan Lovells for their long-standing legal support
℗&©2019 Red, Blue, and Brady

Brady music :

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JJ:

Hey everybody! This is the legal disclaimer, where we tell you that the views, thoughts, and opinions shared on this podcast belong solely to us, the people talking, and not necessarily Brady or Brady's affiliates. Please note that this podcast can contain discussions of violence that some people may find disturbing. It's okay. We find it disturbing too. But, luckily, today we're mostly talking about lipstick!

Brady music :

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JJ:

Welcome again to"Red, Blue, and Brady." We're so glad that you could be with us here again today for a very special minisode all about how corporations can make really phenomenal products and still support gun violence prevention all at the same time. Today I am joined by two fantastic ladies. I am joined by Cordy Galligan, my boss, affectionately known as Cordy, who is Brady's Vice President of Communications.

Cordy:

Hi everyone. Good to be back.

JJ:

I'm also joined by Davida Hall, the Vice President in charge of content at Studio 71. And so, Davida, I thought, can you start by introducing yourself to our audience?

Davida:

Yes. Uh, so I'm Davida Hall. I'm the VP of Lifestyle Content at Studio 71 and also the founder of the Lipstick Lobby.

JJ:

Which of course then immediately bears the question of, what is studio 71?

Davida:

Right? Okay. Well, Studio 71 is a global media company. We say global media company for creators. We represent talent, digital creators. We're the fastest growing digital network with 7 billion monthly views. I love to give that stat.

JJ:

I want those stats!

Cordy:

***laughs***

Davida:

We deal in the world of digital content is probation talent production. So our company is really engaged as sort of a modern media company with offices all over the world. So we touch, we touch a lot of different things here. And Lipstick Lobby was actually born out of this office, sort of an unlikely project for a media company like this, but actually gives great testament to our amazing leadership and all the people here who really wanted to make a difference with our, you know, with the voice that we have in the community.

JJ:

And so then Lipstick Lobby itself is, our listeners should already know what you guys do, but just in case they've been under a rock, you know---

Davida:

--just in case! Um, so we're a social justice beauty brand. Uh, we're a group of women who put our heads together to figure out how we could use beauty and the very visible sort of tangible strength that comes from a strong lipstick and put that all together to have our voices heard and help highlight important social justice issues of our day. And um, certainly with gun violence prevention, that is one of the most topical issues that we wanted to turn our attention to at the Lipstick Lobby. But we have, um, four shades in total and then all that really highlight a different female focused social justice focused organization.

Cordy:

So why the name"Fired Up" for the, the Brady Lipstick Lobby effort?

Davida:

That is a great question actually. Thank you for asking me that. So I'm obsessed with the names, uh, and the task of having to figure out how do we put a name to this. It's a pretty unusual sort of marriage. Think about it, the marriage of an idea as complex and sort of tragic as gun violence. And marrying that with something as simple and every day as a woman's lipstick. How do you put that together in a way that sort of is serious but also powerful, inspiring. It's a complicated task. And so when I set out to do this, I had a massive spreadsheet, like I do, having every name under the sun and we wanted something that maybe spoke to it being an orange red shade, of course, orange being the color of gun violence prevention. So that was important to have that in there. And we had all these possible names, my team and I, and then we went to the March in Washington DC and we decided, why are we naming this? This really should be something that's sort of of the people, if you will. Um, and we talked with a lot of the survivors, the students from Parkland. And actually there was a woman there who we were marching with and I said, maybe you could help me. Do any of these names resonate? Do they feel real? It shouldn't really be from the mind of a studio executive or someone on the outside of it. And as they looked at the list and they said, this one, Fired Up is perfect. And I said, why? And they said, because we're really ready to take action and we don't something to the effect of we didn't really want a name that had pity or sadness. We want a name that gets people fired up and ready, ready to get to work. And so with that that it was amazing. I said, perfect, thank you. Done, done with this. And it was settled.

Cordy:

Crowdsourcing at its finest!

JJ:

Right. And then so what was the response initially when you launched then fired up?

