3 Vodka Behind Armand de Brignac Champagne's Jay-Z Video Campaign

Jay-Z's Show Me What You Got w/Armand Champagne Product Placement

Though I haven't verified the French details of Hip Hop Game's exposure of the realities of Armand de Brignac Champagne, the quite straightforward details of who registered the Armand domains do lead directly to Jermaine Dupri's 3 Vodka.

I dug for a bit but all I can add is that the ad was apparently lovingly photographed by James Brandon King, possibly for his own company our own thing, llc.  Brooklyn, stand up!

Beneath his current Flickr photo of the ad, which was updated on October 17th after originally being posted on the 15th, Mr. King states:
update: looks like mr. carter has officially endorsed this product.
Armand de Brignac. We were asked to shoot some teaser shots for the website www.armandchampagne.com

[As of at least late Oct. 20th, Mr. King has removed the photo.]

At this point, it appears that 3 Vodka is importing the champagne under the Armand de Brignac brand and its appearance in the video is the introduction to the American market.

The press release from Armand de Brignac states:
This is not a case of product placement as Armand de Brignac and Jay-Z have not entered into any agreement, sponsorship or otherwise.

If Jay-Z entered into an agreement with Jermaine Dupri's 3 Vodka, he would not have had to enter into an agreement with Armand de Brignac, now would he?

ProHipHop Imagined Chain Of Events:

1) Jay-Z boycotts Cristal and the champagne producing community is set abuzz!  Hits to ProHipHop's excessive coverage of the boycott from the Champagne region of France rise exponentially!

2) Armand de Brignac sees the opportunity to move from a no name existence in France (according to the Hip Hop Game article) to a high profile existence in the States.

3) From that point, communication ensues resulting in 3 Vodka going into partnership with Armand de Brignac to break the champagne in the States spearheaded by the video for Jay-Z's comeback single.

And there you have it, half-lies and misdirection once again rule the day with the exposure of the misdirection building the brand since no one really cares about all these f*cking details when that bottle's golden gleam and substantial ace of spades logo symbolize everything important in life!

Additional thoughts/speculation:

So is Jay-Z a partner or an endorser?  I'm guessing partner cause you'd have to cut quite a check to get that kind of product placement.  Besides, being a partner makes him a hustler, taking the check for a product placement makes him a ho.

Jay-Z cock blocks both Nas and Diddy with this one, making Diddy look like a dickrider who's been dismounted for dissing Cristal in the single Everything (talk about chess vs. checkers).

Is Armand de Brignac another Armadale vodka?  You can't take the luxury market with second and third tier brands but you can reach wannabes who have cash in hand.

With Budweiser putting out a commercial using the Jay-Z video in which Armand Champagne appears, will they feel a bit used by this move or will they suddenly announce their involvement as well?

So, besides the 40/40 Club, where will Armand de Brignac be found?  I'm guessing in the strip club research and development centers of which Jermaine Dupri is so fond.  But my bet is on the West Coast to be the first to employ the bottles in a porn dvd.

In any case, this should be good for a couple more posts, at the very least!

Big ups to whoever's behind the Hip Hop Game article.  This is exactly the kind of thing we need more of in hip hop journalism.

Update:
As commenter "shamop" emphasized, not only is the appearance in the Jay-Z video somewhat of a setup, Armand De Brignac may actually be an invention of 3 Vodka and a company called Champagne Cattier who produces a champagne in a distinctive gold bottle.

In fact, after looking at that aspect of the Hip Hop Game article again, I compared the company description at the Cattier site with the description at the Armand De Brignac site and realized that the details of size, location and history are all the same.

And, as the Hip Hop Game writer points out, there is no trace of Armand De Brignac to be found on the web, prior to this media event.  So, I'll have to go with shamop on this one, it's sounding like the Armand de Brignac name itself is an invention.

Updates:
ProHipHop Coverage of Armand de Brignac Champagne

Comments

[shamop]

hiphopgame did some great research, your theory is good but the 2nd point is wrong:
"2) Armand de Brignac sees the opportunity to move from a no name existence in France (according to the Hip Hop Game article) to a high profile existence in the States."
According to hiphopgame and the champagne maker who talked to them, armand de brignac doesn't exist in france, it's a made up name. so what hiphopgame is saying is that the people at 3vodka made up the name and partnered with cattier champagne in france.

[Clyde Smith]

Your conclusion is based on what one person allegedly told an unidentified writer at Hip Hop Game. The writer's findings are inconclusive and unverified.

In fact, the writer said that two people verified the champagne was the property of Cattier so something existed for them to know about. Again, inconclusive as to what they meant by Cattier owning Armand de Brignac.

And then the writer says "my guess is" and makes the point to which you refer.

The writer doesn't know for sure though he or she has done a good job of pursuing the question and appears to be heading in the direction you assume is correct, but that the writer has labeled a guess.

I think your theory is plausible and, like my own speculations, can't be labeled right or wrong. However, my speculations are based on what I could verify.

