We are excited to announce this year's Hall of Fame Inductee, Ryan Ford. We honored Ryan on Wednesday, May 18th during Roosevelt Awards Night in the auditorium. For those who were not able to attend, we invite you watch Ryan's presentation:
As the President and Chief Creative Officer, Ryan Ford leads all creative and marketing campaigns across Cashmere’s diverse set of clients. He focuses on identifying and navigating the evolving dynamics between brands and culture. With over 20 years of industry experience, Ryan has led strategies and campaigns for globally recognized brands including Google, Instagram, Facebook, BMW, Taco Bell, Warner Media, Disney, AppleTV, adidas and more. Ryan continually pushes boundaries to push The Culture forward positively that defines new general market consumers. Under Ryan’s leadership, Cashmere has been recognized as a leading force within the creative industry and a recipient of multiple awards including: 2019 Cannes Lions Creative Award, The Clio Awards, AdColor, A100, named Ad Age’s Multicultural 2019 Agency of the Year and recognized on Ad Age’s 2020 A-List Agencies To Watch list and Ad Age’s 2021 A-List Standout Agencies. Prior to Cashmere Agency, Ryan served as Executive Editor at The Source, once dubbed as “hip-hop’s bible.” For nearly a decade, Ryan played a pivotal role in the construction and content of every issue and interviewed hundreds of revered musicians, executives, celebrities and politicians, including Jay Z, Kanye West, Snoop Dogg, Jamie Foxx, Queen Latifah, Diddy, Shaquille O’Neal, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Nas and OutKast to name a few.
Ryan holds a BA in Journalism from University of Iowa and a Masters of Arts in African-American Studies from University of California, Los Angeles. Ryan Ford has lent his voice as a thought leader and culture expert and appeared in a variety of publications, including Fast Company, AdAge, LA Times, Forbes and more. Ryan is currently on the Music Advisory Board of ADCOLOR, the premier organization dedicated to celebrating and promoting professionals of color and diversity in the creative industries and on the Advisory Board Member of The Marcus Graham Project.
A music enthusiast, Ryan enjoys all genres of great music, not just hip-hop. In his downtime, Ryan enjoys spending time with his wife and daughter, watching football, playing video games (his favorite being Madden NFL) and nerding out on anything related to Star Wars (specifically the Dark Side). In his prime, Ryan played football for the University of Kansas as an offensive guard and hails from Des Moines, Iowa.