Davida:

Yeah, I mean the response was fabulous from sort of the press and the coverage on Vogue and Refinery and Pop Sugar to just having people around us say like, thank you for choosing gun violence as your next shade. I think to be honest, we could have gone in many directions having started with Planned Parenthood being very, very female focused. There was a question at one point as to would we end up picking gun violence as our next shade? And ultimately we felt it was a woman's issue. I mean it's an everybody, every person, every person issue. But also we wanted to take the point of view of this campaign through women. So if you look at our photography or you look at the website, you'll see there's a lot of mothers, there's teachers. Um, there's sisters. It really takes on sort of a, almost a feminine perspective even though there were a lot of men participating in male survivors of course. But it takes on the perspective of sort of this caring, nurturing, um, kind of mother general global mother figure type point of view. Um, because it's sort of just felt like it was time for us to care about the world and put a, almost like a feminine perspective on it and bring out the beauty and sort of the bittersweet aspects of, of, of the campaign. I'll just sum up to say the response was really, really positive and I think it was really, uh, like I mentioned earlier, a great challenge to marry such a strong and oftentimes tragic kind of sentiment with a really poppy, powerful commercial campaign where we wanted people to feel empowered rather than, you know, I, I can't, I can't stand up against gun violence. This is too big. This is too massive. Where do I find my voice here? And I think people were really excited that for those who needed a smaller, simpler way to participate, um, we offered that with"Fired Up."

Cordy:

You know, you mentioned the, uh, the photo shoot that you all did for the launch, which produced some amazing pictures that I encourage folks to go to lipstick lobby and view. Uh, we even use one of Kris' for her headshot on our website. It's"background checks" written in, Fired Up on her arms in"Fired Up." What was it like working with so many survivors? What was the mood in the studio that day?

Davida:

Wow. Well, I'll tell you, it was unlike any other photo shoot. It almost like brings tears just to kind of go back and think about all of these women, all of these survivors, this entire creative crew, people who had been working day and night, you know, flying students and families from Parkland into the airport in New York. Trying to just so much intensity of making this day happen, the anticipation and then being there with these real people and these real stories that we had two female photographers, Danielle St. Lauren and Kate Powers and I'll tell you, it's probably not every day that they show up on set crying and hugging each other. It was just so moving to see that we weren't, you know, not, we weren't just creating a campaign. We were really helping people tell their stories and in a way find a little bit of relief, find a little bit of beauty in their day. Just, you know, I mean it was, it was really beautiful. It was something I think I'll, I will always remember.

Cordy:

Yeah, I know Kris Brown, our president, who's been on the podcast before, it was with her, one of her younger daughters and they both came away just talking about what a powerful, empowering event it was when it could have been so reflective and internalized. But it wasn't--everyone fed off everyone's efforts and, and dedication to make it different and do something.

Davida:

Yeah, I mean, I think it was incredible just having that mix of people. It was, the campaign really was sparked by, um, you know, the students of Marjorie Stoneman Douglas and what was going on in Parkland, Florida. But really the focus of the campaign was to show that gun violence doesn't just happen in any one media moment. So we really cold together a timespan of gun violence. And so when you have these young, uh, teenagers having an opportunity to speak with somebody from, you know, Columbine, that happens so many years ago to speak with someone who experienced gun violence just off the streets. We had somebody from the Orlando Pulse nightclub. We had Sandy Hook elementary. We had from teenagers to 50 year olds who all personally experienced gun violence and were in this room together. Um, yeah, it was really, really powerful. And I think, like you said, having the experience of daughters, there was a few couples of mothers and daughters and to have that, you know, to have that time to have that sort of solemn moment to be taking these documentary photos with your mother. It's, it's really, um, intense and beautiful also.

JJ:

And I think very different from how maybe most corporations had previously interacted gun violence. I think a lot of businesses don't even want to touch something that's so complex and so maybe difficult for people to get, you know, it's a hard thing to get a quick little media package around. Why do you think more and more corporations now are joining and fighting for gun violence prevention?

Davida:

Yeah, I mean, that's a good question. It's, it's almost like how could they not be right? When you look at the statistics and you guys know better than anyone, um, something like 310 people shot in the U S every day. And by the way, those can be people shot at work. And so as a corporation, as an employer, you kind of have to have the onus to take care of the people that work with you and for you and keep our communities safe. And so to me it's like, so not a political issue. I can understand. While I may not appreciate, I can understand why a lot of corporations don't get involved in more political leaning issues. But I will say when it has to do with, you know, your general safety and being able to stay alive during the day, it seems like a basic, fundamental, basic. Every person should be uh, attached to this cause and every person should find a way to keep our families and our loved ones safe. Um, to me, I'm, I'm obviously so entrenched in this community now, but it's such a, such a no brainer and such an easy way for people to find something to rally around that really isn't, you know, to me it's not controversial if you take all the kind of silly political stuff aside, it's about basic, about basic human life. So for us it was, it was a, it was a no brainer and continues to be one of the most profound campaigns, um, we've ever worked on. So, yeah.

