I don't think it's a coincidence that so many artists, entertainers, actors, and writers are from Oklahoma. You talk about the Crossroads of Creativity, it's in the blood out here.
-Garth Brooks
Excite, Delight, Inform, & Inspire
As a division of the Oklahoma Historical Society, the mission of OKPOP is to inspire new generations of artists, musicians, and storytellers to impact the world through the powerful force of creative expression by showcasing the legacy of Oklahoma artists and their influence on popular culture.
Welcome to OKPOP!
What started out as an idea for an exhibition in 2006 through the Oklahoma Historical Society has evolved into what will be a top experiential and immersive museum.
OKPOP will become an internationally recognized brand for championing Oklahoma’s creative influence and serve as a conduit for economic development throughout creative industries.
This powerful combination will not only justify the public and private sector's investment in OKPOP but will also propel OKPOP for long-term success.
In this sneak peek guide we've highlighted key areas within OKPOP to give insight to the ideation, detail, and overall direction for the museum. The OKPOP team continues to work on finalizing exhibitions, programming, and more.
-Jake Krumwiede, OKPOP Executive Director a division of the Oklahoma Historical Society
The How & Why of it All
OKPOP will utilize innovative storytelling, impressive collections, state-of-the-art technology, inventive exhibit design, remarkable media productions, and world-class programming to accomplish its mission
The goal is to excite, delight, inform, and inspire (and empower) visitors, no matter their age, to explore and pursue their creativity
Diverse & Multi-Generational
OKPOP will have something for everyone, whether you are 8 or 88.
There are four primary audiences identified for OKPOP: Oklahoma School Groups + Families + Locals + Tourists
Oklahoma Historical Society
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Additional Team Support
The mission of the Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) is to collect, preserve, and share the history and culture of the state of Oklahoma and its people. OHS was founded on May 27, 1893, by members of the Territorial Press Association. Over the years the OHS has developed numerous collections, programs, research centers, museums, historic homes, and military sites across the state. The OHS is an agency of the State of Oklahoma and a private membership organization governed by a Board of Directors.
The OKPOP Foundation is a 501(c)(3) created in 2019 to support the mission of OKPOP. The foundation is comprised of more than a dozen members from across the state and is the fundraising arm responsible for identifying funding sources, contributions, sponsorships, and naming opportunities to help realize the mission of OKPOP.
Additional Consultants
OKPOP will work with an internationally respected museum design firm to create a one-of-a-kind, immersive experience utilizing interactive media and cutting edge technology to completely transform the way a museum can look and feel.
OKPOP isn’t just a place to create and play. It’s also a place to learn. While OKPOP’s 58,000 sq. ft. facility promises to be extraordinary, the programming is designed to complement our physical space and exhibit installations with a statewide community outreach program, a growing research archive, and outstanding educational offerings
OKPOP Education empowers and inspires the next generation of Oklahoma creatives. STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) education is built into the very code of pop culture. OKPOP will host camps, classes, seminars, and after-school programming focused on performance as well as production-oriented skills like sound engineering, design, video game development, and more.
Education & Programming
Community Outreach
Community outreach programming leverages OKPOP assets to inspire creativity and pop culture education throughout the state. Annual activities include music, film, and visual/performing arts festivals; panel discussions; podcasts; and documentary short films
Research Archives
OKPOP research archives provide access to some of the state’s most treasured artistic content in support of scholarly research and industry resource development with partners like Ken Burns, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Grammy Museum, and filmmakers around the world. The archives are also available to the public, including middle and high school students participating in Oklahoma’s National History Day activities.
1st Floor
Crossroads of Creativity
Featuring: Check In + RIPLEY
First American Storytellers
Bob Wills Bus
The Will Rogers Experience
The Pop Shop
Listening Lounge
Popwatch + RIPLEY First American Storytellers
Utilizing RFID technology, the Popwatch will enhance the visitors experience by allowing an individual to interact with environments within OKPOP and bring them to life. RIPLEY is a application and an interactive computer that guests encounter at several stations throughout the museum experience. Identified by a recognizable emblem, RIPLEY offers a content deep-dive, an experience enhancing app, a portal to augmented reality exhibit exploration, and more.
