Ted Baker to champion British music with ‘Street Party Sessions’

British fashion and lifestyle retailer Ted Baker is collaborating with Eleven Studio to present an immersive, digital-first series of performances by British musicians Jungle, Joy Crookes, Little Simz, Bastille and Alicai Harley.

‘Street Party Sessions’ will champion British culture and heritage while bringing “people back together through music and fashion,” explains Ted Baker, as part of its wider initiative to support individuals across the music sector, from emerging talent to established artists and those behind the scenes.

The initiative aims to reimagine the classic street party and each ‘Street Party Sessions’ will feature unique sets built on a backdrop of film, colour, props and dance. Each set has been designed in collaboration with the artists to reference British cultural touchpoints that align with their personal or musical identity.

Filmed at London’s Printworks, each two-song session will present a “unique and unexpected” street party, from Jungle’s mysterious bus stop performance to Little Simz’ impromptu pier party.

As well as placing a spotlight on music, Ted Baker will also be showcasing its autumn/winter 2021 collection across a diverse cast of musicians and performers.

Ted Baker teams up with Eleven Studio to launch digital-driven music series

Jennifer Roebuck, chief customer officer at Ted Baker, said in a statement: “Street Party Sessions provides a strategic opportunity to occupy the cultural space in a way that we hope will change brand perceptions, engage new audiences and remind our loyal and brand-curious customers why they love Ted Baker.”

The ‘Street Party Sessions’ series will be broadcast across Ted Baker’s digital channels over five consecutive weeks starting on September 30 with Jungle: Sunrise Club.

This will be followed up with: Joy Crookes: Beats in Bloom on October 7; Little Simz: Breaking Waves on October 14; Bastille: Multi-story Mix on October 21; and Alicai Harley: Good Vibes Only on October 28.

Gail Dobinson, director of marketing at Ted Baker, said: “Music is such a powerful medium and has in many ways kept us sane and inspired throughout the last year. With Street Party Sessions, we want to celebrate that sentiment whilst bringing music to our audience in our own unique way, collaborating with homegrown talent to offer a truly immersive and digitally-driven experience across all our channels.”

Niamh Byrne, founder and Astrid Ferguson, director of Eleven Studio, added: “Having worked closely with artists for decades, it’s a natural transition for us at Eleven to develop a new studio to work with brands with our first project for Ted Baker.

“We are excited that brands are open to push new boundaries and take creative leaps and that ties in nicely to what we do. When you have the right combination of people, this is where the magic happens.”

In addition, Ted Baker’s ‘Street Party Sessions’ will be working with gender equality initiative Keychange, to support underrepresented UK artists and innovators. Through the sponsorship, Ted Baker will champion emerging women and gender minority artists and innovators from Keychange’s talent development programme, offering store space for live shows and allowing upcoming talent to share their stories with new, wider audiences.