The Real Black Wall St. Tour

Outcome:

Well-Told developed a wordmark based on the lettering from the masthead of the Tulsa Star, a Black newspaper that ran from 1913 to 1921. This was a way to honor the thriving entrepreneurial spirit that had lived on Black Wall Street and continues to do so. The color palette, too, was based on sets of history textbooks and old newspapers: blacks, grays, whites, and reds would reference the main ways people got their information at that time.

An encircled star became the secondary mark, a nod to both the Tulsa Star and the initial logo that Amusan had made: a red star. The logo allows for various applications: cards, signage, totes, and billboards. We wanted a subtle visual symbol that would remain respectful of the heavy and delicate historical material while pointing the way forward for a population that had undergone a tragedy. Amusan’s work provides one way forward, so a star (comparable to a sort of north star) felt appropriate for the brand.

The work has had a strong impact on Amusan’s clientele: a desire for merchandise is growing. Shirts, especially, are a form of merchandising that Amusan has found people on his tours want. The entire website for The Real Black Wall Street Tour has been worked over to reflect the new brand, and a new website has allowed for easier booking of tours.

Chief Egunwale Amusan continues to push his brand forward. After the adoption of the brand in 2022, he collaborated with Well Told to produce “Oaklawn,” a documentary investigating the search for the bodies of the victims of the Race Massacre. On his Instagram page, now fully rebranded, he consistently posts testimonials from his clientele: from service members, tourists, and interested community members all the way to massive celebrities like Tom Hanks. The business is working.

Challenge:

The Real Black Wall Street Tour in Tulsa needed a brand that would reflect the powerful and solemn history of its subject matter, as well as the cultural authenticity of its leader.

We dug into the history of Black Wall Street to design a cohesive system that communicated the ideals behind the company. TRBWST now uses this branding on all external communications, and demand for merchandise with the branding is high.

Chief Egunwale Amusan of The Real Black Wall Street Tour didn’t need us to have a powerful product. A descendant of three survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, Amusan had been a sincere and prominent voice in the Black Wall Street Community for years, calling for justice and reparations for those who lost life, limb, and property during the Massacre. But the perception of Amusan’s business needed to change.

The old brand for the tour company had appeared nearly by accident, a reflection of Amusan’s need to have a single image to put on Instagram and business cards. Amusan made the logo himself. To move forward as a business, he needed something that fully embodied the inherent power of the brand, as well as the unique perspective that Amusan himself brought as a descendant of that terrible event.