Ketchup 015: Buy My Cancer, Mancationers, Rainbow Deposits, Bury The Bills, Platinum Jubilee
+ Liquid Death, Ogilvy, Sunday School, FCB, KesselsKramer, OMSE, Mathery, Anomaly, Havas, MullenLowe, Partyland, & Humanaut
Welcome to this month’s advertising catch-up with Ketchup, a once-a-month roundup of creative that got me excited. If you like this type of thing, subscribe!
Heya, 🤘
This is going to be a hype intro. Let’s talk about Liquid Death.
If you know them then you know their twisted genius. Who knew water could actually be sexy? If you don’t, here is the rundown:
Liquid Death is a canned-water company founded by Mike Cessario who saw a massive opportunity to market eco-friendly water like energy drinks – all gas, no brakes. After a teaser video went viral in 2017, Cessario and his partners J.R. Riggins, Pat Cook, and Will Carsola decided to make it a legitimate product. Created as an alternative way to stay hydrated at parties, its familiar tallboy aluminum can and dark humor slogan “murder your thirst” and “death to plastic” made it an internet hit. Liquid Death officially launched in 2019 in tattoo parlors, bars, and skate parks and quickly grew into hardcore partnerships with Live Nation, Anti-Flag, and Tony Hawk.
What truly sets them apart is their go-hard attitude towards marketing:
The No Brainer by Partyland – In partnership with Netflix’s zombie show ‘Army of the Dead’ they produced a headband that holds your cold water and protects your brains.
The Greatest Hates by Partyland – Turned their hate comments into a rock album.
Killer Baby Namer by Humanaut – Created a metal name generator for newborns.
Tony Hawk’s Blood Board by Humanaut – Sold 100 skateboards painted with Tony Hawk’s blood.
Wiz Khalifa: Heavy Liquid Death User, in-house – Partnered with Wize Khalifa, an LD investor, to show that the water can be ‘fancy’ – fancy bong water that is.
Liquid Death Flavors vs. The Most Expensive Beverages on Earth, in-house – Taste tests tallboys of flavored water vs. gnarly gross liquid versions of expensive food.
The list goes on and on. They are currently stocked at Whole Foods, Sprouts Farmers Market, 7-Eleven, and Sam’s Club. Liquid Death also makes frequent appearances at music festivals. For more follow the creatives behind LD: Andy Pearson, Greg Fass, and Alex Lang (now CD at RIOT Games)
⚡️⬇️ What you came here for. ⬇️⚡️
Fork (ads/design)
Bury The Bills by Havas NY – To fight the anti-LGBTQIA+ bills circling in our government, NYC Pride put up billboards that let you fax lawmakers gay love scenes directly from your phone.
Rainbow Deposits by FCB Canada – To combat tokenism, Bank of Montreal (BMO) is challenging you to snap photos of rainbows to raise money for Rainbow Railroad. For every rainbow “deposit” they will donate $1.
Buy My Cancer by Ogilvy – NFT’s that save lives. Partnering with artist Paweł Swanski for the Alivia Cancer Foundation they’ve turned actual living cancer cells into art, and art into life-saving cancer treatments.
Sweet Sixteen by Sunday School – Shot by Kwame Blue, shows the beautiful influence of basketball in Black youth culture.
Sproutl by OMSE – Makes a refreshing brand identity to make gardening modern.
Mancationers by Mathery Studio – American Express x Delta highlights what the guys are really doing on their boy’s weekend.
Knife (Drops)
Pride in Your Words by Penguin Random House – Published their very first LGBTQIA+ zine.
Platinum Jubilee by KesselsKramer – Dishes up a batch of alternative commemorative plates for the Platinum Jubilee that wouldn’t make the Queen happy.
Meta Fashion Marketplace by Meta/Instagram – Tries to be cool with Balenciaga, Prada, and a Thom Browne avatar fashion collection.
Hulu Motel by Anomaly – Let fans “check in to their obsessions” through a series of themed rooms with TV show easter eggs.
Spoon (Resources)
Fuck Bans Action Support by Vote Save America – Released steps to take right now to fight back against SCOTUS.
Love The Work More by Quynh Tran and Toan Mai – Have hacked the Cannes Lions so you can see everything without a paywall.
Creative Ladder by Maximum Effort – Launched a nonprofit to help make creative careers accessible to everyone.
Creative Megamachine by Jason Bagley – Level up your creative skills & thinking with W+K veteran's 8-week course.
Fall 2022 Apprentice Applications Open by The Workshop – Advertising 101 immersive.
Paging Dr. Lesbian by Kira Deshler – One of the most hilarious lesbian pop culture newsletters you need to subscribe to right now.
DALL-E 2 – Viral AI bot turns users' descriptions into images.
gmgn supply – Is turning NFT brands into consumer package goods, starting with gm cereal for Bored Ape.
The Gender Spectrum Collection by Vice – Stock photos beyond the binary.
RipType Foundary – Freshly baked fonts.
The world's most hated art style by @Struthless – Ever wonder why every brand looks the exact same?
@carlyjeanandrews – Obsessed with Carly Jean Andrews’s graphic design vibe.
Momternships by MullenLowe – Released a 10-week internship program to help moms get back in the game and level up their creative skills.
& that’s the sauce.
⚡️
– KK