Chinese Americans - language, foods, and dress - do not exist for Black Americans. In essence, the culture of generations of Black Americans became deeply rooted in American Culture. So when a trend originates in Black America and becomes popular and adopted by the masses, it easily becomes part of pop culture and no longer appears to be race specific. Given that many trends born out of Black Culture have eventually become popular American Culture - it can be easy to forget the origin and the importance of recognizing the unique "ingredients" that propelled that trend into the mainstream.

Race or culturally appropriate teams are still often the "big pink elephant" in the board room when marketers start talking about their urban strategies. Black culture is a significant link in the DNA of the urban lifestyle and that point must be recognized in order to truly understand what's at the core of the attitudes, opinions and behaviors of this group. I'm here to say that YES -you really need an agency that focuses on African Americans to effectively resonate with an urban lifestyle audience. It matters. Adopting an urban strategy won't make your brand 'Black" but a strategic urban strategy does begin with a smart team that does have African American relevance.