Entertainment
and fashion industries use each other’s names/fame as a tool to cultivate more
success and create a new meaning/identity. Advertisements and endorsements are new
career opportunities for existing stars, aging stars and rising stars. The
crossover between fashion and musicians in media- from magazine photography to
music videos drives attention to fans of the musician and the fashion brand.
There are
obvious collaborations where the musician fits perfectly into the brand’s identity
and target audience. For example: Taylor Swift appearing in Ked’s campaign
reinforced the existing image of both the singer and the brand. She will continue
to attract customers to the brand that may have already supported Ked’s but she
may not necessarily attract a new demographic.
Other usages of
celebrity is when the brand does not obviously fit with one another- but the campaign
uses a celebrity to attract a new demographic by extending its brand appeal. A$ap
Rocky appearing in DKNY spring 2014 campaign was a new direction for DKNY and
A$AP Rocky. He is known for his love of fashion and raps about it in his song
Fashion Killa that name-drops his favorite 20 or so designers, one of them
being Donna Karan. His music demographic doesn’t really fit into the mold of
the DKNY consumer (who is the consumer of DKNY anyway?) However, both the
designer and A$ap Rocky embody the New York spirit of the brand and his image
with the brand attracts a new audience.
In addition,
brands rely on celebrity’s endorsements as a tool to attract a larger audience
as well as redefine their image. The relationship works back and forth, as the
celebrity also uses the brand endorsement as another extension of their own individual
branding. Brands have the powers to address and access specific lifestyles. By
listening to a musician or supporting a celebrity, the listener/fan becomes
associated with them. One can trademark themselves and their identity in a way
that attracts the public and creates a lifestyle.
In 2008, Rihanna
endorsed Totes Umbrella’s which capitalized on her hit song Umbrella. In a New
York Times article, Nothing Sells Like Celebrity - The Boom in Endorsements, Rihanna says, “We’ve worked hard to build me and my name up as a brand,
we always want to bring an authentic connection to whatever we do. It must be sincere
and people have to feel that.”[1]
Eight years later, Rihanna has been associated to a number of brands who have a
different following. 
Brands have the
power to give outsiders a new way to look at the musician and see them in the
way the brand wants them to appear. Justin Bieber is now
what Mark Walberg was for Calvin Klein. The brand created a new image of Justin
Bieber- replacing his teenage boy image with a provocative masculinity. Is this
adding as much to his image than it does for the brand? Bieber says, “I’m
excited to venture into a new lane….Really new and something I’ve always really
liked, but now I’m just moving forward into that direction.” He sees his
appearance in these ads as a “transitioning tool” for his own brand to extend its opportunities.[2]
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