The murder of George Floyd in 2020 ignited a global movement that demanded equality and an end to systemic racism. It quickly led to conversations about the need for more representation for people of color within the creative and marketing industries. Their contributions have driven the creative community forward for decades, yet their perspectives remained massively underrepresented in the larger conversation.

Inspired by the movement, Outside Voice was created to amplify the voices of BIPOC creative professionals.

Outside Voice was created to amplify the voices of BIPOC creative professionals. It was produced by hacking Spotify’s annotated playlists, which feature spoken-word tracks alongside music (similar to director's commentary.) This was the first time the annotation feature was used for anyone other than musicians on Spotify. Recorded like a podcast, but edited so only their voices are heard, Outside Voice passes the mic to leaders within the creative industry who tell their stories through the power of audio, with original playlists featuring their favorite music and their own words.

Outside Voice features curators from around the world that work across various creative industries (advertising, visual art, fashion, film, and more). They've led marketing for brands such as Nike, Instagram and VICE, and their work has been featured in The Tribeca Film Festival, HBO, Comedy Central, and The Atlantic.

Following a live panel at the Spotify beach at Cannes, Outside Voice content saw a lift in engagement across all Spotify Advertising social platforms, including a 97% increase in engagement on Facebook and a 417% increase on Twitter.