OKPOP is located in North Tulsa, straddling the border between the Mvskoke (Muscogee) and the Tsálăgĭ (Cherokee) nations. Also close in proximity to the Wazhazhe (Osage) nation, OKPOP is only blocks from the historic Greenwood District, known as "Black Wall Street."
The First American Storytellers area will be seen from the 1st and 2nd floor and will feature an interactive mural.
The Will Rogers Experience Bob Wills Bus
The 1st floor exhibit will feature the restored Bob Wills tour bus. Set against an incredible view of the historic Cainʼs Ballroom directly across Main Street, this area will illustrate the story of Willsʼ crosscountry musical popularity that influenced the development of Western swing and many other related musical genres.
Will Rogers is the “father” of Oklahoma pop culture and is also known as "Oklahoma's Favorite Son." Born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, Rogers became a famous American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorist. His story is central to framing the entire OKPOP experience. It is essential that all visitors encounter Will Rogers, learn his story, and understand his significance.
The Pop Shop Listening Lounge Cafe & Bar
Located on the 1st floor and visible from Main Street, “The Pop Shop” will offer a large selection of fan-related items, collectibles and memorabilia related to Oklahoma artists and creative franchises.
The 3,000 sq. ft. store will provide a much-needed addition to the niche market for pop culture–related collectibles, and become a destination for visitors.
The shop will also include additional interpretive information about the franchises and Oklahoma creatives that are related to the merchandise offered.
The Listening Lounge is a 1,200 sq. ft. bar and coffee shop located adjacent to the 1st floor gallery. It’s an elevated ‘70s-‘80s “dive bar” inspired by Tulsa’s historic music scene and world-famous artists.
The lounge will host live music, stand-up comedy, listening events, and other OKPOP programming. Imagine grabbing a drink here prior to a show at Cain's Ballroom!
2nd Floor
Imagined Worlds Featuring:
Imagined Worlds Exhibits Theater
The Gold Room
Oklahoma is the land of storytellers. Even before statehood, the people of Indian Territory told stories as a way of life. When land runs and oil booms drew crowds from cultures around the world, the stories only grew. This melting pot of talent produced countless contributions to literature, film, comics, theater, and television throughout the decades.
OKPOP’s Imagined Worlds exhibits take guests on a whirlwind journey through not only a century’s worth of Okie accomplishments, but also an engaging, immersive exploration of multiple storytelling genres, including science fiction, western, fantasy, and comedy
Imagined Worlds/ Exhibits
The Imaginarium
When guests move through the Imagined Worlds Entry Experience, they will enter The Imaginarium a whimsical, dreamlike space designed to capture the essence of a museum as envisioned by a creative child.
The Imaginarium serves as the central hub connecting guests to the immersive genrebased areas on the second floor. It acts as a transitional space between exhibits, featuring small museum displays that introduce each genre area.
Action + Comic Books
The OKPOP action area will introduce our guests to over a century of heroes. From comic books to the big screen, Okies have been wowing us for generations with their pulse-pounding stories of heroism.
In this power-packed section, guests will enjoy creating their own hero in our Hero Lab, performing their own stunts, or creating their own digital effects.
Drama Imagined Worlds/ Exhibits
Fantasy + Sci-Fi
The Fantasy section whisks guests into an immersive wizard’s workshop, much like entering Dumbledore’s magical office from the Harry Potter books and films.
OKPOP’s Sci-Fi experience immerses guests in the cockpit of a battle-worn starship that has braved numerous intergalactic missions and alien encounters. Inspired by iconic starships like the Millennium Falcon or Firefly, the experience features operational control panels, detailed movie-set aesthetics, and a weathered, lived-in design. It is designed to transport guests to fantastical new worlds of pop culture and offer a unique museum experience.
