Show Me What You Got

Ten years after the debut of his first album and almost three years after his retirement as a rapper, Jay-Z is ready for a come back with his new album Kingdom Come expected to be released on November 21. According to the rapper, currently the president of Def Jam Records and owner of the apparel line Rocawear, his decision to return from retirement was dictated by the need in the rap industry for “certain events” that would help sustain the industry and keep it alive.” You need [Dr.] Dre albums, you need Eminem albums you need 50 [Cent] albums, you need big artists, you need major events that happen... So when I look at it in those terms, I believe that an album is needed."

The debut video form the album, Show Me What You Got, ran on MTV for the first time on October 16 and since then has attracted a lot of media attention. Unfortunately (for the artist), the song has been mentioned mainly in articles about blatant product placement. The fact that made some critics write sharp comments on the video is that the release of Show Me What You Got coincided with the announcement that the music/fashion/basketball mogul had signed a deal with Anheuser-Busch to become co-brand director for their Budweiser Select label. Interestingly enough, the video, starring NASCAR’s Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Indy Racing’s Danica Patrick, has Bud Select logo worked into various scenes, such as on his speedboat or in a cloud formation in the skies over Monaco. What is more, on the day the video was released on MTV an ad for Bud Select appeared for the first time during Monday Night Football. Even the most naïve person would think that this is already too much of a coincidence. And the media are not among the most gullible, nor do they leave such things unnoticed.

Another fact that could hardly remain unnoticed is that Dale Earnhardt Jr. (already an odd choice for a Jay Z video) is sponsored by Budweiser. This turns Show Me What You Got from a pure commercial into “an act of corporate synergy”, according to GIANT Magazine which also suggests that the deal between the rapper and the beer-manufacturer has been planned way in advance.

And if this were not enough, there is another alcohol brand reoccurring in the video – Armand de Brignac Champagne, or as Jay-Z poetically calls it in the lyrics of the song – "Gold Bottles of that Ace of Spades." The PR agents of both Jay-Z and the luxury champagne manufacturer were fast to deny that the appearance of the easily-distinguishable golden bottle both in the lyrics and in the video was a “a case of product placement as Armand de Brignac and Jay-Z have not entered into any agreement, sponsorship or otherwise."

However, it is interesting to note that Armand de Brignac Champagne became a signature brand of the rapper only after a very public split between him and Cristal winery’s managing director, Frédéric Rouzaud. The reason for the split was the fact that Rouzaud did not want the name of his premium champagne so closely associated with the rapper. In response to that, in the climax of the video of Show Me What You Got, Jay-Z makes a show of rejecting a bottle of Cristal and instead choosing Armand de Brignac. Unlike his colleague form Cristal, Armand de Brignac’s President/CEO Brett Berish said that “We're delighted to have someone of Jay-Z's stature include Armand de Brignac in the first video for his new album.” He continued to mention that the rapper has always been known for his excellent, hard-to-satisfy taste and the fact that he has chosen Armand’s Champagne was a proof of its excellent quality. Berish ended with the comment that “Armand's unmatched taste and package are a perfect fit for the video.”

No matter whether this was another carefully planned product placement or simply a way to punish Cristal’s arrogance, one thing is for sure, demand for Armand de Brignac Champagne, which is making its debut in North America this year, is now on its raise, undoubtedly due to the appearance of the “Gold Bottle” (a.k.a. “Ace of Spades” or simply “Ace”) in Show Me What You Got.