Music marketing campaigns that came out on top
1. Chase & Status - Return 2 Jungle 2018/19
The Chase & Status - Return to Jungle campaign really is the gift that keeps on giving. The campaign oozed and accentuated culture, bringing people together from all walks of life to appreciate the history of jungle and drum and bass. Documenting the production of the album in Jamaica and the release of ‘The Originals’ LP provided in-depth insight into the influence of jamacian dancehall and reggae music in the UK jungle and drum and bass scene. Releasing 3 tracks before the launch, one at a time, starting in August 2018 built up great anticipation for the full album launch in January 2019. Combined with sell-out events and merchandise, that also led onto NHS fundraising merch during the Covid crisis, this campaign cannot be faulted and continues to be developed today.
2. Dizzee Rascal - Raskit Guerilla Marketing Campaign 2017
A big fan of using guerilla marketing techniques in music marketing, the outdoor aspect of Dizzee Rascal’s - Raskit campaign really lured me in. Using posters, nationwide billboards and projections onto key London landmarks ensured the build-up to the gained a lot of attention from the general public, fans and non-fans alike. The mysterious aspect of using 727548 (Raskit typed on a phone keyboard) started a frenzy between fans and on social media, long before Dizzee announced what it meant and changed the site to Raskit.co.uk. This mysteriousness continued with short clips of audio and video, that kept a continuous string of content that engaged fans up to the launch date.
3. Bacardi & Major Lazer Brand Collaboration
Long standing brand collaboration between Bacardi & Major Lazer is a prime example of artists and brands working well together. This collaboration campaigns that followed brilliantly captured the culture of both the roots of the music and the roots of Bacardi. The launch campaign of them working together called ‘The sound of Rum’ back in 2017 saw the release of a limited edition Bacardi Major Lazer rum and also the MusicLiberatesMusic initiative helping to provide more studio time to Caribbean artists. Fast forward to 2019 and the collaboration is still going strong with the launch of the ‘Pass the beats’ campaign launching Major Lazer's new track ‘Make it hot’, the perfect summer anthem combined with the perfect summer rum cocktail.
4. Ariana Grande - Sweetener 2018
The Ariana Grande - Sweetener campaign makes great use of the Landmark app and technology designed to allow fans to unlock exclusive content from specific locations. She utilised this technology by placing billboards around London with hidden data to scan with the app. This sent fans on a treasure hunt around London to unlock exclusive content and competitions in the lead up to the launch via unlockthesweetner.com. A virtual poster version was also available for people based outside of London.