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Jay-Z, Will & Jada Pinkett Smith Signed as Producers for ‘Fela!’

Edwin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:07:03 +0000

Jay-Z x Fela. Jay-Z, Will Smith, and Jada Pinkett Smith present the Broadway musical “Fela!”. The trio are signed as producers for the show which is about Fela Anikulapo-Kuti’s controversial life as artist, political activist and revolutionary musician. According to the New York Times, there are no widely known stars in the cast, which makes the involvement of Jay-Z and the Smiths even more of a boon for marketing purposes.

No estimates on how much the stars invested in the project but last summer the show made its world premiere off-Broadway to sold out crowds so most likely Jay-Z and the Smiths will see a large return in investment.

The three stars will make a red carpet appearance at the show’s opening night at the Eugene O’Neill Theater next Monday, Nov. 23, a publicist for the production said. Check out a preview of what to expect from the Broadway musical by pressing play.

Questlove describes the broadway musical in a statement during last years showing as;

“its uncut. its true to the vision. its amazing! there is no option. i expect death to be the only reason why you did NOT see this production”

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The Blueprint to Jay-Z’s BP3 Marketing Campaign

Edwin — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:40:51 +0000

written by Edwin St. Fort

The success of The Blueprint 3 is highly credited to the marketing campaign behind it and to Jay-Z’s loyal fan base. Despite the album being leaked on the internet prior to its official release, The Blueprint 3 sold 476,000 copies in its first week of sales. The achievement help Jay-Z pass Elvis Presley to become the second artist with more No.1 albums in the 50 year history of the Billboard 200. The second week of sales resulted in 301,000 copies being sold dominating the Billboard #1 spot for two weeks straight. A month and a half later, Mr. Carter goes platinum selling nearly 1.3 million copies.

Let’s recap the blueprint to the marketing campaign that resulted in successful results. The key features to this campaign were strategic partnerships and media coverage. The release became more of an event rather than just another album on the shelf. It built anticipation and sustained momentum unlike many previous releases. To begin the buzz Jay-Z released “D.O.A” creating controversy to obtain the attention of listeners to usher in the following events.

Strategic Partnerships

Rhapsody

Jay-Z teamed up with Rhapsody® and MTV to promote the highly anticipated release of his new album, “The Blueprint 3”. As part of the partnership, the entire album will be available for fans to listen to for free on Rhapsody.com and from MTV’s “The Leak”, almost two weeks prior to its official release.

Fuse

FuseTV televised Jay-Z’s “Answer the Call” concert in Madison Square Garden in New York City. Fuse will air the concert at 9pm EST on September 11th. The event was sponsored by Absolute Vodka, Roc Nation, Live Nation, and Citi.

“ANSWER THE CALL” charity concert ticket sales and concert merchandise benefited the “New York Police and Fire Widows’ and Children’s Benefit Fund.” Airing in HD and commercial-free on the music television network FUSE, the wildly successful sold-out concert featured artists Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Rihanna, Kanye West, John Mayer, Pharrell Williams, Swizz Beatz, Kid Cudi and Memphis Bleek, and ranked among the highest-rated television programs in Fuse history.

MySpace Music and DJ Hero

Jay-Z performed at a secret show on September 10th at the Gramercy Theater on East 23rd Street in Manhattan, New York with help from MySpace Music and DJ Hero, it was announced barely 24 hours in advance, and 250 fans were given free tickets. The show was to promote the new game that also features songs from Jay-Z and Eminem.

Media Coverage

Jay-Z made high-profile appearances on HBO’s “Real Time With Bill Maher,” “Late Show With David Letterman,” BET’s “Food For Thought,” “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and performances on the MTV Video Music Awards and “The Jay Leno Show” according to publicist Jana Fleishman.

Tom Biro of MTV noted that after the VMA performance of “Empire State of Mind” the record immediately went to the #1 Top Song on iTunes for the next 6 days.

Jay-Z with Rihanna and Kayne West performed the second leading single “Run This Town” on “The Jay Leno Show” to an estimated 17.7 million viewers according to the Nielsen Company.

He also made a highly anticipated debut appearance on “The Oprah Winfrey Show, which builds upon their initial conversation in Brooklyn, New York’s Marcy Projects for O magazine. “The Oprah Winfrey Show” reaches 44 million people each week. And those numbers translate into big sales for the products Oprah recommends. The product placement during the shows airing generated 134,000 copies in the 3rd week of sales.

