Rafael Rizuto has been chosen as chief creative officer of Droga5 New York and the Americas. He will be creative lead of Droga5’s New York headquarters as well as the Americas and will be instrumental in bridging the agency’s teams in the region to maximise its creative muscle and agility for global clients while also using the tools and talents of the broader Song network.
Born in Brazil with a career across regions, Rizuto will be based in New York and start his new role in January 2026. He was chosen specifically for his expertise in making brands culturally relevant and connecting with audiences in novel ways. He joins from Ogilvy New York, where he was chief creative officer North America, and earlier in his career worked at its offices in Brazil and Dubai. He has also been Dentsu Creative CCO for US and Hispanic LATAM; BBH US CCO; founder and CCO of his own San Francisco agency, TBD, and served in creative leadership roles at 180 L.A., Pereira O’Dell San Francisco.
Born in Brazil, with an art director background, Rizuto’s work spans an array of disciplines, marked by bold creativity with deep cultural resonance. This year, he led Ogilvy to Gold at the Cannes Lions with Dove’s Get Unready, a simple but striking out of home campaign that made the brand’s beauty bar the hero of partygoers’ post-revelry skincare routines. His other awarded campaigns include the Cannes Lions double Grand Prix- and Titanium-winning Boost Your Voice for Boost Mobile and UNICEF’s Grand Prix for Good winner, Unfairy Tales for 180 LA; Eurofarma’s 2023 Pharma Grand Prix winner, Scrolling Therapy for Dentsu, and Google’s Black Owned Friday for BBH, that won Best of Show at The One Show and Clios.
Rizuto has also helped to raise the profile of agencies he has worked at. He led BBH New York back to ad Age’s A-List for the first time in ten years, helped 180LA become the TBWA network’s most awarded agency two years in a row and played a key role in Denstu Creative US earn Ad Age Standout Agency honours for the first time.
Mark Green, global chief executive officer, Droga5, stated, “Rafa will bring boundless energy to Droga5 as well as world-class experience. As we continue to build something new across the globe, Rafa will be a key player in reinventing Droga5 New York as well as harnessing the best of what our team in Brazil can offer to the Americas as a whole. This is going to be a great new chapter, and we are lucky to have someone who is not only talented but also a brilliant human. We cannot wait to see where he takes us.”
Rafa Rizuto, commented, “I grew up in this business worshiping Droga5. No other agency shaped me more as a creative. Few agencies have redefined what we do the way Droga5 has. Having the privilege to help shape its future is something I don’t take lightly. We’re at a pivotal moment for our industry, where the role of creativity is being challenged. I believe with all my heart that our creativity at Droga5, amplified with the technology expertise of Accenture Song, is what will set us apart. I couldn’t be more excited to join this extraordinary group of humans. The future is bright.”
