#312Soul: An Unfinished Retrospective of Chicago’s Black Music History by OKRP

Throughout the month of February – in celebration of Black History Month and in conjunction with 2020 being named the 'Year of Chicago Music' – Chicago agency O’Keefe Reinhard & Paul (OKRP) will promote Chicago’s Black Music History from 1955 through 1990 with a four-week, four-part multimedia online showcase that includes original video essays, interviews, playlists, artifacts and more.

While the story of Chicago’s Blues scene has already been well-documented, this initiative reveals another side to Chicago’s music history that’s just as interesting and influential, if not as celebrated and understood.

OKRP in partnership with Vince Lawrence, a Chicago music impresario and founder of Slang Music Group, have launched '#312Soul: An Unfinished Retrospective of Chicago’s Black Music History.' This new series will share the untold stories and introduce the unsung stars who lived through each exciting era from Horns to House, Soul to Straight-up Funk.

“Music is at the heart of our best work. Music inspires how we shape stories for brands - the jingles we write for clients, the range of genres we tap into for online video and network commercials, and even the playlists we curate for the agency,” explained Matt Reinhard, co-founder and chief product officer at OKRP. “We partnered with Vince Lawrence to help bring together Chicago’s living music legends, providing a digital stage to share their untold stories.”

#312Soul takes one through the evolution of music in Chicago by celebrating some of its biggest influencers from the break-out sounds of the Blues and beyond. Among the first video sessions conducted by Lawrence is a conversation with Grammy Hall of Fame artist Gene Chandler who explains how he and his band created the 1962 number-one hit 'Duke of Earl' during a warm-up exercise. Other features include a 'Soulstress Spotlight' on the women who drove Chicago music, from The Opals to Chaka Khan, and 'Soul Samples' that link old-school hits to new-school chart toppers: Etta James to Avicii, and the Chi-Lites to Beyoncé.