High Five: Hip-Hop and Rap in Advertising
In my opinion, rap and hip-hop is the greatest driving force in culture and advertising. It’s the single best taste maker brands have to look at for guidance. That’s because, by nature, hip-hop and rap is born from innovation. It takes the everyday and the stale, and out of nothing, makes it fresh and new. And even with the tanning of America, it still feels challenging to the mainstream public, which, as we know, is needed to break through the white noise. Personally, as an immigrant, it acted as both a bridge to a new country, and also as a teacher. No-one is starting conversations with: “Did you hear that track by that Persian artist?” That’s why I like to weave it into the work I do when I naturally can. It’s only normal that those born in or from this culture are both fiercely protective of it, and suspicious when it’s in the hands of brands. More often than not, they tend to fumble the bag by being inauthentic and forcing the brand’s mission or values into it, rather than let it be. So, in my opinion, these are five great examples of when it’s been done right...
Reebok x Allen Iverson - 'A5 Commercial'
The first commercial that, for me and my generation, perfectly crossed rap over into advertising in a way that felt truly authentic. Why authentic? Because it felt like an articulation of both the times and AI. It was not a 30-second ad, but a music video. It was a reflection of the streets, but effortlessly cool and smooth, just like AI’s crossover. I love this piece. (Plus it gave birth to a great successor in 'Dark Mode' featuring Lil’ Baby and Ja Morant).
Louis Vuitton x Mos Def - 'Word'
This is arguably one of the finest demonstrations of art and hip-hop in advertising. Everything about it is perfect and I come back to it often, like the first song on a playlist. It stings. It floats. It resonates. The reason it’s on the list is because the casting of Mos Def’s incredible talent as a hip-hop emcee makes this possible - and I sincerely doubt anyone else would’ve done it justice the same way he did.
Travis Scott x Fortnite - 'Astronomical'
It’s been spoken to ad nauseam, but man, what a project. I attended it, and outside of seeing Michael Jackson live in 1993, this is the most open-mouthed I’ve been at a concert. It’s being aware of an artist that speaks to your audience, but knowing that as two brands that need to push the envelope, the collaboration is treated with utmost respect and creative freedom.
Cash App - 'That’s Money'
It’s not always about utilising the rap and hip-hop industry for entertainment and clicks. Financial advertising is sterile, boring, full of tropes, and much like how it appears in the education system - out of date. The way this is written is reminiscent of one of the most important elements of any rap album that people don’t celebrate nearly enough (nor do enough anymore): the rap skit. This is a rap skit on an album but about financial literary.
GAP x LL Cool J - 'Easy Fit Jeans'
Directors: Mark Seliger x Fred Woodward
I know, I know, it’s LL Cool J and GAP. I wanted to go with something more modern and speak to the legacy of Sprite, or the simple power of RZA’s 'New Jingle for a New Era', or of course, the work on 'Beats by Translation'. But, as someone who loves putting Easter eggs in his own work, this one always brings a smile to my face. See, the reason why rap and hip-hop is such a teacher is that analysing wordplay and lyrics are part of its DNA. We study every lyric, looking for messages, statements, sneak disses and more, and this ad is an ad for GAP for mainstream America, but FUBU for those in the know. At the 14-second mark, LL says "For Us, by US - on the low". He was making it clear that while he’s getting paid by GAP, he’s really repping FUBU, giving a shout out to a black brand in a major brand’s commercial. Perfect.
Madden - 'The Greatest Play Call Ever'
Yes, this is something I worked on, but rap is about flexing, so why not? Anyway, how we weaved in Quavo from the Migos into this campaign felt so natural. I think the reason for it is that we wrote it with him, rather than with him in mind. From there, we kept adding things to surprise and delight fans the way you'd do with an album release. We actually ended up activating the phone number that shows up in the ad, knowing fans would dial it, and they were surprised with the whole song we recorded. We partnered with Genius to show up in both the ad and the website. He's just one small part of the film, but at the height of his popularity, we made sure it felt natural and right to him, and that's why it worked so well.