Mr. Carter also obtain media coverage from international sources making appearance on German and French television shows.

Merchandising & Touring

Jay-Z also capitalize off the merchandising for the album. He promoted the Blueprint 3 graphic tees on Myspace, Roc4Life, and on the Live Nation website. Pharrell’s clothing line Billionaire Boys Club, designed a custom graphic t-shirt in correlation with the two artist working on a track off the The Blueprint 3 titled “So Ambitious” which was made available starting September 23, 2009 on the BBC website. The 18 city tour around the U.S and Canada continues to keep the album afloat on the Billboard charts maintaining a top 10 position.

In conclusion as record labels marketing dollars decrease corporate sponsorships seem to give artist an outlet to market themselves to a different audience. As artist become brands, strategic partnerships with other companies are essential for their marketing plans. Companies benefit by finding a way to relate to their consumer and artist get to tap into different markets to obtain more listeners. Jay-Z’s marketing plan with the Blueprint 3 is a great example that demonstrates how great partnerships with other companies such as Rhapsody, Fuse, and DJ Hero can result in successful album sales. The “Answer The Call” concert also shows being philanthropic can also gain sales, you got to give to get. His recent performance at Yankee Stadium shows no limit to the corporate sponsorships he can obtain as he remains one of the biggest names in pop culture.

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VIDEO: Rocawear’s 2010 Spring/Summer Showroom

Yeti — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:03:49 +0000

Rocawear’s new 2010 Spring/Summer fashion line is displayed in all of its glory in the showroom. While the majority of hip-hop artist clothing lines have shut down due to the hard economic times, Jay-Z’s Rocawear continues to go hard. Via: Roc4Life

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MUSIC VIDEO: Jay-Z feat. Alicia Keys “Empire State of Mind”

Yeti — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 19:16:19 +0000

After all the anticipation the official “Empire State of Mind” video is finally here. If the World Series makes its way back to New York no doubt they will be playing this video at Yankee Stadium. Via: TRU & OnSmash

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VIDEO: Jay-Z & Alicia Keys perform “Empire State of Mind” at World Series

Yeti — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 06:56:40 +0000

Jay-Z and Alicia Keys make good on their promise to perform at the World Series in New York. They sang the current Yankees playoff anthem “Empire State of Mind” before Game 2. Guess they were a good luck charm since the Yanks tied the series 1-1. No word yet if Freeway will be performing in Philly for Game 3. Via: TSS

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VIDEO: Jay-Z & Eminem DJ HERO TV commercial

Yeti — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:40:01 +0000

Jay-Z x Eminem x DJ Hero. The marketing and media for DJ Hero is now in full swing. Here is the new TV ad featuring Eminem and Jay-Z.

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Jay-Z & Alicia Keys to perform “Empire State of Mind” at World Series

Yeti — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:26:04 +0000

The New York Yankees have invited Jay-Z and Alicia Keys to perform “Empire State of Mind” for Game One of the World Series this Wednesday at Yankee Stadium. The performance will be part of the Pre-Game events on the field before the Yankees and Phillies battle it out.

“Thank the good Lord for making me a Yankee,” an excited Jay-Z said of the pending performance in an interview on Monday.

Hopefully this doesn’t mean Jay-Z is going to try and buy ownership of the Yankees and move them to Brooklyn as well. The Yankees have been using “Empire State of Mind” as their theme song throughout the playoffs. Unfortunatley 98% of Yankees fans who can afford to go to the World Series have no idea who Jay-Z is.

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PICS: Jay-Z playing DJ Hero at launch event

Yeti — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 19:57:28 +0000

Wish I got this pic earlier so I could post with the story that DJ Hero sales projections are being cut in half. Don’t mean to be a downer though. Here is Jay himself promoting DJ Hero in New York at the Plaza Hotel earlier today. More pics after the jump…Via: Rap-Up

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DJ Hero Renegade Edition Eminem & Jay-Z x Shepard Fairey cover art & track listing

Yeti — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 20:45:26 +0000

Activision has just released the official Eminem & Jay-Z track listings for the upcoming DJ Hero Renegade Edition. The Renegade Edition will go for $199 and hits stores October 27th. Check the track listings after the jump. Here is the game cover which was designed by Shepard Fairey, artist of Obama’s HOPE poster.