[Clyde Smith]

But the fact that the Cattier self description of location, size and history at cattier.com matches the description at armandchampagne.com and that the Cattier site mentions a distinctive gold bottle but no Armand de Brignac combined with the other information suggests that you're absolutely correct.

I look forward to knowing.

[tamec]

So explain to me why this is a problem if the company that is importing Armand also owns 3 Vodka? Since the HipHopGame article established that Armand de Brignac IS an existing brand made by the Cattier house, which has been around for as long as the Armand site says it has, the assumption should be that the importer - probably the parent company of 3 Vodka and whatever else they produce/import - has designed their own packaging for the brand. Of course, since they're opening up the US market for this, they're also free to establish price point, etc. Additionally, JD hasn't had anything to do with 3 Vodka publicly in at least a year or two, so I'd be surprised if he had anything to do with this. I just fail to see the 'underhandedness' that is apparently present.

[Clyde Smith]

tamec, thanks for raising those questions and I get your point.

But the previous status of the brand is still unclear. The problem is, the picture that's starting to emerge is that what they're inventing is the premium status of whatever champagne is being repackaged as Armand de Brignac.

I.e., it appears that they may be taking a lesser product, possibly already marketed in the States at a low price point, renaming it, making up some things about the history and quality (i.e. note the multiple lies about the product in this scenario) and then marking the price up extravagantly so they can fleece the rubes who don't know any better.

Unfortunately there are some missing pieces making it difficult to establish the truth behind the claims, pieces that the mainstream press may or may not pick up successfully.

We'll know more (or not) soon, there is an AP writer working on this story who may or may not get any further than we have.

[tamec]

Clyde,
as someone who has worked in the liquor industry i think there's something important for you (and any other 'doubters') to understand. the price of most alcoholic products that aren't 100-year old champagnes (most Cristal being drunk right now is 10 years old or less, FYI) is made up of these components, in descending order of price:

1. taxes (about $26 for a standard case of 80-proof alcohol, though obv. less for lower alc. % products)
2. marketing (advertising, websites, PR, etc)
3. packaging: the bottle, the box or boxes, the labeling, etc.
4. the actual liquid. you may not want to believe it, but the liquid is the least expensive component of these four for any and all liquor or wine.

Champagne is an even fuzzier category than anything else, since it all is made from the same type of grapes from the same region. From a liquid standpoint, it's 99% a matter of which taste you happen to prefer rather than a "better" or "worse" standard. Based on volume pricing, I would be very surprised if a tiny 'unknown' brand like Armand de Brignac was spending any less per bottle than Cristal does to manufacture much larger quantities. If a bottle of Armand costs the importer just as much or more than a bottle of Cristal costs Roederer, the only reason anyone could say anything negative would be institutional bias, i.e. pre-programmed allegiance to established brands. That does happen, but not for defensible reasons.

[Clyde Smith]

tamec, I hear what you're saying and recognize that the cost of a luxury product, any product for that matter, isn't a simple equation of what it cost to produce and supply with a fair profit added.

In fact, luxury sales rely on all sorts of factors that are relatively intangible.

But, even given what you say, to claim that all French products from a particular region or tradition share the same level of actual quality and that all family traditions are equal in adding intangible value is difficult to take seriously.

Though I do take you seriously.

I should note that I agree, though the bottom line should be what the individual enjoys, a lot of pricey product is moved for entirely unrelated reasons.

[JOSE GUERRA]

NEW LINK TO THE VIDEO.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0nTW5L-R8U

[Clyde Smith]

Thanks, Jose.

[Wyldfluer]

Wow! Finally, a smart discussion about this issue!! Thanks for all the info.

I happen to have a bottle of Cattier which I bought on a recent trip to France/Monaco. Haven't tasted it yet, apprehensive to spoil my beautiful gold bottle, but, as for quality, let's not be fooled by the price. I think I paid around 40 Euro (around $65 US).
(I'm curious, Temac, whether a $65 bottle with taxes, fees, etc. could inflate enough to reasonably justify [reasonably is relative, I know] the possible $300 US sale price I've heard kicked around for Armand de Brignac.)
I was told in France & verified online, that Cattier is served on the Concord in 1st class & in other exclusive venues. I don't think the quality of the grapes is the issue here. People regularly partner with established brands to create private labels. And no one is trying to come between J (or JD) & making money, but the issue is this ruse they are seemingly perpetrating. Why lie?
We've already been hoodwinked, bamboozled & led astray! Et tu, Jay-Z????

[Wyldfluer]

Someone sent me this article:

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/111/open_bottled-up.html

Evidently Branson B has thrown his hat into the ring. (Remember that name from a few songs by Biggie [Rap Phenomenon], Diddy, etc.? I don't know if I even realized that was a real person.)

They did a tasting at an art show (Art on the Main) here in NYC a couple of weeks ago & I actually got to taste it. I loved the vintage.

Has anyone tried it?