It’s like we’re living in the twilight zone lately, because we see more rappers and singers in commercials than on MTV. When MTV was first created it was dedicated to music videos and all things music. A decade ago, music videos disappeared from the channel and were replaced with reality TV shows such as Teen Mom, Catfish, and Guy Code. At least create a music-themed show or change your name, MTV. I don’t want to seem like I’m against MTV because my TV remains on the channel all day long, and this is how I know they don’t play videos anymore. Quite frankly, I see more musicians working it via advertisements than being featured on MTV, which makes me ask: When did it become more profitable to endorse business deals rather than promote music videos?
Perhaps it’s just the changing times, although celebrities endorsing brands isn’t anything new. Back when Caitlyn was Bruce, she endorsed Wheaties, as did many other athletes, and singers such as Michael Jackson and Beyoncé have always promoted Pepsi. As a matter of fact, Michael risked losing his hair over the carbonated goodness. Apparently there is significant money to be earned by endorsing brands and since celebrities are motivated by money, I now understand why music videos have been replaced by endorsements. Today, many celebrities have brands they promote, including Queen Latifah for Covergirl, Rihanna for Dior, and Kanye West for Adidas.
Since Michael Jordan created his famous brand, it seems every rapper’s record deal comes with a shoe brand endorsement. Sometimes I wonder if rappers make more shoes than hits? I’m going to be completely honest when I say that Aubrey “Drake” Graham is my favorite rapper. I’ve been a fan of his since his Degrassi days, so I’ve definitely enjoyed seeing him across the city on Sprite billboards and Apple Music promotions. I know a lot of people have mixed feelings about Drake, but I’m completely biased and no one can deny that he makes successful hit songs. He had a shoe deal with Nike back in 2013 and considering that he hasn’t released a shoe yet, I’m going to assume it’s still in the works. I think it’s a phenomenal idea for rappers to find new business ventures. It allows them to promote themselves, remain relevant, and gain more fans. Also, it allows people who discredit hip-hop to ultimately realize that some hip-hop artists are intelligent and trying to impact the world with their music in a positive way.
Maybe I’m old school when I say I miss music videos. Perhaps it’s the visual artist in me. However, this year I’ve noticed they are coming back in style. MTV hasn’t brought back TRL or anything but I’ve definitely seen some of my favorite performers release videos on VEVO. Is this going to be the new way to watch them? If I have to sacrifice seeing new videos every week on MTV for more clothing labels, perfumes, and shoes from my favorite celebs like Drake, then I think it’s a pretty fair tradeoff. Celebrity endorsements have been around forever, but only my generation would take it to the next level.