Dive Brief:
- Rémy Martin, owned by Rémy Cointreau, has teamed up with Grammy Award-winning musician Usher on a campaign to promote a new immersive experience that will accompany the musician’s Las Vegas residency at Park MGM, per a press release.
- The campaign, “Usher x Rémy Martin 1738: A Taste of Passion,” features a limited-edition bottle made with artificial intelligence technology and an accompanying NFT. Fifty bottles will be made, with 25 available for purchase on July 29 on BlockBar, an online marketplace that deals in NFTs for high-end spirits and wines. The campaign was imagined by creative agency the Fred & Farid Group.
- The collaboration marks the latest in over a decade-long relationship between the artist and the brand, which first worked together on Usher’s “OMG World Tour,” and is meant to excite consumers using emerging technology.
Dive Insight:
The latest initiative between Usher and Rémy Martin marks a continued effort by the centuries-old company to position itself for the modern consumer. The Las Vegas interactive event, dubbed “A Taste of Passion Experience,” will accompany Usher’s “My Way” residency, serving guests a multi-sensory experience and an array of Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal cocktails curated in collaboration with the artist. The in-person experience will run select nights from July 15 to October 29 and adds an additional layer that may excite people looking to get back into the world following pandemic restrictions.
The bottle, coined “Usher x 1738 A.I. Powered,” was designed by Usher using his own “musical vocabulary” to describe what smelling Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal is like. Using AI technology, known as Generative Adversarial Neural Networks and Contrastive Language-Image Pre-Training, the team took what Usher said and created avant-garde images to invoke those feelings, adding an additional level of innovation to the experience.
The bottle is black and features a special seal celebrating the 25th anniversary of “My Way,” the album that launched Usher into stardom. Of the 50 bottles produced, 25 will be given to Usher to celebrate his anniversary while the other 25 bottles will be for sale. The NFT, which can be “burned” in exchange for the physical bottle if the buyer chooses, will be priced at $500, payable by either credit card or with the cryptocurrency Ethereum. This is significantly higher than the usual price of Rémy Martin 1738 Accord Royal, which typically retails for around $67.
“For nearly 300 years, excellence has been at the core of Rémy Martin, and through this partnership we've reached an incredible milestone, where we see brilliance breakthrough at the intersection of art, fine cognac, and technology," said Amaury Vinclet, global executive director of Rémy Martin in a press release.
Rémy Martin has long taken steps to integrate itself into popular culture with modern technology. Previous initiatives include a mixed reality experience and NFC technology. This strategy is especially important, as e-commerce is a large factor contributing to cognac’s growth.
Usher’s residency, which comes as Sin City continues its slow economic recovery caused by the pandemic, is also an ideal setting for the immersive experience. Cognac, like Las Vegas, has luxury connotations. Additionally, Las Vegas residencies, once signs that a musician’s career was over, are now proof of success, attracting artists in their prime, such as Lady Gaga, Usher and Adele. Taking part in a residency allows for brands to get in on a resurging past time, one that has become increasingly popular with young people.
Cognac, a brandy distilled in the Cognac region of France, has seen surging popularity in recent years. Despite bad weather and supply issues, cognac sales have risen in value by 31% in 2021. Cognac, which is produced in limited quantities, is almost exclusively produced for foreign consumption, with only 5% of it remaining in France. While the majority of it goes to the U.S., China's cognac consumption has also risen dramatically.
