It’s no secret why neighborhoods with heavy urban demographics and populations are plagued by unhealthy eating patterns. You can’t go a block without seeing a McDonald’s and you can’t go a minute without seeing some new ridiculous McDonald’s marketing campaign targeting urban lifestyle. But McDonald’s recent promotion with the Sprite Step Off tour takes things to a new level as they sponsor the DJ Battle where DJs are forced to spin…on top of gigantic Quarter Pounder and Big Mac boxes. See it to believe it.

Will.I.Am x Gillette. Will.I.Am of the Black Eye Peas is featured in the Gillette Uncut campaign that includes a series of short digital documentary films. The series “shows a side of artists that’s rarely, if ever, seen – going backstage to show how they prepare, including styling and grooming, and the moments of doubt they experience before taking the stage,” said Steve Fund, Gillette global marketing director.

The marketing campaign will also launch “Shave Like a Rock Star” shaving tutorials that will be integrated on Gillette’s website. Check out for the ads coming soon to TV and print. Watching the documentary, Will.I.Am does drop knowledge about marketing stating “as soon as you stop going and seeing what kids are gravitating towards then you loose your connection and prospective.”

JaRule x Wrong Side of Town. This straight-to-DVD flick stars wrestlers Batista and Rob Van Dam who regulate against a crew of thugs to get back a kidnapped girl. Check the clip here where Batista goes head-to-head against….Jeffrey Atkins? Yea. JaRule. How this is a fair fight to begin with baffles me. But then guns start a-blazin and Ja ends up with a hole in his head. Check the full trailer after the jump. DVD hits stores March 10th.

Continue Reading…

Paul Wall x Expensive Taste. Paul Wall’s Expensive Taste clothing brand might not be as popular as Pharrell’s BBC/Ice Cream or Clipse’s Play Cloths but he continues to do his thing his way. Here is a quick video of him at the MAGIC Las Vegas show giving a quick preview of his upcoming collection. You can check the full current collection over at ExpensiveTaste.net. Remember…this ain’t for the cheap.

Drake x Sprite. Sprite’s “Spark” campaign is an integrated marketing effort that includes TV, digital, and mobile applications aiming to give teens a platform to express their creativity through music and film. Drake was given his first worldwide endorsement deal with Sprite which involves commercials, participation at company events and to lead the Sprite “Spark” Music Project all of which will run in four major markets, Phillipines, Turkey, South Africa and the U.S.

“We looked at a lot of artists for this campaign,” says Joe Tripodi, chief marketing and commercial officer of the Coca-Cola Company. “As we filtered through, we realized we wanted someone with a breadth of interest across the globe — a new, fresh, young talent.”

“Drake’s ability to combine the purest rap with emotional R&B and coming from a child acting career in Canada to a worldwide music career was the ultimate spark in fresh thinking in the youth platform,” adds Katie Bayne, chief marketing officer of Coca-Cola North America.

The Sprite “Spark” Music Project which launches in March, is an online interactive music mixer that allows users to make their own tunes and remix music from Drake with emerging artists around the world. Drake is also partnering with Sprite for its “Step-Off” competition in Atlanta, which awards $1.5 million in college sponsorships.

The program has been running through historical Black colleges since last fall, Drake will make appearances as a judge and performer at the finale. So far Drake participated at the Sprite Slam Dunk Showdown during the NBA All-Star weekend as a judge and performed along side LeBron James check the jump for the performance.

This partnership will most likely help Drake promote his album Thank Me Later which is due later this year. Could the Sprite deal be as beneficial to Drake as Vitamin Water was to 50 cent?
Continue Reading…

Mariah Carey x US Olympics. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) marketing group and the US Olympic team have teamed up with Mariah Carey and her new video “100%” for promotional and marketing purposes. The song is also featured on AT&T Team USA Soundtrack.

Ludacris premieres his new video with some of the baddest chicks in the game Nicki Minaj being top priority playing Freddy Krueger. Do remember Battle of the Sexes drops March 9 and check the video after the jump.

Continue Reading…

Diddy is usually known for his ego and bravado but in a recent interview with Tim Westwood, a different Diddy side was shown…a humble one. In an unusual move, Diddy explains how he doesn’t expect to headline concert tours but in fact actually wants to open up for other artists. This is a huge difference for the man known to put on some of the most elaborate shows during the Bad Boy hey-days. But yes…those days are long gone. Diddy explained a bit more about his opening act desires.

“…and we wanna do shows and we wanna go on right before anybody who wants to open up for them. Whoever wants us to open up for them, we just wanna open up and we’ll take shorts on the money, we’ll make you a better performer.”

Of course in Diddy’s defense he’s not necessarily saying he alone would be an opening act but rather his handful of emerging artists that are being developed under the new Interscope deal. So yea…the days of imagining a “Diddy opening for Justin Bieber” show are never gonna happen. But first and foremost, Diddy is a business man and if he wants to launch new artists he knows the realities of getting them exposure.