To reposition Smartfood as "Flavor You Can Feel Good About," we turned to the one person who embodies flavor; who's synonymous with flavor because, well, his very name is Flavor: Flavor Flav.
The legendary hype man had just gone viral for giving Billie Eilish a custom clock necklace at the Oscars, gained cachet on TikTok as a diehard Swiftie, and was gearing up to be omnipresent at the Summer Olympics in Paris.
Flav was having a cultural resurgence, and we wanted in.
We nurtured Flav's high energy and genuine enthusiasm for the brand into authentic advocacy as our 360 campaign's title character - The Flavor Genie, who appears every time a bag of Smartfood is opened to spread the magic of flavor.
Our Flavor Genie campaign ensured maximum cultural impact for Smartfood, with:
A PR stunt that peaked curiosity with leaked paparazzi photos of Flav out in public wearing the Pop Clock, which drew media attention and buzz from fans.
Social-first content shared across Flavor Flav's TikTok, Instagram, and X, and Smartfood-owned channels (over 1.3M follower reach).
Earned media attention with coverage in top, celebrity-focused pubs including People, Us Weekly, The Blast, featuring Flav expressing his genuine love for Smartfood - and even eating it at a New York Yankees game.