Top 8 Biggest Brand Partnerships For Dancehall Artistes This Decade
In the last ten years, despite the fluctuation in Jamaica’s economy, some of the world’s most renowned international companies and brands have pinpointed Jamaica as their newest channel for expansion into the Caribbean and Latin America. Since 2010, major brands like Pepsi and CoverGirl – and thriving new brands like Fenty by Rihanna – have sought and secured brand partnerships with popular and internationally-acclaimed Dancehall artistes and upcoming stars to bolster their introduction into the Caribbean market.
International brand partnerships for Dancehall artistes, which are usually attached to an overarching marketing campaign, have and continue to boost Jamaica’s economy through increased visibility and opportunities for endorsement and sponsorship for the named ambassadors; the creation of temporary and permanent employment for citizens; and, of course, a greater attraction to Dancehall music and Jamaican culture and tourism.
Among the myriad international brand partnerships, these eight brand ambassadorships have made the biggest waves by either achieving debut regional partnerships, huge financial gain, or worldwide virality.
1. Koffee for Mastercard
As the youngest Reggae Grammy award winner, Koffee, continues to sell and set records in her three-year, but seemingly overnight, rise to fame. With a Grammy award-winning album (Rapture), several international tours, and a collection of hit songs in her repertoire, the 20-year-old Reggae artiste has flipped the somber motif of 2020 as the first brand ambassador in the Caribbean for the international financial services corporation.
Despite worldwide financial uncertainty caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19), Mastercard continues to advocate for financial literacy – particularly among millennials in the Caribbean – and has officially stated that this partnership coincides with their investment in the Jamaican music industry, gender inclusion, and female empowerment.
2. Busy Signal for Pepsi-Cola Jamaica, Guinness and Smirnoff
Busy Signal has become one of the household names of Dancehall since his debut in the early 2000s. As a versatile artiste who mastered both Dancehall and Reggae industries, he quickly gained recognition as a wholesome representation of Jamaican music and culture. In the last decade, Busy has partnered with several major international brands, which led to him headlining national tour campaigns worldwide, appearing in commercials, and voicing official soundtracks and theme songs. His biggest partnerships were forged with Pepsi-Cola Jamaica, Guinness and Smirnoff.
Busy’s partnership with Pepsi-Cola began in 2011 for the Pepsi Bubbla campaign to launch Pepsi’s new product, Pepsi Bubbla. Having voiced the campaign’s theme song, the artiste secured yet another partnership with Pepsi for ‘The Joy of Cola’ campaign – the theme song for which he also voiced in a Reggae-inspired rendition of the brand’s song originally recorded in 1999.
Continuing his partnership with Pepsi, Busy’s hit 2013 single, Watch Out Fi Dis (Bumaye) – recorded in collaboration with Major Lazer – was chosen by the multinational corporation for its 2014 Live For Now campaign for the World Cup.
Opening doors for greater partnerships through his collaboration with Pepsi-Cola, Busy later secured brand partnerships with Irish stout brand Guinness as its first Jamaican brand ambassador in 2016; and with Smirnoff for its Smirnoff Ice advertising campaigns in Europe for which his 2016 single, Watch Me Now, served as the campaign’s theme song.
3. Shenseea for Fenty X Savage
Dancehall star Shenseea continues to secure major international brand partnerships following her prior collaboration with Pepsi-Cola Jamaica. The 23-year-old entertainer has just been named the first Jamaican brand ambassador for lingerie brand Fenty X Savage from international music and fashion icon Rihanna.
This partnership comes almost a month after her appointment as the newest brand ambassador for UK-based clothing retailer PrettyLittleThing. Despite having emerged in Dancehall only four years ago, Shenseea has cultivated a highly demanded image in the Dancehall industry and music industry worldwide.
4. Tifa for CoverGirl Jamaica
Dancehall Diva Tifa is no stranger to brand partnerships. Throughout her career, Tifa has partnered with major corporations and brands including Digicel Jamaica and CoverGirl Jamaica. As the first brand ambassador from the Caribbean for CoverGirl, Tifa joined renowned female entertainers Issa Rae and Zendaya in representing the beauty and cosmetics brand in 2019. As the face of CoverGirl in Jamaica, she represents the brand’s latest #IAmWhatIMakeUp campaign.
5. Shenseea for Pepsi-Cola Jamaica
Popular Dancehall star Shenseea has copped many milestones since the start of her Dancehall career in 2016. Quickly gaining fame in the last two years with support from renowned music management team Romeich Entertainment, Shenseea’s Dancehall brand is now associated with major corporations such as Flow and Pepsi-Cola Jamaica.
https://twitter.com/pepsijamaica/status/890283077620158468
Since her official brand partnership with Pepsi began in 2017, the 23-year-old artiste has participated in several marketing campaigns including national tours and the corporation’s 2019 “JAMA I CAN” corporate social responsibility (CSR) campaign, which she endorsed with fellow Romeich Entertainment artiste, Ding Dong.
6. Ding Dong for GraceKennedy Group
Dancehall entertainer and head Ravers Ding Dong became the first non-athlete global brand ambassador for Grace Foods, a subsidiary of the multinational corporation GraceKennedy Group, in 2018. What began as a collaboration between the two for Grace Food’s ‘Flava with A Beat’ campaign, flourished into a fruitful and vibe-filled brand partnership anchored in a shared passion for community development.
Over the past two years, Ding Dong has starred in several marketing campaigns and continues to assure community outreach and assistance through the Grace Foods brand.
7. Digicel’s Dancehall-fuelled campaigns with Bounty Killer, I-Octane and Tifa
Digicel Jamaica, a subsidiary of Caribbean mobile network provider Digicel, is renowned for its integration of Dancehall with its marketing efforts. In the past decade, Digicel Jamaica has named various popular Dancehall artistes as brand ambassadors including Tifa and I-Octane in 2010 and, most recently, Bounty Killer in July. Tifa and I-Octane, who both have worked with the company for a decade, continue to represent Digicel’s investment in Jamaica’s entertainment industry and the company’s vision of positive community impact.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CCtoDdOJb6D/?utm_source=ig_embed
Digicel’s recent partnership with veteran Dancehall artiste Bounty Killer emerged from the artiste’s spontaneous endorsement of the company during a live online performance with Beenie Man in May for Verzuz – an online performance series by American music producer Swizz Beatz. The brand partnership has since resulted in a joint philanthropic initiative between Bounty Foundation and Digicel Foundation, which donated food packages to families in Majesty Gardens, Kingston who were affected by COVID-19.
8. Konshens for Pepsi-Cola Jamaica
At the peak of his Dancehall career, Konshens inked a deal with Pepsi-Cola Jamaica to relaunch its Pepsi Bubbla campaign and product in 2014. Although the popular beverage brand originally collaborated with Busy Signal to market the Pepsi Bubbla, Konshens became the new face of the product and the Pepsi Music Platform.