Drama is a multi-faceted category covering a wide territory from cop shows to tearjerkers and family dramas. The Okie connection is strong here. S.E. Hinton invented the young adult fiction genre, after all. Terrence Malick makes Oscar-nominated masterpieces. Visitors will also explore deep-dive stories from Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, Sterlin Harjo’s Reservation Dogs, The Grapes of Wrath and other Dust Bowl Stories and much more.
The Drama experience at OKPOP will focus heavily on the activity of writing, emphasizing the importance of authors, screenwriters, and poets.
Imagined Worlds/ Exhibits
Comedy
You know what’s hilarious? Oklahomans are. Since the beginnings of radio and TV, Okies have lit up the airwaves with laughter and fun. OKPOP’s sitcom set transports our guests to their very own stage.
The Comedy section will transform OKPOP guests into TV stars, eschewing the realistic qualities of other immersive sections for the purposely artificial confines of a sitcom set. Guests will explore and interact with a typical sitcom living room, flanked by operational television cameras and lit by banks of studio lights.
Westerns
OKPOP’s Western section will feature a Wild West general store, complete with wooden plank flooring and shelves lined with products. Utilizing clever labeling, many of these items will convey stories and interesting facts about various Okie creatives. A long soda fountain will dominate one wall of the general store. Mutoscopes on the floor close to the soda fountain will feature videos about Okie creatives (stylized to look like old, scratchy black and white film stock). A player piano will entertain guests with songs from the era.
Theater Experience
At the conclusion of Imagined Worlds, guests will enter OKPOP’s Oklahoma! Theater experience.
Styled to look like the lobby of a grand movie theater from the golden age of cinema, this redcarpeted, gold-tinged, brightly lit experience will feature a detailed look at the cultural phenomenon of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s seminal musical, Oklahoma!. This includes the Pulitzer prize-winning Broadway production, the beloved 1955 film adaptation, and Lynn Riggs’s 1931 play, Green Grow the Lilacs, on which Oklahoma! was based.
Through the gilded doors of the foyer, guests will enter a 50-seat movie theater featuring a short documentary on the impressive list of film and TV productions that have been set in or based on Oklahoma
The Gold Room
OKPOP’s Gold Room is an expansive area that can be used for special programming, large events, or traveling exhibits. It’s also available to be rented out to the public for private engagements, parties, or conferences. The 3,400 sq. ft. room features state-ofthe-art audio-visual capabilities, as well as a fantastic view of Cain’s Ballroom and downtown Tulsa.
3rdFloor
Musical Journeys
Featuring: Musical Journeys Exhibits
Recording Studio
The Terrace
OKPOP’s 3rd floor experience, Musical Journeys, invites visitors to explore the creative journeys of musicians who pursue a career in the arts. Using a “techno forest” motif, the experience is presented as a Red Dirt path winding through a darkened forest landscape where trees and plants are made from bits and pieces of music technology melded with organic forms.
Many of these trees provide opportunities for guests to play with sound or add musical components to a unique song they are crafting as they explore the area. Immersive stops along this journey have guests exploring the various experiences, challenges and highlights many musicians face throughout their careers.
TheWildwoods
Musical Journeys/ Exhibits
The Wildwoods
The Wildwoods are the in-between worlds separating our Musical Journey rooms. The music-tech naturalistic spaces provide visitors opportunities to play with sounds by banging on illuminating mushrooms, singing into hanging microphone vines, and much, much more.
The Greenhouse / Music Revelatio
The first stop of the Musical Journey, The Greenhouse, explores how Okie creatives were initially inspired to play music or where the musical “seed was planted.” Was it in church? A school band experience? A family gathering on the porch? In a concert hall? MTV? We will utilize an infinity room or “white box” setting where these stories can be told via projection mapping This could potentially be a fully-animated presentation in a white box room or fogged smart glass garden greenhouse space
The Cave / Music Inspiration
The next stop, a throwback basement, is home to a lifetime collection of records, tapes, magazines, and electronics all available for guests to sample and enjoy. Designed as a fully immersive setting, the space provides a drum kit, guitars, and a keyboard for guests to “jam” on (via headphones, obviously) along with a computer where guests can create their own tracks.