DJ Hero Renegade: Jay-Z

“Ain’t No Nigga (featuring Foxy Brown)”
“Where I’m From”
“Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)”
“Jigga My Nigga (featuring Ruff Ryders)”
“I Just Wanna Love U (Give it 2 Me)”
“Izzo (H.O.V.A.)”
“03? Bonnie & Clyde (featuring Beyoncé Knowles)”
“Dirt Off Your Shoulder”
“Show Me What You Got”
“Roc Boys (And the Winner Is…)”
“Brooklyn Go Hard (Featuring Santigold)”
“D.O.A. (Death of Auto Tune)”

DJ Hero Renegade: Eminem

“Taking My Ball”
“Say Goodbye to Hollywood”
“Soldier”
“The Re-Up (featuring 50 Cent)”
“Rabbit Run”
“Get U Mad”
“Bad Guys Always Die (featuring Dr. Dre)”
“Public Enemy No. 1?
“Say What You Say (featuring Dr. Dre)”
“Lose Yourself”
“Hey Lady (featuring Obie Trice)”
“One Shot 2 Shot (featuring D-12)”

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Trick Daddy’s book “Magic City” set to release next year

Yeti — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 10:40:16 +0000

Trick Daddy x Magic City. Trick Daddy has been working on his upcoming autobiography “Magic City: Trials of a Native Son” for some time now but he assures his fans that it will be worth the wait. He recently revealed that the book is almost “98 percent” finished and will be released at the top of next year via MTV/Pocket Books.

“The book is my lifestyle and what I’ve seen,” Trick Daddy said of the upcoming book. “It’s like the autobiography of the whole Miami, before me and while I’m here. It’s the Scarface, The King of New York, The First 48, all the things you’ve ever heard about Miami all in a bubble. All raw, it’s real and respectable to the point it will make you think, so that’s how it was. It’s 98 percent wrapped, pressed, and ready to go.”

Aside from the autobiography Trick Daddy is also busy getting ready to release his first graphic novel about the superhero called Nann. Artists signing book deals is nothing new but recently there have been a flurry of hip-hop artists signed to major publishers to write more of these graphic novels, memoirs, autobiographies and lyric books more than ever before. Jay-Z’s recent book deal with Random House calls for three books to be published and Q-Tip is set to release “Industry Rules” later on as well.

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VIDEO: Rocawear 10th Anniversary Campaign

Yeti — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 21:43:54 +0000

Jay-Z and his Rocawear celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the clothing line in style. Check this video which takes us from back when Rocawear first launched to the latest plans for the future.

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PICS: Entire BBC x The Blueprint 3 Jay-Z tees

Yeti — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 00:04:36 +0000

Last week Pharrell gave a sneak peek at one of his three sBillionaire Boys Club t-shirt collaboration with Jay-Z’s “The Blueprint 3″ album release. Now you can check all three of the shirts that are currently available in Japan (but will be making their way to the US) for $72 a pop. Here is the first (Front and back)…check the others after the jump….

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VIDEO: The making of Jay-Z’s “Blueprint 3″ cover

Yeti — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:02:30 +0000

Nice to know everything is not Photochopped up these days. Here is a cool little piece on the making of Jay-Z’s album “The Blueprint III” which will be Jay’s 11th #1 album according to SoundScan. Those artists calling him old can only wish they could move a fraction of the units he does. Props to KissMyBlackAds for the video.

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DJ Hero presents free Jay-Z concert

Yeti — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 10:33:14 +0000

Of course the chances of you getting actual tickets are slim to none since they are only going to the first 200 people. Activision continues the marketing ramp up for the upcoming DJ Hero with this free Jay-Z show in New York on 9/9 which is also in partnership with MySpace. The online social networking site is a huge sponsor for the upcoming game and will continue to heavily promote DJ Hero in the online space. If you want a shot at the tix and live in NY go to MySpace.com/DJ.

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VIDEO: FUSE TV’s Jay-Z “Answer the Call” Commercial

Yeti — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 10:43:10 +0000

Jay-Z is all over the net these days. Another TV ad for another Jay-Z event. Via: Broken Cool

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