BrandKnew September 2013 September 2013 | Page 16

Celebrity-Obsessed Culture Has Overtaken Marketing Al Ries It’s More Than a Handful of Musicians and Athletes Slapping Their Names on Brands One of the enduring cultural trends is the intrusion of celebrities in almost every aspect of life. Including marketing. Beats by Dr. Dre had $519 million in revenue last year. It’s the best-selling headphone brand in the over-$100 category. But Dr. Dre will soon have more celebrity competitors, including Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, who created a lot of attention at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show with her sparkled and cheetah-printed headphones and quirky accessories made by iHip. Snooki joins a long line of celebrities who introduced headphones and earbuds at the CES conference, including Tim Tebow, Nick Cannon and Ro Marley Not to mention Drew Brees, the new brand ambassador for Monster earbuds.