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Hip-Hop News Plus Tupac Shakur Info |
Street Team: How-to 3D Displays & Placing in Stores
Scenario and Cross-Eyed Joe share some cool ideas and techniques.
If you're interested in joining the Strange Music Street Team, email:
streetteams@strangemusicinc.com
The Ypulse Youth Marketing Mashup, a conference focused on "marketing to youth with technology" occurring June 1st and 2nd in San Francisco, has added an Urban/Multicultural Pre-Conference including folks like Fast Company's Lynne d Johnson and the Hip Hop Chess Federation's Adisa Banjoko, both of whom have been given a lot of attention at ProHipHop over the years.
Ypulse is also running interviews related to the conference, such as:
Ypulse Interview: Daryl Butler, Marketing Director, Retail Brand, Nike
It looks like a great conference and you can get a ProHipHop 10% discount off conference fees by entering the secret code: HIPHOP
If you cover the event, be sure to drop me a link to your coverage at:
hiphoppress(at)netweed(dot)com
Chris Brown, Julianne Hough & Ne-Yo at Nokia Theater, NY for Wrigley
Technically this story is off topic because I don't cover RnB. However, I've been remiss in posting about the topic of corporate sponsored urban music, largely because I've made the classic blogger mistake of saving links for a more comprehensive post in the future, and need to start writing about what has become a major marketing trend in both rap and RnB.
Months have passed with a steady stream of relevant links [to which I will return, he said, LOL hysterically] and developments have reached the point where it turns out that a popular single, Chris Brown's Forever, is an extended version of a new Doublemint jingle written by Mr. Brown that is "scheduled to begin airing next month in 30-second spots for Wrigley's green-packaged chewing gum":
"Mr. Brown was commissioned to write and sing both the pop song and a new version of the Doublemint jingle...Mr. Brown updated the jingle and recorded it with hip-hop producer Polow Da Don. Then, during the same Los Angeles recording sessions in February, paid for by Wrigley, Mr. Brown added new lyrics and made a 4½-minute rendition of the tune, titled 'Forever.'"
"In April... Jive, released the song to radio stations and digital download services as a single. After the song became a hit, Jive added it to his 2007 album, 'Exclusive,' and re-released the album in June. 'Forever' reached No. 4 on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 chart last week."
Some folks are upset about this turn of events including Hashim Warren who feels that the single should have been released with some form of disclosure.
I'm not sure what to think though this does feel like a rather shady moment in music-related marketing.
Jay-Z's partner in Translation Advertising, Steve Stoute, is given credit for the campaign:
"The idea was to connect the hit song and the jingle in listener's minds. That way, Mr. Stoute says, 'by the time the new jingle came out, it was already seeded properly within popular culture.'"
Wow. Hashim got seeded by Steve Stoute!
For Chris Brown, there was no need to break a sweat:
"Mr. Brown said in an email that he wrote 'Forever' and the related jingle in about 30 minutes each. 'I actually thought it would take longer to write a jingle they would like,' he wrote. 'But they said it was a perfect fit after the first try.'"
Over at Hip Hop Press
Recording Superstars to Remake Iconic Doublemint,
Juicy Fruit and Big Red Gum Jingles
[Photo Courtesy Business Wire]
Playboy Brand on FogScreen Projection Screen
FogScreen is currently presenting a new branding and sponsorship program at the 2008 Nightclub & Bar Convention and Trade Show utilizing its Inia and One projection screens.
From the press release:
"For the first time, FogScreen, Inc. is partnering with key brands to create experiential and interactive branding and sponsorship opportunities within select nightclubs and bars. Through this partnership, FogScreen will launch its products as a new branding and sponsorship media that is more dynamic and interactive than any other method in the industry..."
"FogScreen will be showcasing their technology at The Las Vegas Nightclub & Bar Convention and Trade Show at booth #6126 on the showroom floor."
No word on the actual brand partners but this is a smart move if they can pull it off. They have a media platform so why not start a marketing network?
[Playboy Brand for illustration only. Photo courtesy FogScreen.]
Meatball Sundae: Is Your Marketing Out of Sync?
