Former ID-PR brands boss Michael Smith has launched a new communications firm, Midnight Dawn.
Smith departed ID-PR in January. “Midnight Dawn has been 25 years in the making and I’m honored to have the privilege of representing a world class group of talent and brands,” Smith said in an exclusive statement to Variety on Tuesday. “Industry and media landscapes will continue to evolve but the constant need for having trusted partners will never change.”
Midnight Dawn’s client roster includes Stephen Curry and Thirty Ink; lifestyle entrepreneur Ayesha Curry and Sweet July; Curry Brand, a purpose-led performance brand from Under Armour; Peloton; WWE Superstar Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman; Portland Trail Blazers’ Scoot Henderson and UConn Huskies’ Azzi Fudd. Midnight Dawn also represents all of Stephen Curry’s off-court endeavors including multimedia company Unanimous Media, Underrated Golf and Basketball and Gentleman’s Cut Bourbon; Ayesha’s Sweet July brand inclusive of Sweet July Skin, Sweet July Productions and Sweet July Magazine; and the Currys’ Oakland- based foundation Eat. Learn. Play.
Smith is joined at Midnight Dawn by former ID-PR colleagues Tom Dietz, Lydia You and Stephen Baruch as senior vice presidents and director, respectively. Prior to founding Midnight Dawn, Smith most recently led ID-PR’s brands department for more than a decade, working with a diverse roster of companies and brands, including Nintendo, Netflix, Rémy Cointreau’s LOUIS XIII, Wynn Las Vegas, UNICEF, Reddit and WWE. Prior to ID-PR, Smith was senior vice president of sports at DKC and WME’s director of PR.
ID-PR was launched in 1993 by Kelly Bush Novak, who serves as the company’s CEO with Mara Buxbaum as president.
