“When the game’s rigged… Rewrite the rules.” That’s the tagline for Snowfall, FX’s new drama from John Singleton, but it also could apply to FX’s marketing team.

Fresh off (approximately) one billion awards at this year’s Conference, FX is hoping to bring attention to its newest show. Premiering July 5, Snowfall is about the birth of the crack cocaine epidemic in Los Angeles in 1983.

The premise may not scream sexy marketing campaign, but that didn’t deter Kenya Hardaway, senior vice president, integrated promotions, FX Networks.

“There are some elements of it that are somewhat sensitive,” said Hardaway. “We wanted to find hooks that are a little easier to grab people with. The 80s is one of my favorite eras, and there’s so many rich things that are so iconic to culture now that originated then. We wanted to celebrate all of that, to paint a picture of the world Franklin [Damson Idris] is living in when this all began. Luckily for us, through music, art and food, we’re able to set a mood for people and get them excited about the show.”

The music, art and food combined to create a 1980s throwback pop-up event. From Friday June 23 through Sunday June 25, Snowfall came to the Hudson Loft in downtown Los Angeles, welcoming not only anyone interested in the FX drama but anyone who happened to be walking by.

While many LA natives likely came for the free snow cones and sliders from the world famous Bludso’s BBQ, they stayed to enjoy a plethora of shareable experiences like a GIF-maker, and actual experiences.

“Any time you ask a fan of a particular show, you can get so many different elements that people will point to as to why they like the show. They love a certain character, the setting, the music,” said Hardaway. “We try to create events that allow them, even before launch, to hone in on the things they might take away from the show, and ultimately might be what keeps them engaged.”

The event featured a slew of activities, including a (free) popup barber shop run by John Mosley, aka The Popular Nobody, giving classic fades, a custom lacing station to spice up your summer kicks, a meet-and-greet with the godfather of early West Coast hip-hop Lonzo Williams, and a DJ academy where you could learn how to spin vinyl with the pros.

“You could come in as a passive guest, walk through the space and see some cool things to take pictures of, or you can roll up your sleeves and get involved,” said Hardaway.

If a slew of art, props and costumes from the show didn’t inspire involvement, then the giveaways might. Several lucky winners came away with passes to attend the premiere screening of Snowfall on Monday, June 26 at The Theatre at Ace Hotel in downtown LA.

“We have the opportunity to create fans every time we do an activation like this. We want to take full advantage and give them a little taste of what’s to come with the show. Hopefully they walk away interested in the show and interested in sharing what they’ve done, whether through social [#SnowfallFX] or old-fashioned word of mouth.”

But the fun isn’t just relegated to Los Angeles. FX has promoted the show in 10 different radio markets, and flew out contest winners in those markets to LA for this event.

“We try to find little ways that we can open up to a larger pool of participants,” said Hardaway.

FX continues to face a larger pool of competition from viewer-starved networks, but that doesn’t faze Hardaway. Indeed, Hardaway seems to prefer this new Wild West of TV marketing.

“The pressure’s on. I like when there is pressure attached,” she said. “Years ago, events were far smaller and very, very targeted and there wasn’t a lot of data to demonstrate that it was moving the needle. Now we’re able to see that more, and see the reach through social metrics.”

But some things never change.

“It’s always been about making sure we have marketing that’s on par with the shows being brought to the network. We have to take risks in marketing just like they take risks in programming,” said Hardaway. “We challenge ourselves to break free from the pack and think differently on how to approach our events especially. There’s a lot of options out there for people’s time. We have to make sure we’re giving our best effort to creative environments, activations, installations and stunts that are buzz-worthy, engaging, and worth taking a moment to spend with us.”

If they’ve done their job right, you’ll deem Snowfall worth taking a moment on when it premieres Wednesday, July 5, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX.

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