Cordy:

I know when you look at the manufacturer selling and transportation of guns, it's a complicated supply chain that really touches a lot of corporate America, uh, retailers, banks, shippers. Are you seeing or hearing anything about business people recognizing that vast chain and wanting to take part in it?

Davida:

Yeah, I mean, for us the focus is really our message and our ingredient story. I think it's amazing that other brands and manufacturers are coming on board to do their part. I mean, even just in like, you know, your community of like exporting than people really big players out there who've made a conscious choice to, um, to support the work that you guys are doing on the ground floor. For us, it's like I said, really about the message, you know, asking people to really wear a lipstick, that, that speaks to their values and speaks a loud message out in the world. It's about the ingredient story, um, that were vegan, cruelty-free made in the U S I don't think we touched on this, but 100% of the net profits from the sale of the lipstick go to the Brady Center. So it is 100% in its entirety, a product that speaks volumes to the values that we have. It's not about making money, it's not about marketing, it's about saying, you know, where, where your voice to the world and um, support the good work that Brady Center is doing. So for us, that's really, you know, where, where we focus versus kind of the supply chain stuff.

Cordy:

Well we're glad you do. And for our listeners that might not know, the Brady Center is the nonprofit arm of what Brady does. It's the educational arm, the getting the message into communities about what people can do to end gun violence. So it's, it's hugely critical. Uh, it also helps fund our legal work where we represent people that have been impacted by gun violence and, and allows us to do that pro bono. So your, your purchase of something that's as wonderful and unique and environmentally appropriate as a fired up through the Lipstick Lobby just continues to do good down the chain.

JJ:

And it helps that the lipstick is really pretty, you know, just on a personal aesthetic point, like, you know, it doesn't hurt that it's, it's, it's lovely. But so what I, what I'm hearing is sort of that the Lipstick Lobby can really help gun violence prevention and can help people shop responsibly just by sort of existing, by presenting this model in which businesses can make a product that benefits them in terms of getting their name out there and makes people happy to be working in their field, but also that can give people a product that educates them.

Davida:

Yeah. Thank you for that. And look, there's so many places where you can shop and there's so many choices when it comes to something as small and maybe basic as a lipstick. And so look, next time you're out there thinking, Oh, where do I get a beautiful shade? Or you can go to any Mac counter and Nordstrom's or Macy's or Barney's or online or wherever you shop and all those choices are fine. We're not pooh-poohing other choices. But if you're going to spend, you know, 20 to$40 on a lipstick somewhere, you might as well buy a high quality one that's made well and has a deep message to it. And it's really connected to helping people. So that's, you know, that's our thought and we're, we're really excited about sort of being out there with other consumer choices because we feel like we stand up just like the rest of them. And we don't honestly don't really feel like there's any sacrifice. You know, a lot of times when there's a a hundred percent net profit driven brand and it feels like it's solely about the message or solely about the charity aspect. Do you feel like, Oh, I'm going to get some crappy water bottle for sure, but we've put a lot of time and effort into making something that feels, you know, that looks and feels just as good as the message behind it.

Cordy:

Yeah, exactly. A high quality product that actually helps change our world. That's the best that you could ask for.

JJ:

And see, I like that it's a little sneaky because in a lot of offices or schools there's rules on maybe saying wearing like messaged shirts or branded items. Whereas you wear a really nice lipstick, people ask you where you got it. If you can give you a quick little elevator pitch it gives, it gives you a lot more flexibility in places where otherwise you can't sort of show what you're representing or what you're for. It's like that. That's cool. I like it.

Cordy:

It's sneaky and so is our timing of this podcast because we're going in planned giving to stay and and you saved all that money from black Friday and cyber Monday and you're looking at your list and here is just this range of fabulous, beautiful products from lipstick lobby, all of them going to charities that are really making a difference. So Davida, I don't know, what would you ask people to do on giving Tuesday?

