Johnnie Walker (Diageo) launches “First Strides,” a long-term initiative “that aims to celebrate, inspire and enable those people and organizations that are taking bold steps towards progress, and pushing boundaries to move culture forward for all.”
To kick off the program with a special nod to strides being made for women’s progress, Johnnie Walker and partners at the National Women’s Soccer League’s LA-based Angel City Football Club tapped five-time Grammy Award-winning artist Brittany Howard and LA-based artist Tia P. to create “Running with the Angels,” the first original anthem for a U.S. women’s professional sports team and the official anthem for the ACFC team.
Along with the anthem release, Johnnie Walker will enable more people to take bold steps towards progress through a series of First Strides grants. Anyone 21+ can apply for a First Stride grant but the brand will continue to dedicate funding to communities where inequality exists.
Through a partnership with the go-to funding marketplace for women-owned businesses IFundWomen, Johnnie Walker will continue to support women entrepreneurs and fuel women-owned businesses. The brand is also introducing a grants and mentorship program with first-of-its-kind streaming service Blacktag, who is changing the model for pay equity among Black creators.