Seth Godin has a new book coming out December 27th called Meatball Sundae: Is Your Marketing Out of Sync?. It seems to be targeted towards folks trying to bring smart web marketing to slow moving corporations.
I'm in a web seminar with Seth which is going over schedule after an hour. I already know I'm not going to sum this up. I'll link to all the great posts that I'm sure will come out of this later.
The webinar is being hosted by Kevin Ryan, VP, Global Content Director for Search Engine Strategies and Search Engine Watch and he's adding a nice element, not overly intrusive but making great comments at appropriate points.
Some moments:
Seth responded to my question about what he had to say to the disruptors by suggesting we not get too far ahead of ourselves if we want the masses to be able to catch up [and give us their money, ed.]. He gave Twitter as a great example of the breaking edge having no connection to the masses.
I love it when Seth drops names like Josiah Wedgwood.
Kevin shared a quick anecdote about being in a meeting in which a $16 million traditional marketing campaign going an additional $16 mil over was taken in stride while his request for $200k for search marketing was greeted with a stern lecture about staying within one's budget!
Seth talked about Facebook as a platform for permission marketing and about the shift to contacting people the way they want to be contacted as key for marketers who want to thrive.
[See Chris Anderson for why all marketers must get up to speed on this issue.]
I love hearing Kevin chuckling in the background.
I'll be back with links.
Big ups to Seth for so generously sharing his time and attention. Seth's books are like Diddy parties, the announcement is automatically news and he gets lots of link love, so he doesn't have to do this. It just really seems to be where he's at.
Great work Kevin!
Related Coverage:
Video of Seth Godin discussing Meatball Sundae at the Mixx Conference [haven't checked this out yet].
Related ProHipHop Coverage:
Seth Godin On The Dip: When to Quit & When to Stick
7 Days of Seth Godin at Hear 2.0: Radio & The Dip
I decided to share a few of my thoughts and some interesting quotes over at Fast Company regarding the terrorist attack by operatives of the Aqua Teen Hunger Force on the good people of Boston:
Guerilla Marketing in Post 9/11 America
Over at my entertainment marketing blog at Fast Company, I did a piece last week about marketing to attendees at the Sundance Film Festival with absolutely no references to any films, actors or directors attending Sundance (other than Mr. Redford, of course):
Ambush Marketers, Swag Suites & HP at Sundance
The recent death of Disco D got me thinking about artists in the Detroit area who have passed and so the announcement of the rebranding of Detroit to position it as a stronger tourist destination caught my attention.
It's one of those rare instances where a press release is actually full of useful information:
The brand positioning and its graphic representation: "D. Cars, Culture, Gaming, Music, Sports," was introduced at the Bureau's annual membership meeting...
"The brand identity resulted from surveys of more than 1,300 visitors and focus groups in five cities that identified Detroit as "the American city where cool comes from," said Alexander. "This identity focuses on five strengths that best set us apart from other cities -- our auto and music heritage, our distinctive cultural product, Vegas-style gaming, and sports. Together, these strengths, delivered the way metro Detroit delivers them, give us a rare opportunity to own a very powerful and compelling idea -- and that's the first order of business in building a world-class tourism brand identity."
It's worth checking out to get a quick sense of the research behind such a decision and how they will implement their findings. For example, they're using the phrase D. Cars, Culture, Gaming, Music, Sports and the above graphic not as a slogan but as "an identity reinforcing the assets that define Detroit's 'cool'." In a sense, it's an organizing idea rather than a marketing slogan.
The decision to focus on a specific demographic group, 21 to 34 year olds, rather than on tourists in general makes a lot of sense. Unlike baby boomers, for example, many of whom would fixate on the deterioration of Detroit, younger folks might indeed be open to a new view.
I've got a new post up at Fast Company on Billboard Bands' nightclub wristband advertising network.
Now that I've switched gears at Fast Company to focus on Entertainment Marketing, I decided to start with an in-depth look at the marketing of Disney's High School Musical:
Marketing High School Musical, Pt. 1: The Movie
Marketing High School Musical, Pt. 2: The Concert
With that out of my system, I'm planning to do a post or two on marketing at the Sundance Film Festival followed by an introduction to mixtape marketing. Given the potential turmoil associated with the RIAA mixtape arrests, I think it might be good to use Fast Company to educate those unfamiliar with the concept and context.