Davida:

Oh well you took the words right out of my mouth. I can't even tell you. This is such a great holiday product. We really do well. Um, during the November, December sort of holiday shopping time because it's a gift that gives back and like now more than ever I think people are really looking for a meaningful, impactful and a unique gift to get a friend, a mother, sister, whatever it may be. All of our pieces are hand design so you'll see the packaging is really beautiful. It's a really nice gift and also makes a really cool collector's item. We commission young female artists to do all the original artwork on our boxes. This one for Brady has, I know you guys can't look at it, but it's right in front of me. I'm staring at the box and it's, it's beautiful. It has the orange color woven in for gun violence at has a faces of women with a dove sort of resting on the top of the woman's face who does for peace obviously. So it's really beautiful and really just a nice gift and also an affordable gift, right? You're going to go spend some money on your friends and family in$19 lipstick that gives back and looks beautiful on your desk or on your vanity is a really fun thing and a really unique you have to share. If you go to the site of the lipsticklobby.com and you use the code Brady 15, that's Brady one five, we're going to do 15% off to really encourage you guys to get involved, get your beautiful lipstick. Um, and that will be a limited time during the holiday season.

JJ:

And I mean I know that I'm already buying it for my aunties. I would like gifts done. Just pack up. Decide what I'm going to get, especially cause it comes in these little cute, it's a cute box. You don't even have to wrap it.

Cordy:

It's very eco-friendly, checks all the boxes, you know, vegan animal, no animal testing. Who could ask for anything more?

JJ:

A nd you know, you're already g oing t o have an awkward family conversation about gun violence prevention over the dinner table. Why not just preempt it with fun gifts for--

Davida:

Makes it easier, right? Okay, let's get into it. But here's a lipstick a nd we can talk.

JJ:

I think it makes it easier. So for, so for Studio 71 a nd the Lipstick Lobby, what's, what's next? What's coming up?

Davida:

Oh, I'm not quite ready to reveal. I will say that as you all know, we're getting into an important sort of election time coming up in 2020 so we are hoping to do something around um, around that. Maybe I'll just leave it, leave it at that a little bit right now until I'm able to reveal. But something, something for 2020 that's going to have a really big impact, far reach and as universal as possible. So little clue, little clue around there to get you guys thinking. But we'll still have our four signature shades. We have t-shirts, we have tote bags, we have other merchandize now that we're really trying to also get out there so people can recognize our brand more, more fun to be had more work to be done where we're certainly just getting started the way I see it.

Cordy:

So, you just alluded to what the next shade might be. Any idea about timing so folks can check back to the website and look for it?

Davida:

Yeah, I'd say maybe. Um, end of January, February, start to look for some clues and definitely follow the Lipstick Lobby on social media. On Instagram, we're at the Lipstick:obby and little clues that should be, it should be left on an Instagram trail for you guys to figure it out.

JJ:

And we're going to link, obviously everybody, if you go to Brady united.org/podcast if you go to at Brady buzz, we're going to have so many links back and forth between ourselves and Lipstick Lobby. So you should have no problem finding it.

Cordy:

A love fest!

JJ:

It's really, well, especially if it's going into February. But also, you know, after, so let's say you're like me, you've gone online, you've bought 15 fabulous lipsticks to send to all of your family, big Catholic family, lots of women. All right? You sent all your lipsticks, you're broke, you still want more lipstick from lipstick lobby.

Cordy:

Wow.

Davida:

Well, we're offering a chance to win some lipsticks from lipstick lobby, which means you could get them for free just by sending a message to our Instagram account at Brady buzz with a photo and a caption telling us which podcast episode got them fired up about gun violence prevention and why. N ote the whole"fired up" c ause that's the lipstick color. It's like this is my job.

JJ:

I'm just, I'm so happy about this. It's, it's really nice to see like an ethical product that people can buy and show their support with. And that's long-lasting too. It's not like you said a crappy water bottle.

Cordy:

It's going to fall apart over t-shirt where you pull a thread and it all will--

JJ:

And then also that is you're worried, then if you're like so many of us, we're worried about a lot of stuff, right? We want things that are environmentally sustainable and it's all in one package. So, and thank you Davida so much for coming on and thank you to the Lipstick Lobby for existing. Thank you for helping to create it and thank you to Studio 71 for supporting it.

Davida:

Ah, you're so welcome. Thank you guys. Really, truly Brady is amazing, and holds such a special place in my heart, and you guys are really every day on the ground floor doing the hard work. Um, so thank you guys for everything you do for us, for our country, for gun violence prevention.

JJ:

Thanks Davida!

Cordy:

Thanks.

JJ:

Let's all go get fired up!Thanks for listening and hopefully buying as always, Brady's lifesaving work in congress, the courts, and communities across the country is made possible thanks to you. For more information on Brady or how to get involved in the fight against gun violence, please review and subscribe to this podcast. Get in touch with us at bradyunited.org or find us on social@ bradybuzz. Be brave and remember, take action, not sides.

Brady music :

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Disclaimer::

℗&©2019 Red, Blue, and Brady