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Billionaire
: The rapper
Kanye West
, who now calls himself Ye, repeatedly provokes public abuse.
He is currently in a battle with Adidas over the joint Yeezy collection.
Photo:
Brandon Magnus/Getty Images
It is a bizarre social media campaign that the US rapper
Kanye West
(45) is currently conducting against Adidas, the outgoing CEO
Kasper Rorsted
(60) and other group managers.
The star feels betrayed by the German group, Adidas simply continued to use its designs and included it too little, although both have had a lucrative business relationship under the Yeezy label for years.
"It will cost you billions if I leave," the superstar threatened via Instagram;
He would be due $500 million in royalties over the next year alone.
Huge numbers that Adidas does not want to comment on request, just as little as the argument with the rapper, who now only calls himself Ye.
Even if the fantastic numbers aren't quite right.
The fact is: The partnership, which is scheduled to run until 2026, is quite profitable.
Adidas helped Ye become a billionaire.
And the rapper has helped the company not only sell Yeezy sneakers for big bucks — he also gives Adidas credibility in hip-hop culture.
No other German brand does this better.
Adidas leads the hip-hop ranking of the specialist consulting agency The Ambition, behind US rival Nike.
The study - which is available exclusively to manager magazin - is based on a survey of more than 2000 hip-hop-affine people between the ages of 12 and 49, who were asked to rate 160 brands in terms of relevance, potential and cultural credibility.
It is hardly surprising that the sporting goods manufacturers are at the top of the ranking;
Puma and New Balance are also in the top ten.
Their marketing professionals have been trying for years to anchor them in the scene.
As a pioneer in the industry, Adidas already cooperated with the US rappers Run DMC in the 1980s, and further collabs with hip-hop stars followed later.
Nike also used to work with Kanye West – until he publicly fell out with the then CEO
Mark Parker
(66) and switched to Adidas.
The sneaker manufacturers not only used the rap and hip-hip stars as advertising faces, but also included them in the design.
Many other brands have copied this successful model over the years, and it's no longer just sporting goods manufacturers.
"The results show a clear trend," says
Lara Muhn
, who oversaw the study as head of strategy at The Ambition.
"In 2022, marketing alone will no longer be enough to generate lasting relevance in hip hop."
The brands would have to take into account what people want from the culture as early as the product development stage in order to be able to play a real role.
That can then pay off: more than two-thirds of all young people between the ages of 12 and 24 in Germany identify with hip-hop culture.
The German soft drink and snack manufacturer 4Bro has specifically made use of the mechanisms.
In the ranking, 4Bro comes in third place overall - ahead of Red Bull in fourth place.
"A small miracle when you compare the marketing efforts of the two companies," the study authors said.
Overall, however, the soft drink manufacturers enjoy a similarly high level of credibility as the sneaker manufacturers: with Coca-Cola, Rockstar and Monster, a total of five brands are among the top eleven.
Mercedes-Benz has the highest cultural credibility among car manufacturers - but only in 25th place overall. Compared to last year, BMW managed to overtake Lamborghini.
The Munich-based company would be perceived as an "attacker brand", according to the consultants.
The marketing people had shown good instincts when partnerships with the US rapper
Nas
(49) and collabs with the US designer Ronnie Fieg and his brand Kith: Kith exclusively designed a limited special model of the BMW M4 Competition.
Above all, however, BMW benefited from the hype surrounding the BMW E30, which artists such as
Frank Ocean
(34),
Tyler the Creator
(31) and
Travis Scott
(31) conjured up as their favorite car.
Other brands also benefit from this effect: The cognac brand Hennessey is sung about in various tracks as well as the luxury watches from Rolex ("Roli") or designer brands like Gucci.
Tuned Mercedes AMG appear in many videos, which strengthens the aura of the brand.
And the fast-food chain McDonald's was happy because Kanye West brackered his sherp tank through a McDrive in a Superbowl commercial – and the German rapper
Luciano
(28) in the music video for his song "Schmetterling" in a branch of the company.
Such inherent praise probably has the greatest impact on cultural credibility—it's just that it's hard to control.
Of course, the thoughts and desires revolve more around sneakers, soft drinks and luxury items.
"But that doesn't mean that other brands don't have a chance of gaining cultural credibility in the scene," the authors of the study sum up.
A successful example: the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG).
Not exactly sexy, actually.
But through clever communication via social media channels and offensive commercials, the company struck a chord.
The reward: The BVG are not considered high-flyers in the hip-hop community - but with rank 91 they are significantly cooler than Volkswagen (rank 125) or Lufthansa (rank 156).
