The barcodes direct scanners to features that place the spotlight on a broader showcase of Black culture.
French company Rémy Martin, best known for its production and sale of cognac, has launched a new campaign celebrating the drink’s connection to Black culture and is using QR codes to help share information and features about hip-hop, which is generally believed to be turning 50 this year.
The campaign includes a larger push than has previously been the case through VSOP Mixtape.
The new campaign using QR codes is meant to highlight Black culture and the hip-hop genre more specifically. Hip-hop is typically believed to have found its start in August 1973. The awareness campaign is one of the latest steps taken to spotlight eight DJs in several major cities. By using the barcodes, the campaign is given an additional level, making it possible for consumers to enjoy greater interaction with the campaign.
The campaign includes street murals that each feature a different DJ. Those being featured include DJ Cocoa Chanelle, DJ Spinderella, DJ Marley Marl, Kool DJ Red Alert, DJ Jay illa, DJ Jelly, DJ Yella, and DJ Shortkut.
Murals have already been installed throughout New York City and will remain in place until April. That said, additional murals will also be installed in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
The integrated QR codes will let consumers learn about the DJs and their impacts on hip-hop.
Consumers who scan the barcodes also have the opportunity to win to tickets to one of the Rémy Martin Mixtape celebrations. The VSOP Mixtape Volume 3 limited edition is keeping up a line of hip-hop related bottles. Volume 1 had been inspired by the initial creation of hip-hop, while Volume 2 was focused on classic mixtapes. QR codes are new to Volume 3.
The link between contemporary music and Rémy Martin is a well established one. Beyond VSOP limited editions, the cognac company also took part in an interactive Usher’s Las Vegas experience.
Cognac itself is rising in popularity and has a firm connection with Black culture. Throughout both World Wars, Black GIs serving in France were exposed to the drink, which is distilled only in that country’s Cognac region. In the 1990s, the beverage started making appearances in a number of popular rap tracks, exploding its popularity, especially among Black Americans.