Jay-Z Launches "Decoded"

In preparation for the launch of his autobiography titled 'Decoded' Jay-Z, arguably the worlds most famous entertainment entrepreneur, turned a marketing campaign into a mixture of a large scale treasure hunt and instillation art.  'Decoded' is a ground breaking book within itself, apparently the book helps fans literally decode  the lyrics of 11 studio albums to unlock details about Jay-Z's personal history and life. Taking this concept one step further agency Droga5 put together a campaign that mashes up billboard advertising with social media, mobile apps and public installations that together form an interactive game that lets players 'unlock' pages of the book.  At the same time players can enter a competition with a chance to win the "Jay-Z Lifetime Pass" which is essentially a golden ticket that will allow admission for two to any Jay-Z concert anywhere in the world for life.   

This is how it went down. All 320 pages of 'Decoded' were placed in various overblown sizes on a tone of unexpected and unusual surfaces around the USA (for example on the bottom of a pool in Miami or on cheeseburger wrappings in New York City) Reading then became one big treasure hunt. 

Players could then log onto a specially created page on Bing (Microsofts search engine) between the 18th of Oct and 20th of November in order to follow clues that lead them to real world places where text from the book could be found. This basically meant that if you were dedicated enough you could read the whole book before it officially hit shelves. An extra layer of interactivity was added when players were encouraged to text a code located on the physical representation of each page which entered them into the competition for the "Jay-Z Lifetime Pass" as well as a Jay-Z autographed version of that page. This has to be one of the smartest campaigns I have seen in a while - at the route of it all the campaign aims to surprise and entertain rather than impose itself on an audience. Here are some of the best example of how the 320 pages were represented in public spaces around the USA. 

Times Square Billboard

A three-billboard stack revealing the bookʼs introductory pages were released throughout the campaignʼs four-week period

London Tube Station

Pages that highlighted Jay-Zʼs experiences abroad were put in the cities where the events happened. For instance, this page was found in the London Underground.

New Orleans Roof

A page dedicated to the Hurricane Katrina disaster placed on a roof in downtown New Orleans.

Jukebox

Jukeboxes all over New York City were used to display pages about Jayʼs musical influences.

Gucci Jacket

The masterfully stitched page handcrafted by Gucci's lead creative, Frida Giannini, is custom-tailored to Jay-Z's measurements and holds song lyrics mentioning the Italian clothing icon.

Gleason's Gym 

The pages found in a famous boxing gym in Brooklyn called Gleasonʼs highlighted Jayʼs love for the sport.

Guitar

This guitar, found in a local music store in NYC, hosts song lyrics referencing music influences outside the bounds of traditional hip-hop.

Plexiglass

A clear, freestanding page made of Plexiglas, overlooking the downtown NYC skyline was located on the Brooklyn piers in Red Hook. One of the more meaningful pages, it holds content about the potential of hip-hop and where itʼs headed in the future.

The Spotted Pig

These pages were dropped in one of Jay-Z's very own business ventures. The Spotted Pig, known for its cozy atmosphere and cool memorabilia, was used in a variety of different mediums to celebrate the book's content. Pages were found on tablecloths and mirrors highlighting Jay-Z's personal experiences dining with the world's most influential people.

Pool Table

This custom pool table was designed specifically for the campaign and was placed in the 40/40 Club in New York City. The page is all about the hustle of the hip-hop world and how it translates into other parts of life, in this case, a game of pool.

Cadillac

Jay-Z shook the borough of Queens with his pages dedicated to Run DMC, the hip-hop legend of Hollis. A 1982 vintage Cadillac Seville, decked out in pages 8 & 9, was showcased as a tribute to the hip-hop OGs on their very own Run DMC Way. The book content included various Run DMC and Cadillac references and covered the car from trunk to hood in recognition of the influence that the hip-hop foreman had on Jay-Z's music

Basketball Backboard

This page was created as a basketball backboard in his old neighbourhood near the Marcy Projects. The pages hold the song lyrics to "Where I'm From," a dedication to the unforgiving lifestyle of the thug in the streets of Brooklyn.

Plaque

A bronze plaque, moulded with the content of the first two pages of the book, was placed adjacent to the housing projects Jay-Z grew up in. The content poetically details the scene of his childhood: the rap battles, the playgrounds, the crowded streets.

Counterfeit Book

A page mentioning Jay-Z's frustrations with music bootleggers was found in the form of a counterfeit book distributed by a street vendor near Canal Street in Manhattan.

Bike

A page mentioning Jay-Z's early childhood bike riding experiences was showcased on a custom bike in a shop located near his old neighbourhood in Brooklyn.