00:00I get it. Welcome out to Essence Festival of Culture right here with Disney. Round of applause,
00:08please. Now, you know, we see a lot of things that happen at the parks, right? We have a good time
00:14when we go to the parks, but let's take a peek behind the scenes and take it to the C-suite,
00:19to that executive level. Now, we have women who are in power there who refuse to dim their lights,
00:26who continuously spread joy and let their lights shine. We're going to welcome to our stage,
00:32Disney executives, Sybil Crump and Sivan Davis. Come on, ladies.
00:48Let me see you strut, ladies. Come on now. Make that power walk to the boardroom. Hey, hey, hey.
00:56We love it. We love it. Welcome out, Sybil. Thank you. Thank you for having us. Welcome,
01:02Sybil. Thank you. All right. So it is just an amazing thing to see women represented for such
01:10a national major company like that. And great to have you on the Essence stage today. Can you tell
01:15us a little bit about what you do, your titles and all of the responsibilities that you have?
01:20Because we don't see this behind the scenes. We just come to the park and think that it all works,
01:24but you guys are there to handle business. Absolutely. So I am Sybil Crump, the vice
01:28president of marketing and commercial strategy for the Disneyland Resort. Yes. Oh, you have a team.
01:35Wait a minute. That's right. I didn't know you had your own cheering squad. We came to play.
01:40Disneyland Resort is the happiest place on earth, located in California. And, you know,
01:44marketing is actually just the business of letting people know about your product. Right. And
01:48commercialization is how we make money and we like to make money. I know. That's right.
01:52And what about you, Syvonne? Well, thank you, Deja. Um, you know,
01:56my name is Syvonne Davis, vice president of marketing strategy at Walt Disney World Resort in
02:01Orlando, Florida. Yes, yes, yes. Um, but you know, you know, building on Sybil's comment,
02:07I believe my real title should be Walt Disney World welcoming chair. Really? Uh, and it's simply
02:15because my team and I, we're really focused on creating and extending the invitation.
02:21It's like advertising. We're inviting you to come and enjoy the experiences and then share your joy.
02:29And what does it mean for us to celebrate soulfully? Well, you know, I think that, um,
02:35celebrate soulfully is an intentional invitation. And it more importantly, it was created for us by us.
02:41And I will tell you it was created by this beautiful woman to my left. So I think no one would be better
02:46to tell you about it than Syvonne. Go ahead, girl. I am honored to work with Ms. Crum is just amazing.
02:57She is, um, one of the people who has helped create the pathway for things like celebrate
03:02soulfully to come into be. So I'm going to start there and just give that right back to you.
03:06Oh, I'm also going to give it to some of the folks in the audience. I know we were mindful of time,
03:13but I also believe in giving respect and acknowledgement where it's due. And so when I
03:18see people like Jill Astorino right there in the pink in the front, and I see others on the team,
03:24uh, from both the Disneyland and Walt Disney world teams want to take the moment to give them a shout
03:28out, but celebrate soulfully is exactly that. It's about celebrating, uh, black culture, black joy,
03:35black heritage, uplifting and showcasing a great talent because ultimately people want to be seen
03:42and people want to feel seen. And that's what celebrate soulfully is at the heart all about.
03:47Love it. And so what does that look like that celebration at Disneyland resorts?
03:51So at Disneyland, it's about uplifting musical celebrations and it's during times that are really
03:56important for us. Um, it's about, you know, you think about those milestone moments, whether it's
04:00black history month, you think about black music month in June, but it's also throughout the entire
04:06year, we are celebrating our culture. We're celebrating our heritage. We're celebrating our
04:10music. We're celebrating our legacy. Um, in fact, uh, Walt Disney Imagineering did something really
04:16special with the Lincoln theater. Um, we have a special exhibit that honors the legacy of, um,
04:22Frederick Douglass. And what's really great about that exhibit is that we know that Frederick Douglass was
04:28instrumental in helping to free enslaved people. Wow. And so we partnered with the national,
04:34it was national geographic to tell that story in a really compelling way. And so what we love about
04:39it is that it helps every visitor that comes to Disneyland that comes in to see that exhibit
04:44to understand the true story of how Frederick Douglass really worked with Abraham Lincoln as a
04:50champion of change to change the course of American history. And in fact, I'd love to show you a bit of
04:55a clip because it's really powerful. Yeah, let's do it. Watch the screens. Frederick Douglass,
05:02he never had a pair of pants or shoes until he was about six or seven years old. He would sleep
05:07head first in an old corn sack with his feet hanging out on cold winter nights to try and keep himself
05:13warm. Teaching the enslaved to read was illegal. So young Frederick secretly traded what little food he had
05:21in exchange for reading lessons. It just shows how much he understood how education was going to be
05:28his key to freedom. And a key to freedom it was. At the age of 20, Douglass made a daring escape and went north,
05:37settling in Massachusetts. There he soared. From orator, the one cannot be truly free while the other is a slave.
