Jose Mourinho & Stormzy: Memes Made Me Do It
How the British MC used a cameo from football's most acerbic manager to drop a social media 'bomb'.
“I prefer not to speak. If I speak I’m in trouble.”
Jose Mourinho - March 15 2015
The attention economy is based on the concept that human attention is a scarce commodity.
At a time when we are bombarded with information from multiple sources, getting your message inside the head of your consumer is the goal of the 21st century marketeer.
The name of the game is to enter the zeitgeist.
Stop people scrolling and get people sharing your campaign and you have earned your reach - instead of paying for it.
With thousands of brands pumping millions into a social media industry which has gradually made it harder for marketeers to reach people without paid promotions, this is a difficult trick to pull off.
When you do push the button on something timely, culturally impactful and immensely shareable you effectively hack the system.
Some people in marketing call these ‘social bombs’.
Based on that terminology, the video for Stormzy’s Mel Made Me Do It - released on social media platforms on September 22 - was a ‘social atomic bomb’, trending immediately, spawning memes and hundreds of reaction videos on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.
The ten-minute chorus-less track and video, which may or may not be part of the Croydon-born Grime artist’s upcoming third album, has received an overwhelmingly positive response due to high production values, creative visuals and yes, a string of celebrity cameos.
As a promotional tool for Stormzy, his beliefs and his personal brand, it places him as the figurehead of Black British excellence and cements his position as the UK’s biggest rap star.
Everyone loves a celebrity cameo and chucking them into your video is the easiest trick going.
But Stormzy uses cameos to further his purpose and celebrate Black British excellence such as highlighting UK music pioneers like So Solid Crew’s Megaman, Soul II Soul’s Jazzy B, veteran Radio DJ Trevor Nelson and 90s/00s pop star Gabrielle.
The video is also peppered with appearances from the new generation of Black British talent including Little Simz, Dave and high achievers from other disciplines including actress and screenwriter Michaela Coel, sprinter Dina Asher-Smith and ‘Mel’ - his influential personal stylist Melissa Holdbrook-Akposoe.
This is consistent with him famously shouting out 65 artists when he became the first British rap act to headline Glastonbury, in June 2019.
The 29 year-old MC is a purpose-driven artist in a socially-conscious world.
Stormzy’s higher calling beyond being an artist, is to shine a light on the talent around him and use his platform and clout to raise others up.
Back to the video and outside of the Black British culture theme, Stormzy also includes supporters of ‘the scene’ such as Jonathan Ross and Louis Theroux.
Most memorably though is an appearance from “The Special One” - Jose Mourinho.
This disruptive moment was instantly the most talked about aspect of the video earning posts from a range of accounts with huge followings from Drake (121m Instagram followers) to sports media outlets such as BBC Sport and Sky Sports and huge football meme accounts like Sport Bible and 433.
The very presence of Mourinho was held up as proof of Stormzy’s cultural capital and domination.
The Portuguese manager, represents many things, but Black British excellence is hardly one of them so why is he there?
Firstly, Mourinho has ‘big Rap energy’.
Forget tactics and formations.
These days, Mourinho is known for calling out his rivals, starting beefs, silencing his haters and boasting about his victories.
His persona is entirely suited to the tone and boastful lyrics of Mel Made Me Do It.
The opening line of the track: “I’ve been the GOAT for so long, I guess it’s not exciting when I win,” almost sounds like something Mourinho would say.
Secondly, as football managers go, Mourinho is the king of memes - something he himself has seemingly embraced in recent years.
I can think of at least five Mourinho memes, outside of his infamous “If I speak I’m in trouble” moment that is included in this track.
While most football managers keep their communications to the mandatory pre and post match interviews and press conferences which they begrudgingly endure, Mourinho is one of a few to have launched his own Instagram account.
It puts him in control of his image and has helped him detoxify his personal brand after sour ends to his tenures at Manchester United and Tottenham.
For Mourinho, taking the time to appear in Stormzy’s video not only meant he could plug his daughter’s jewellery brand but keeps him front of mind beyond Italy’s Serie A, where he has had a pretty average start to the season with AS Roma.
Don’t rule out a return to the cash-rich Premier League soon.
But while the cameo suits Jose and his objectives, it’s Stormzy who is the big winner here and this for me, proves that he is not just a game changing artist but a very savvy marketeer.
It subverts how brands and sport use Black music to make themselves more culturally relevant.
I have lost count of the number of times I have seen grime artists thrown into campaign proposal decks by agencies looking to demonstrate their link to the ‘culture’ - and in an industry that struggles to be ethnically-diverse, it rarely feels authentic.
By getting Mourinho in his video, Stormzy is turning the tables.
He is using the manager as a cheat code to widen the reach and relevance of his social ‘atomic bomb’, claiming real estate that goes beyond his core audience, dominating in the sports media, the football WhatsApp groups and, ultimately, capturing our attention.
Well played.
Qatar 2022: Why brands and sponsors need to be prepared for shifting sands
Hummel’s decision to tone down branding on Denmark’s World Cup kit in protest against Qatar’s alleged human rights violations, was met with a mixed response last week. Some considered it to be a publicity stunt - while others applauded the brand for taking some form of a stand.
At the Leaders in Sport summit, I had the pleasure of joining three of the best sports news journalists in the game: Martyn Ziegler, Rob Harris and Tariq Panja on a live recording of their excellent Sport Unlocked podcast.
We discussed Hummel’s move and other brand considerations relating to the socially-charged issues likely to crop up between now and the end of the World Cup.
Give it a listen.