Musical Journeys/ Exhibits
The Treehouse / Build a Song
At the base of the OKPOP Treehouse, guests create unique songs via the Build-a-Song stations, with no previous songwriting experience required. By utilizing a sizable, loopbased collection of beats, basslines, and guitar and keyboard parts, guests can mix and match various styles, sounds, and motifs into a base melody they can call their own. Vocal recording booths will also be available inside the treehouse itself for guests to add their own vocals to the mix.
The Grove / Artists & Instruments
The Grove is the central and largest area of the floor and commands a sense of reverence and respect. Separated visually from the surrounding glowing wildwoods, The Grove resembles an ancient wooded area, unveiling the majority of our instrument collection along with fascinating stories about various Okie musicians. Visitors can hear the instruments through their RIPLEY app, collect songs from our artists, and learn more about the craftwork of musicians.
The Trailways / Life on the Road
Life on the road is a rite of passage for most professional artists. OKPOP’s Trailways immersive will place visitors in a rattling old tour bus, rumbling down Route 66 to the band’s next gig. Projection mapping and screens will display stories from the road as told by various Okie creatives, while scenes from the road whisk by the windows.
Musical Journeys/ Exhibits
The Market / Merch Lab
At the Merch Lab Market, we put the power of printmaking and design in the hands of our guests. Visitors will be able to design band T-shirts or posters, create buttons to help support a new act, and get inspired by an archive of iconic concert poster designs from Oklahoma artists across a variety of genres.
The Rockeries / Spaces & Sounds
The Rockeries is a cave-like system of mini-theaters telling the various stories of important music venues, scenes, and festivals throughout the state. It will also feature key stories from uniquely Oklahoma genres such as Western Swing, the Tulsa Sound, Red Dirt music, and music from the State’s 39 tribal nations. These are the places, spaces, and styles that helped to create the unique and diverse Oklahoma musical landscape and identity of today.
The Summit / On Stage & Beyond
The culmination of the 3rd floor music experience places our guests on the stage, where (though the magic of virtual reality technology) they are transformed into a musician performing with bandmates in front of an enthusiastic, cheering audience at a famous Oklahoma concert venue.
Recording Studio
The Terrace
The OKPOP Museum s Recording Studio is a multifaceted facility that blends education, professional recording, archival preservation, and media production. It provides a dynamic environment where visitors can learn about studio recording, witness the preservation of musical history, and engage with the broader music industry through interactive exhibits and live performances.
This comprehensive approach ensures that the Recording Studio not only serves as a functional space for creating and preserving music, but also as an educational and cultural resource for the community.
Sure to be a popular attraction for both museum attendees and the general public, OKPOP’s 3rd floor 4,200 sq. ft. California-inspired terrace features a panoramic vista of downtown Tulsa and Cain’s Ballroom, with spotlights illuminating the sky at night. This stylishly appointed space is also available for rent to the general public, making it a perfect locale for special events.
a state of pioneers, of Cowboys and Sooners, wildcatters, and native communities. We are born of resilient survivors and ambitious entrepreneurs. Our diverse beginnings include a litany of colliding cultures from around the world, producing groundbreakers and storytellers, creators and innovators.
In our short history as a state we’ve seen the immeasurable impact a flashy guitar player from Oklahoma City, or a teenage author from Tulsa, or a starry-eyed young actor from Duncan can make. The world is a better place because of the creative offerings of Oklahoma.
We intend to continue that legacy by inspiring and empowering new generations of creatives to follow in the footsteps of greats that came before us. We do this by telling their stories and the stories of countless others who have impacted the world through
Oklahoma is Pop Culture.