A new edition of Change This is out including Co-Creation Rules! by James Cherkoff and Johnnie Moore that emphasizes an "open source" approach to marketing in which the company and the consumer engage in the creation of meaning. Or something like that.
I couldn't get behind all of the broad opening statements but most of the manifesto presents a useful series of points designed to help companise understand the contemporary consumer's mindset.
Also worth noting is Elisa Camahort's Women Bloggers: Changing Their Worlds, Changing the World about BlogHer, a community of women bloggers.
The following press releases offer excellent example of branded projects that move marketing away from advertising.
Red Bull Energy Drink selects BIG HOUSE for Its Cutting-Edge Multisensory Marketing Program - Red Bull MusicLabs
Red Bull Energy Drink selects BIG HOUSE film and photography studio in San Francisco to host its cutting-edge multisensory marketing program, Red Bull MusicLabs, a state-of-the-art hands-on music lab for up-and-coming recording artists across the country.
Official Site:
Red Bull MusicLabs
Viacom's MTV Networks Announces Landmark Content & Advertising Alliance With China's #1 Search Engine Baidu
As part of the agreement, MTV will provide the first-ever branded area featured on Baidu - MTV Zone, which will include advertising at launch by Motorola and P&G. This deal extends MTVN China's digital media position, where MTV has 100% reach of the country's mobile subscribers through partnerships with China Mobile and China Unicom.
Official Site:
MTV China
Universal Music Special Markets and Energizer(R) Bring Music and Video to Energizer(R) Back-to-School Promotion With CD-ROM, Web Radio, Video Channel and Free-With-Purchase Music Downloads
The Energizer Back-to-School 2006 promotion launched in June includes a mini CD-ROM, Web radio and video plus downloads -- and all of the music and artists are from Universal Music Group, the world's largest music company. Universal Music Special Markets has provided the 20 music related questions and tracks for the "Name That Tune" game on the CD-ROM, 120 recordings for the three Web radio channels and 25 music videos for the Web video channel plus song downloads from its extensive digital catalog.
Official Site:
Energizer Music
One of the weirdest things I encounter in running Hip Hop Press is that the disclaimers about confidentiality that folks add to their email templates to cover various legal concerns are often left on when they email press releases.
Now I'm trying not to pick on small fry cause my heart's with them but I just got an excellent example from the BBC.
The email subject line reads:
2Pac Day on 1Xtra - 13th Sept 2006 - please plug where you can
The disclaimer at the end of the email reads, in part:
This e-mail (and any attachments) is confidential and may contain
personal views which are not the views of the BBC unless specifically
stated. If you have received it in error, please delete it from your system.
Do not use, copy or disclose the information in any way nor act in
reliance on it and notify the sender immediately.
I'm not saying this is a big deal or anything and I'm actually not picking on the BBC or 1Xtra. It's just one of those odd things I've always wanted to mention.
Tricia Mangan of Studio UES has been quite busy since I first posted about her music industry and marketing blog. Among other items:
Tricia rounds up a group of services for indie artists and small labels including some mobile options.
She discusses "Five reasons every artist should have a blog"
And describes one band's "EP-a-month" program for deepening fan relations and building income.
There's a new discussion group at Yahoo created by Michael Miraflor (of Hip Hop Blogs and other significant pursuits) for those interested in Hip Hop and Advertising, especially online:
This group will be used to educate, inform, and facilitate the exchange of ideas and information about the hip hop ad game. Whether your goal is to cover your serving costs, blow up into something serious, make connects, or ramble on about the latest wack "urban-targeted" ad campaign on the internets, this is your outlet and community resource. Only serious and dedicated ad kids, bloggers, publishers, and new media heads need apply.
It's a wide open, newbie friendly conversation in the early stages amongst an enthusiastic group ranging from bloggers to marketers. You can check out the discussion without registering to see if it's your kind of thing.
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