The State of Mind We Call Unplugged: A Letter From Your Most Observant Friends

The Contextual Clipper Special Edition: Unplugged State of Mind, AWNY 2025

This lead editorial was originally published in The Contextual Clipper, our on-site newspaper for Unplugged State of Mind, a three-day activation during Advertising Week 2025. Unlike our feature stories, this opening letter was co-authored by the full cast of Unplugged’s animal correspondents — Bandit, Rhythm, Bubblegum, Crescendo, Stripesky, Feathersworth, Quirk, and Splash. Each correspondent embodies a different trait and perspective, together symbolizing the melting pot of this industry — different backgrounds, different companies, and everything in between. Their voices combine to capture the heart, energy, and vision of our community. The audio edition is recorded by Mike Richter, Co-founder & CEO of Unplugged Collective.

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Dearest Gentle Readers,

We find ourselves once more back where it all began. A year ago, Strangers No More opened its doors at The Stranger, and in an instant, strangers became companions, colleagues became confidantes, and a community began to take shape. This week, The Clipper returns to bear witness, for it seems our story is only just beginning.

In merely twelve months, Unplugged has traveled far and wide: New York, Las Vegas, Miami, and Cannes. Each city brought with it a new chapter. Three editions of Strangers No More showed that connection need not be stiff or transactional, but joyous and unrestrained. Supper Club proved that the dinner table remains the finest stage for ideas and alliances. The Pavilion offered a refuge where meetings turned into memories. CTRL+ALT+Culture gave fresh intention to the way we gather. And experiments like Truth Be Told and Cannesversations revealed a taste for formats as daring as the people they draw in.

This week the curtain rises on yet another full program. The Pavilion is alive with activity, from CTRL+ALT+Culture and the Media Mixer Lunch to The Unplugged Studio, Cannesversations, Supper Club, and more besides. At the pinnacle stands Strangers No More, relocated and reimagined, promising once again to turn the industry’s favorite pastime into something unforgettable.

Why, you may ask, do we persist in this grand endeavor? Because we believe community is not a pleasant diversion but the very foundation of better business. Each conversation carries the spark of possibility. Each introduction holds the potential to grow into trust, collaboration, and friendship. That is the state of mind we call Unplugged — and it is our great privilege to chronicle it here.

So read on, Dearest Gentle Reader. The stories ahead are yours to uncover, and perhaps, if fortune smiles, you will even find yourself upon these very pages.