Beyonce and PepsiCo have decided to work closely together. Not only will Beyoncé appear on limited soda cans (which will be seen first in Europe in March 2013) and TV spots, but also will get help by PepsiCo when it comes to her creative work.
In an expansion of the recent marketing experiments that have brought PepsiCo ever closer to the music industry, the company has embarked on a hybrid project with Beyoncé that will include standard advertising like commercials as well as a multimillion-dollar fund to support the singer’s chosen creative projects.
“Pepsi embraces creativity and understands that artists evolve,” Beyoncé said in a statement. “As a businesswoman, this allows me to work with a lifestyle brand with no compromise and without sacrificing my creativity.”
The less conventional aspects of the deal are meant as collaborative projects that indulge Beyoncé’s creative whims, and might well have no explicit connection to Pepsi products. They are still at the brainstorm stage, but could include live events, videos, “a cool photo shoot” or almost anything else, said Lee Anne Callahan-Longo, the general manager of Parkwood Entertainment, Beyoncé’s company.
“It’s wise for a brand like Pepsi to give an artist the ability to truly express herself,” said Ms. Callahan-Longo, of Beyoncé’s company, “instead of just the old-school way of, ‘Do you want to be in an advertisement?’ “
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