05:47To newspaper editor. Truth is of no color. And best-selling author. From that moment,
05:55I understood the pathway from slavery to freedom. He was the central voice of the abolitionist movement.
06:02He had this natural gift for communication. He was eloquent. He was charismatic.
06:07There wasn't a venue, a building large enough to hold people who wanted to hear him.
06:17Wow, that's impactful. That's impactful. Now, Sivan, how does that celebration go for you at Disney World?
06:27You know, Deja, when Celebrate Soulfully started at Walt Disney World about four years ago now,
06:34and it was all about reflecting joy, reflecting joy in the people, reflecting joy in the culture,
06:42really reflecting the most magical place on earth. You know, as I think about how it has grown over the
06:48last nearly four years, it's grown to include not only black talent in the community, but also black talent
06:56in our employees who we call cast. It's spotlighting great talent like our black chefs through our
07:05Cooking with Soul program, which is all about making sure you know where to find the best collard greens
07:11at Walt Disney World, no matter where you are. Wait, wait, wait, wait. Yes, that's important.
07:14Yes. Pause for a second. Did you say collard greens?
07:17Collard greens, jumbo. And Walt Disney World.
07:19Walt Disney World. Who would have thunk, right? I love it. I love it.
07:23All right. Now, since we have all of this celebration going on and we're talking about joy,
07:27audience members, we have a little surprise. Who loves surprises?
07:32Listen, some people think surprises are just for the little kiddos.
07:35Baby. No, no, no, no. So since you're spending time with us today, you got to be Disney fans.
07:41Sybil, Syvonne, I want each of you to come over here and pick a number from our raffle.
07:46We're gonna spin it around. Pick a number, pick a number, any number. All right, we'll spin it again.
07:57Okay. Uh-oh. All right. So, all the folks out there, you have a number on your chair.
08:07So, get ready. Get ready. Let's read that number. Let's go. Sybil, what you got?
08:14I've got 156. Number 156. Stay in your own seats.
08:22Where? 156. 156. Oh, my gosh. Okay, 156. See the people with the white, uh, gloved hand?
08:28The Mickey hand right there. They'll help you out. And next? 264. 264. Number 264.
08:39Anybody has that number. Anybody. Nobody has that one. Okay, let's spin again. Come on.
08:48Big money. Big money. Here we go.
08:4991. 91. Number 91. Oh, there you go. Right there. We have a winner. All right, come on over here.
09:05See them waving. Congratulations. The white Mickey glove. All right. Now, have a seat, ladies. I'm not
09:10letting you go yet. I want to talk to you more about being an executive. How has it been, and how have you
09:16been able to use this influence, your seat at the table, as they say, Sybil? Well, I think it's
09:23about representing the voices of people who can't be in the room. And so, for me, it's the opportunity
09:28to create product that is created for us. Right. It's the opportunity to influence decisions that are
09:34important to people who look like me. It's the opportunity to create product for families that
09:40reflect my own family and my own experiences. I've been coming to the parks since I was born.
09:46Again, my family is from South Florida. All right. So, I came to Walt Disney World as a kid,
09:51and most black families don't have that experience. And so, to be able to come as a child and to see
09:57this product reflected for people like me is really important. And representation. That's the word.
10:01That's the theme. Syvonne, when you see black families, what do you hope they take away and
10:07experience while they are there at the parks? Well, you know, one of my personal favorite quotes is from
10:13the incomparable Maya Angelou. And it ends in, you never forget how they made you feel. Yes. So,
10:21when I think about black families coming into Walt Disney World Resort, I want them to feel like they
10:28belong. That they're welcomed, they were invited, and their magic helps make Walt Disney World so magical.
10:37Mm-hmm. We love it. Now, it's time to bring out our gift recipients. Do we have them yet?
10:43Yes. Okay, okay. Come on down!
10:48Woo-hoo!
10:50So, we love learning all about celebrating soulfully at Disneyland and Walt Disney World.
10:58And we're going to keep talking about it.
10:59And we'll tell them what they've won.
11:08Those are our recipients. Tell them what they've won, ladies.
11:11So, you will be coming to the Disneyland Resort with a family of four. And we would love to have you.
11:20And you will also be getting a trip to Walt Disney World for you and three other guests. So, a family of four.
11:28All-inclusive paid trip. Wait a minute.
11:31Both of these ladies get both vacations? Wow. That is amazing. One each. One will go to Disney World,
11:39one will go to California. It is going to be amazing. We cannot wait for that. Congratulations, ladies!
11:46Congratulations. Welcome. They just sat down in a seat and walked away winners, right?
11:51And ladies, thank you for sitting at the seat at that table and representing for us in the way that
11:56you have with Walt Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resorts. We appreciate it. And we can't wait to see
12:01what else you all bring to the table. Thank you. Yes. Thank you, Deja. Thank you.
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