New partnership honors Biggie Smalls during hip hop’s 50th anniversary
Pepsi is celebrating the 50th anniversary of hip hop by partnering and honoring The Notorious B.I.G. The beverage company has worked closely with the rapper’s estate and family members to elevate Biggie’s legacy by bringing a new generation of fans innovative and exciting new experiences. Pepsi is planning a distinct and excitingly immersive campaign that will connect his unique personality, style, and lyrical flow with the sounds of today. The campaign will bring Biggie’s music to life across disruptive virtual and physical experiences and celebrate him from street art across major cities worldwide to limited edition Pepsi cans, all paying tribute to and elevating his immeasurable influence on popular culture.
“As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip hop and its cultural impact on our world, we’re excited to honor Christopher’s legacy and continue bringing his music to a new generation of fans. While his art is timeless, we’ve been working with Pepsi to commemorate my son’s artistry and connect his music with the sounds and artists of today. We hope fans will enjoy it as much as we do,” states Ms. Voletta Wallace, Mother of Christopher Wallace and Founder of the Christopher Wallace Memorial Foundation.
“In this pivotal year of music, hip hop cannot be discussed without my dad,” adds CJ Wallace, Son of Christopher Wallace, and Founder of Frank White, a lifestyle brand and creative studio at the intersection of black culture, creativity, and advocacy. “My dad is synonymous with rap, and his influence is unmatched. Taking one of his most well-kept secret flows out of the vault and working directly with Pepsi, the brand he cites is pretty dope.”
Pepsi is renowned for its ubiquity in music and entertainment, with a long-standing history of collaborating with some of the biggest personalities in culture. As part of its international brand platform “Thirsty for More,” which celebrates the challenger mindset and the choices made in the pursuit of passions and enjoyment, Pepsi recognizes cultural trailblazers who defy convention – nobody embodied that iconic challenger spirit more than The Notorious B.I.G. Pepsi will challenge convention to bring Biggie’s talent and influence back into today’s cultural zeitgeist in a bold new way.
Biggie was a B.I.G. fan of Pepsi, and in 2020, an old freestyle was unearthed that highlighted his love of the beverage. The track, recorded in 1997, features the lyrics, “Nothing can beat the P-E-P-S-I, yes I drink it constantly / Something ’bout the taste feels great, less filling / Tell ’em Biggie said to drink it all, don’t test me / Nothing else beats a Pepsi / If it is, let’s see/ I’m thirsty.” The track was remastered and released as part of Pepsi’s tribute to Biggie when he was posthumously inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The freestyle not only highlighted Biggie’s love of Pepsi, but it also created an authentic link between Pepsi and Biggie, allowing his estate and the brand that he loved so much to come together to develop this very special piece of content, straight from the vault, from a new, fresh perspective.
“We are always keeping a finger on the pulse of culture while listening to music fans’ preferred choices, and in the lead up to this momentous cultural occasion, they told us they had Biggie on repeat,” said Gustavo Reyna, Senior Director Global Marketing at PepsiCo. “In celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip hop, an art form that has touched every corner of the world and evolved into one of the most significant drivers of popular culture, Pepsi is honored to partner with The Notorious B.I.G. Estate to bring this unique encore of Biggie’s art and talent to a whole new generation of music fans in never-before-seen ways.”
Also this week, Brooklyn Brewery unveiled a limited edition Brooklyn Lager featuring Notorious B.I.G. in homage to his vibrant legacy and in celebration of hip hop’s 50th anniversary. For a limited time, the packaging will feature an iconic image of Brooklyn’s favorite son, capturing his larger-than-life persona and serving as a testament to his creative legacy and profound impact on the hip hop community, as well as in fashion, style, photography, and more.
From its roots in New York in the 1970s, the hip hop movement sparked the emergence of art forms such as beatboxing, rapping, DJing, breakdancing, and street art, just to name a few. These artistic expressions formed the basis of the modern hip-hop genre and ultimately changed the trajectory of global music and popular culture.
Born Christopher Wallace in Brooklyn, New York, the iconic rapper, better known by his stage name The Notorious B.I.G., was inspired by a whole generation of artists in hip hop and beyond. Raised in Brooklyn, NYC, Wallace signed to Sean “Puffy” Combs’ label Bad Boy Records as it launched in 1993. Widely considered one of the greatest rappers of all time and most influential of the 1990s rap era, Biggie’s music still feels as fresh and current as it did back then, and his impact on music and broader culture continues today.
