By Chris Daniels

“Michigan Central Innovation District is home to 100 startups and counting. Its centerpiece railroad station was celebrated in a free concert starring Eminem last week.

How do you throw a community party on a global scale? 

That was Ford Motor Co.’s communications challenge as it celebrated the rebirth of Michigan Central Station in downtown Detroit after a six-year, multimillion-dollar restoration project shepherded by executive chair Bill Ford. 

To reopen the one-time transportation landmark, Ford staged a free concert, “Live at Michigan Central Station,” in Roosevelt Park on June 6, bringing together 20,000 revelers. Produced by Eminem, the concert crossed musical genres with performances from the rapper and other Detroit-linked legends like Diana Ross, Jack White, The Clark Sisters, Kierra Sheard and Big Sean.”

The comms team worked closely with agency pro Stuart Ruderfer, cofounder and CEO of New York-based Civic Entertainment Group, a firm with offices in Detroit and Los Angeles that is part of Ryan Seacrest’s media and entertainment holdings. Civic worked with Ford on the initiative since before the automaker announced that it bought the building from the Moroun family with a 2018 event. 

“The story was a big part of the strategy, laid out by Bill Ford, which was for Detroit to reclaim its mantle as a leading global technology and cultural center — for the Motor City to remain the Motor City. It was an audacious vision,” says Ruderfer. “What that set up was the communications challenge: how can the Detroit community have this cathartic moment decades in the making? And how can Ford share its future vision of the city with the world?” 

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