You could be forgiven for confusing the No. 1 song in the country with a commercial.
But a commercial for what? After all, “Lean Back” by Terror Squad includes references to Rolls Royce’s Phantom, the BMW 740, Gucci sweaters and a Gulfstream G4 jet. The No. 2 song on the charts, meanwhile, “Sunshine” by Lil’ Flip, has enough car references to fill out a motorcade: Maybach, Chevy Impala and Bentley.
That’s a lot of name-dropping for any three-minute song. But it’s not uncommon these days, as brand names from Cartier to Cool Whip find their way into hip-hop and pop songs. Agenda Inc., a San Francisco-based marketing company, found that 59 different brands had been mentioned 645 times in the songs that have made it onto the Billboard Top 20 chart so far this year.
“You see a lot of high-end and a lot of low-end brands,” says Lucian James, the founder and president of Agenda Inc., which specializes in harnessing pop culture to hone brand images. James says the rise of brands in popular music is directly tied to the rise of hip-hop.
“The story of a lot of hip-hop is what I’ve got now as opposed to what I used to have,” he said. “That’s why Kmart and Payless Shoe stores come up.”
Chuck D famously said that rap is the black CNN, and James says that helps explain why rap contains so many brand references: “It talks about the here and now, rather than eternal themes of love and death.”
The top brand so far this year is a beverage more suited to a younger crowd–Hennessy, a brand of cognac that has been mentioned 47 times in the songs that have cracked the Billboard Top 20. Coming in a close second is Cadillac, at 44 mentions. The car company says it’s hard to estimate the value of such publicity, but it’s certainly a good thing.
“It’s worth a lot in terms of exposing the Cadillac brand to that useful [hip-hop] audience,” said Rob Minton, a spokesman for the luxury carmaker. “We’ve made no secret of the fact that we’re trying to reach a younger audience with our brand and our products, and music, with the lyrics or videos, has helped us do that.”
Cadillac pulled off the impressive feat of topping Mercedes Benz in song mentions this year. For years, Mercedes was a favorite for its effortless blend of style and prestige. But the brand this year has slipped behind not only Cadillac but also Rolls Royce and Jaguar.
James, from Agenda, says one reason could be that the price point for songs mentioned in hip-hop songs is rising at the same time as Mercedes is diluting its brand with less expensive cars. But the $350,000 Maybach, a car by a Mercedes subsidiary, is gaining references this year specifically because it’s so exclusive.
The brand categories most likely to end up in songs are automotive, fashion and beverages. In the fashion world, Gucci has taken the top spot with 35 song mentions this year, dethroning Louis Vuitton–which, let’s face it, is a much tougher rhyme.
Most brands welcome the association. It’s been particularly helpful to Polaroid, which is trying to reinvent itself in the age of digital photography and was famously mentioned last year in OutKast’s No. 1 song, “Hey Ya!” Polaroid spokesman Skip Colcord won’t reveal if the song boosted sales of Polaroid cameras, but he said, “It helped raise the profile of our brand and was a positive influence on it.”
Hip-hop: Music to the marketers ears
A few facts about brand names in pop music, from Agenda Inc., a San Francisco-based marketing company:
– The most branded song so far this year is Twista’s “Overnight Celebrity,” featuring nine brand references: Apple Bottom Jeans, BCBG, Bebe, Gucci, Jimmy Choo, Marc Jacobs, MTV, Range Rover and Roberto Cavalli.
– Fashion brands got more mentions in the first six months of this year (200 total) than any other category. The leader among fashion brands was Gucci (26 references), closely followed by Nike (24).
– Cadillac made a big leap forward among auto brands this year, with
41 mentions in the first six months, compared to four at the same time last year. Rolls Royce was a distant second, at 26.
– Hennessy has shot up the charts this year with 39 mentions, making the cognac the most-referenced beverage brand. Far behind were Seagram’s gin and Cristal, with 11 mentions each.
– Consumers are sophisticated about which brands fit which artists. “50 Cent should be rapping about Mercedes and Gucci,” says Lucian James of Agenda. “However, if Missy Elliott starts rapping about Swiffers and AT&T, consumers are going to be suspicious.”
– Only one Top 20 non-hip-hop song referenced a brand this year. It was Jessica Simpson’s “With You,” with this line: “The real me is a southern girl with her Levis on and an open heart.”
– Most bizarre brand reference of last year: Eminem’s “Superman,” which went, “Put anthrax on your Tampax/and slap you till you can’t stand.”
–THE BALTIMORE SUN
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Edited by Cara DiPasquale (cdipasquale@tribune.com) and Ben Delery (bdelery@tribune.com)
