Jay Z's Magna Carta Holy Grail roll-out with Samsung received mixed reviews when it occurred this past July. It turns out, it really wasn't too popular with the masses, as a new survey indicates. While the deal with Samsung netted the rapper a cool $5 million in sales, not to mention a guaranteed platinum album, it seems that the whole partnership didn't actually benefit Hov's image in the public's eye.
The Business Insider reports on new research done by celebrity branding expert Jeetendr Sehdev, which indicates that Jay Z's Samsung deal was the second least popular celebrity marketing tool in 2013, for those aged 13-31-- a target demographic. (If you're curious what the #1 least popular celebrity partnership was, it was Justin Bieber teaming up with nail polish brand OPI).
1,000 millennials (aka Generation Y) were surveyed and the results showed that Jay Z was among those celebrities least influential when making purchase decision. The survey included 80 celebrities, ranging from the likes of Tom Brady to Hilary Clinton.
Sehdev reports that while Hov's brand still remains popular with the youth, it's missing one essential element: authenticity. The survey found that Jay scored 70% lower in categories of trustworthiness and honesty than celebrities like Morgan Freeman and Jennifer Lawrence. The young generation places a high importance on truth and social goals beyond fattening your own pockets.
"Millennials question the exact nature of Jay Z’s role in the artistic process," Sehdev said. "Does he really write his own songs? Is he choosing the artists to collaborate with, or is he just the face of a money-making empire?"
Sedhev continued, "Millennials questions his approach to loyalty, whether it be to a business deal or his fans. His motivations to just make money can be viewed by this audience as self-centered, even if they may be business savvy."
Among the issues the millennial generation find with Hov, his penchant for naming luxury brands (on MCHG he named 8 different brands more than 20 times), as well as business ventures outside the sphere of music seem to play part (for example, Jay sold his stake in the Brooklyn Nets less than a year after moving the team his former home of Brooklyn).
Read more on this over at the Business Insider.
Do you guys trust Hova?