The City of Chicago stars as the “sixth” player on the court in new brand films from BarkleyOKRP that celebrate the Chicago Sky’s 20th Season in the WNBA.
The new high-energy campaign celebrates the Chicago Sky’s milestone season, its world class WNBA players, the passionate “Skytown” fan base, and a city known for basketball, authenticity, resilience, and grit. Clips of Sky players against a backdrop of “Sky High” skyscrapers and iconic and diverse Chicago city landmarks invite fans to celebrate the 2025 season. After launching the team’s intro video with season tipoff in May, the Chicago Sky are launching a second video to showcase the grit and hustle that are synonymous with the Chicago Sky and the city of Chicago.
“The Chicago Sky have a legacy built on breaking boundaries and rewriting the narrative for women in sports,” Tania Haladner, Chicago Sky Chief Marketing Officer explained. “These two films amplify the voices of our players and unify the broader Chicago community, in an acknowledgment of the power of coming together to celebrate our growth and the importance of Chicago and our fans.”
In collaboration with Chicago Sky, the work from BarkleyOKRP captures the true grit and tenaciousness unique to Chicago and its WNBA team. The first video was played at Wintrust Arena as the team’s opening intro video, and the second will broadcast across various social media platforms, highlighting the spirit of Chicago. Featured are Sky “skyscrapers” Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso, along with guards Courtney Vandersloot, Ariel Atkins, Michaela Onyenwere, and other Sky players. The music – Poser by PartyOf2 – narration, and imaging were all carefully chosen to exemplify a specific message: that no one can mess with Chicago.
“We have had the privilege of working with the Chicago Sky on several initiatives around mental health and women in sport,” said Grace Ferolo, Senior Brand Strategist at BarkleyOKRP. “It’s given us an inside look at the power of the Chicago Sky brand, which we leveraged to create a campaign that captures the spirit of the team as reflected through the city, its people and the fans.”
The Chicago Sky intro video, which is played inside the arena before games, opens with the Chicago skyline, narrowing into Wintrust Arena and the city’s streets. Against the backdrop of skyscrapers and buildings are shadows of the Sky players, emphasizing the team’s connection to the city and Skytown fan community. Closeups of Sky players, game clips, and the city of Chicago are spliced together in the remainder of the video, closing out as the video began: on Wintrust Arena, with the team’s slogan “We Go Sky High.” Produced by Banner Studios, the video also includes TikTok sensation PARTYOF2’s hit “Poser,” (Def Jam Recordings) now at 1M weekly global streams.
Included in the campaign is another film emphasizing the authenticity, grit and hustle that define Chicago and its residents. Focusing specifically on Sky players and inspiring women of the community to align with the Sky’s mission of empowering women, the video highlights the impact of women on and off the court. Clips of Sky players and staples of the city of Chicago are spliced together with an overarching narration describing the work that is essential to the success of the team, and the community. “In Chicago, our grind knows no limits. We work round the clock. The buzzer don’t stop nothin’.” The video also celebrates Chicago Sky and Chicagoland legends Allie Quigley, who had her #14 Sky jersey retired on July 9, and Candace Parker, who will have her #3 Sky jersey retired August 25, 2025. The film was produced by Southside Films and CosmoStreet. And fueling the visuals is a completely original track by award-winning music house Yessian, inspired by the unmistakable swagger of Chicago juke, resulting in a film with such grit and spirit no other city could claim.
About BarkleyOKRP
BarkleyOKRP is one of the largest independent ad agencies in the U.S., matching scale with soul to help build brands like Burger King, Corona Premier, Metro by T-Mobile, Planet Fitness, and Smoothie King. Fully integrated across strategy, creative, and media, BarkleyOKRP is a five-time Ad Age A-List honoree and Certified B Corp—bringing Big Indie spirit to advertising by using integration and egoless creativity as their unfair advantage. Find out more at barkleyokrp.com.
About Chicago Sky
The 2021 WNBA Champion Chicago Sky are a professional women’s basketball team founded in 2005 by principal owner, Michael Alter. The Chicago Sky were the first independently owned women’s professional basketball team to join the WNBA and play at the Wintrust Arena. The season runs from May-September. Call 866.SKY.WNBA or visit sky.wnba.com for more information.
