R&B singer Chris Brown has a top 10 hit out at the moment called “Forever”. It’s actually number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 right now, and it’s gaining in popularity. It may even reach #1.
The strange thing is, “Forever” is part of a deep mental product placement scheme. Brown is one of three pop stars hired by ad agency Translation Advertising to help upgrade the sagging images of the Wrigley gum brands. All three singers have created new songs based on jingles from Wrigley’s past.
The song’s chorus contains a line that seems at first to be a clever reference to the old Doublemint gum jingle: “Double your pleasure/double your fun”. The placement was intentional though, to prime the listeners to be receptive to the Chris Brown Doublemint jingle featured in commercials coming out next month. The song was released in April, and it’s commercial origins were only just reveled recently.
The Wall Street Journal reports:
The campaign was conceived and executed by Mr. Stoute, a former senior executive at Interscope Records who counts rapper Jay-Z as a partner in his business. 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.
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I think it is a smart marketing tactic, but I wonder if fans be upset to learn that a song they’ve paid for on iTunes is actually just one big advertisement.
http://www.unboundedition.com/content/view/7264/50/
July 29th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
Really sick idea.. I predict that we will see political nominee slogans and ads woven into popular music too soon…
July 31st, 2008 at 11:43 am
if it’s a catchy good song, i think fans will like it regardless if it’s a spot for chewing gum. i find myself singing the “give me break/KitKat” jingle whenever i’m cleaning up around the house.
August 19th, 2008 at 9:54 am