Sunday 29 January 2006

Brand names are hot to drop in pop culture

These days, advertisers are giving entertainers lots to rap about, from Cadillac and Cristal to Mercedes and Moet. Hip-hopper Ludacris declared, "It's the knick-knack-patty-whack still riding Cadillacs" in "Get Back". Singer Mariah Carey's "It's Like That" dance tune proclaimed, "I came to have a party open up the Bacardi." And in Trina's song featuring Kelly Rowland, there's a reference to "poppin' all that Cris" champagne.

In all, top music artists gave more than 1,000 shout-outs to some of the world's largest and most recognizable brand names in 2005, according to the Brandstand study by San Francisco-based pop-culture strategy firm Agenda Inc. The list, available at www.agendainc.com/brand.html, has for the past three years tracked the number of times brands are mentioned in the lyrics of songs on Billboard's Top 20 list.

Brandstand has become a popular - albeit nonscientific - way of measuring which brands and products have street cred with the urban market during a time when companies increasingly are seeking ways to capture the attention of consumers who've grown savvy about recognizing paid product placements. Companies don't typically pay the artists for product references in songs. "It really is a measure of the brands that are important in pop culture," said Lucian James, Agenda's president. "These are the brands that have for whatever reason created relevance that really resonates in pop culture. It's the brands people are using to define themselves right now."

Brands that made Brandstand's Top 10 were DaimlerChrysler's Mercedes-Benz, Nike, General Motors Corp.'s Cadillac and Chevrolet brands, Volkswagen's Bentley, BMW's Rolls Royce, Hennessy cognac, Louis Vuitton fashions, Cristal champagne and AK-47 rifles. Autos have been the most commonly name-dropped brands. No. 1 Mercedes-Benz, a brand that has struggled recently against stiff competition from other luxury nameplates, has ranked among Brandstand's Top 3 each year, getting 100 mentions this year - 37 percent more than No. 2 Nike. R&B singer Ciara speaks to the appeal of Mercedes in her "Goodies" song when she says, "Just because you drive a Benz I'm not goin' home with you."

"It speaks to Mercedes-Benz being a part of popular culture," said Geoff Day, a Mercedes-Benz spokesman, adding that the brand doesn't actively pursue such mentions, saying that would be "self-defeating, especially in hip-hop, (where) it needs to be authentic and relevant." Meanwhile, GM's luxury Cadillac and scrappy Chevy brands also have been among Brandstand's Top 10 each year. Destiny's Child in their hit "Soldier" professed, "We like them boys that be in them 'Lacs leanin'" while Lloyd Banks in his "Karma" song featuring Avant, said "throwing that Al Green 'n' using that Impala".

The Chevrolet brand, which moved up one place in the rankings with 40 mentions, said the endorsements are evidence that its recent strategy to appeal to the urban market - such as using Detroit rap group Slum Village in commercials and music videos to promote its HHR and Impala vehicles - is working. "Chevrolet is very mass- market... the urban market has been particularly hard for us to reach," said Maria Rohrer, Chevy's manager for advertising for trucks and diversity. "Depending on the artist, anything they say would be considered cool. Beyonce is a good example of that."

Cadillac, an iconic brand that has become particularly popular in the urban market with its Escalade sport-utility vehicle, said it also welcomes endorsements from singers and hip-hop artists, including unpaid mentions in songs. "It's a measure of the cultural relevancy and aspirational nature of the brand," said David Caldwell, a spokesman for Cadillac, which got 62 mentions in songs. "As a luxury brand, you need an element of desirability. Having your name out there is a reflection of the desirability of your product."

Singer endorsements of "desirable" brands and products in lyrics have been common for decades, such as when the Beach Boys mentioned Ford Motor Co.'s Thunderbird in their 1960s hit "Fun, Fun, Fun". In the 1980s, when rap music took off, popular songs like Run-DMC's "My Adidas" set the standard for rappers to boast about the cool and luxurious products they wear and use.

Today, the brands mentioned in music lyrics - from rap to R&B - run the gamut from luxurious to extremely mundane. While autos, fashion, beverages and weapons are most mentioned, other less lavish, everyday brands find their way into songs, too. For instance, Pretty Ricky says, "I drink Red Bull so I keep my stamina" in his song "Grind With Me". And Nelly's song "Grillz", featuring Paul Wall, Ali and Gipp, says, "Call me George Foreman cuz I'm selling everybody Grillz."

All references, however, aren't exactly glowing endorsements. For instance, rap group the Game said "I'll kill you if you try me for my Air-Max 95s," making reference to popular Nike shoes, in "Hate It or Love it". And in Snoop Dogg's song featuring Pharell "Drop It Like It's Hot", there's a line that says, "The Phantom, exterior like fish eggs, the interior like suicide wrist red," in a nod to the luxury Rolls Royce car. But Day from Mercedes says, "Having your brand out there is almost always desirable."

(IndyStar)



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