Rappers make pitch for alcohol brands

Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES

In the video to Pitbull’s latest chart-topper, “Give Me Everything,” he pours a glass of Voli vodka, careful to display the label; in the lyrics and video for his single, “Rain Over Me,” he hails the vodka as the new “it” drink.

In both clips, the bottle takes center stage as the rapper is swarmed by flashing neon lights, svelte models and crooning pop wingmen.

Name-check references to the high life of liquor or drugs is nothing new to rap — a study released just weeks ago from the University of Pittsburgh and Dartmouth University found that for every hour that American teens listen to music, they hear more than three references to brand-name alcohol in rap/ R&B/ hip-hop lyrics. Brand associations have long been a symbol of status for performers. But Pitbull, like his contemporaries Sean “Diddy” Combs, Ludacris, Snoop Dogg and many others, have now taken it to the next level. Instead of just making references to the products they enjoy, they’re rapping about products they’re selling.

Pitbull has transformed his latest videos into not-so-subliminal ads for Voli, in which he owns a stake. He is the latest in a string of business-savvy rappers taking the phrase “popping bottles” to the bank by aligning themselves as spokesmen for liquors, often creating their own branded vanity lines.

“(Voli) gave me a great opportunity to be an owner of a brand that I really believed in,” said Pitbull, born Armando Christian Perez. He became part owner of the line of low-calorie fruit and fusion flavored vodkas in March. “That’s why I got involved with Voli. It’s in a market where it’s needed and everybody wants it.”

Artist-identified drinks are so much a part of club culture now that they are even causing beefs. In an online video released Oct. 1 that quickly went viral, Combs was seen cursing and throwing ice at a Grey Goose-drinking club-goer at a packed nightclub, angry that the partyer wasn’t drinking his brand, Ciroc. Combs has been an equal-share owner of Ciroc since 2007 and is a ruthless promoter. Ciroc has made appearances in his music videos and he’s mentioned the liquor hundreds of times recently on Twitter.

Combs, who declined to comment for this article, has since apologized on Twitter for the near-brawl captured on the video. But ruthless competition is part of the hip-hop hustle. Bragging rights, even survival, depend on sales, and liquor fits the aesthetic.