PROGRAM OVERVIEW
Optional Add-On Day | Thursday, June 19, 2025
Downtown Minneapolis
SoBD Meet & Greets
Pimento Jamaican Kitchen & Rum Bar
Come out early and meet and greet. Get acquainted and become part of the burgeoning community actively working to bring about the change we want to see.
SoBD Giants Exhibit Tour
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Join us for an exclusive tour of Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys
Organized by the Brooklyn Museum, Giants highlights nearly 100 significant works by Black diasporic artists, including Gordon Parks, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Lorna Simpson, Amy Sherald, and more. The exhibition reflects the Deans’ passion for supporting established and emerging artists while fostering important dialogues about art, culture, and identity.
SoBD Celebrates Juneteenth @ MIA
Minneapolis Institute of Art
SoBD is excited to be in the house to support MIA’s interactive and multidisciplinary 2025 Juneteenth program. Celebrate Juneteenth with Black creatives from the Twin Cities and beyond. Expect music from LAAMAR, community quilting, and West Indies Soul Food.
FRIDAY June 20, 2025
Registration Opens + Program Pregame
Guests will receive their welcome packets and learn more about their unique program experience. Guests will also be able to explore some of our open exhibits and activations before the kickoff of the official program. Light refreshments will be available.
Program Kickoff + Musical Prelude
Mister Drake aka The Mind of Milan
Jasmine Arielle Barnes
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Welcome & Intention Setting
Experiential Activations
Get ready to engage with designers and creatives from across Minneapolis and beyond as they present a slate of curated social learning experiences aimed at sharing knowledge, expanding capabilities, and building community.
Select three:
Black Centered Design with Jessica Thompson & Karen Bauer
Product Design with Dr. D’Wayne Edwards and Haydee Franco
Getting Your Product Ready for Big Box Selling
Pathway to Retail: Mass Retail Journey (Part 1)
Success on Shelf: Build a Sound Strategy (Part 2)
Inside the Hairball: Navigating Design in Corporate Environments with Tysonn Betts
Chew + Chat | Connect + Chill
At SoBD we are intentional about building community. That’s why we’re designing a lunch experience to help SoBD attendees connect and begin cultivating relationships. Attendees can opt-in to a host of curated activities, and, of course, eat!
R&B Day Party + Picnic
Outdoor Rec Room
Wellness | Quiet Room
Restorative Stretch Session
Student Project Showcase
Afternoon Main Stage Sessions
SoBD’s afternoon program brings together a collection of designers, academics, thought leaders, industry insiders together to discuss the current cultural moment and the many challenges and opportunities that come with it. Together we will explore the progress we’ve made and lost, the necessity of meeting this moment courageously, and how we can build a robust community of support that can keep us connected and inspired through these uncertain times.
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6ft - 7ft - 8ft
SoBD welcomes this curated selection of creatives, thought leaders, and change-makers to the stage for this short talk series with a SoBD twist. Each presenter has 6, 7 or 8 minutes to present their idea accompanied by a musical timekeeper.
Roger Cummings
Cameron P. Downey
Paul Bauknight
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In Conversation: A Moderated Panel Discussion
SoBD is excited to bring this moderated conversation on our current cultural moment to the fore. We aim to cultivate deeper curiosity and understanding, foster bridge-building, and enable more inclusive and collaborative approaches to help us make the best of these uncertain times.
Tysonn Betts
Omari Souza
Tish Jones
James Burrows
Chanda Smith-Baker, Moderator
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Keynote Experience: Stories that Connect Us
With storytelling as our throughline, speakers in our Keynote Experience will invite the audience to consider where we are, where we’ve been, and how to face the future with clarity, positivity, and resolve.
Gees Bend Quilting Collective: Delia Pettway Thibodeaux, Mary Margaret Pettway, Stella Mae Pettway
Cornel Beard
Dara Beevas
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SoBD Group Photo
Join us for this SoBD program tradition! Commemorate the program and create an archive of our growing SoBD community.
Musical Postlude + Recessional
Mister Drake aka The Mind of Milan
Jasmine Arielle Barnes
SoBD Evening Social
Pimento On The Lake
Unwind at the lake with us! Come early to enjoy some complimentary light bites, listen to some tunes, and connect more deeply with other members of our SoBD community.