Bold Spirits, Rise
Brand Partnership · Music Strategy · Agency Collaboration
A new chapter for DeLeón needed more than a new look. It needed somewhere to go.
Partner
Project
After Diageo took full ownership of DeLeón in 2024, the brand entered a new chapter. Translation was brought in to reposition DeLeón around aspiration, community and bold self-expression — creating Bold Spirits, Rise, a platform designed to rebuild cultural relevance and champion a new generation of bold creatives.
Diageo’s music and creator partner, UnitedMasters, had an opportunity to help extend that platform beyond the campaign itself — connecting the new brand direction to music, emerging talent and the broader independent-artist ecosystem.
DeLeón relaunched through Bold Spirits, Rise, a music-led brand platform built around movement, ambition, community and creative self-expression. The platform later expanded from brand campaign into artist opportunity through the Opening Acts Pledge, providing emerging DJs with distribution access, mentorship, studio time and performance opportunities.
My Role
- Represented UnitedMasters across the Diageo × Translation partnership, bringing music, artist and cultural context into the development of Bold Spirits, Rise
- Helped connect the new brand platform to UnitedMasters’ broader music ecosystem and emerging-artist opportunities
- Extended the platform into artist-facing programming through the Opening Acts Pledge, connecting emerging DJs to distribution, mentorship, studio time and performance opportunities
- Worked across brand, agency, artist and partnership teams to carry the platform from creative positioning into music and talent activation
Collaborative — Translation led the brand platform and creative; I helped extend it into music, artist programming and the broader UnitedMasters partnership.