cr(e)a(ti)ve ideas™

— PROJECT NAME

Lil Sugar: Master of Disguise

— PROJECT TYPE

Public Health Awareness Campaign

— ROLE

Group Copy Supervisor

— CLIENT

Hip-Hop Public Health

— DATE

October 2021

The Problem

In the U.S., excess sugar consumption among children is fueling a public health crisis. Childhood obesity rates are climbing—bringing with them heightened risks of diabetes, heart disease, chronic kidney disease, and even COVID-19 complications.

For Black communities, the stakes are even higher. Systemic issues like food deserts and lower access to nutrition education compound the danger, putting children at a disproportionate risk.

We knew that facts and figures alone weren’t enough. To protect the next generation, we needed to speak their language, capture their attention, and turn nutrition literacy into something they’d actually want to engage with.

The Strategy

Make sugar the villain kids love to hate—and can learn to defeat.

We personified excess sugar as Lil Sugar, a deceptively cute but dangerous “master of disguise” who hides in everyday foods under dozens of tricky names.

By giving sugar a face, a voice, and a personality, we could make the invisible visible—and transform a health threat into a story kids could follow, understand, and outsmart.

The Idea

Lil Sugar: Master of Disguise is a multi-channel entertainment-meets-education campaign, energized by the voice of rap icon Darryl “DMC” McDaniels of Run-DMC.

It started with a high-energy, animated film exposing Lil Sugar’s disguises and his mission to hook kids on the sweet stuff—then challenged children to catch him in the act.

The Execution

• 
  
• Film: A bold, stylized rap-driven animation that made sugar’s many aliases unforgettable.
• 
  
• Mobile Game & App: Gamified nutrition literacy, rewarding kids for spotting sugar in disguise across virtual supermarket shelves.
• 
  
• Book: An educational story available in paperback and digital form, distributed through schools and community partners.
• 
  
• Community Integration: Collaborations with schools across the U.S. to bring Lil Sugar into classrooms as a learning tool.

The Impact

• • 3 million children reached through community events and school curricula in both digital and classroom environments across the US
• 
  
• • Nationwide expansion of nutrition literacy through music, gaming, and storytelling
• 
  
• • Positioned Lil Sugar as a lasting educational asset for schools, parents, and public health organizations