Symphony of Brands: Brand Placement in the Lyrics and Music Videos of Billboard Global 200 Hits (2023-2024)

Abstract

Musical brand placement is gaining strength as an advertising tool, as it allows brands to integrate non-intrusively into entertainment content. Song lyrics and music videos become an ideal advertising medium, where the artists themselves act as endorsers, connecting these brands with their vast fan communities and the general public.

In this context, the main objective of this study is to analyze how the advertising strategies aligns with current consumption trends and the preferences of new generations. It examines how brands are incorporated into music videos and the lyrics of the Billboard Global 200 hits. This ranking features the songs with the highest number of streams, digital sales, and physical sales globally across more than 200 territories in 2023 and 2024.

To achieve this, a hybrid methodology was employed, combining content analysis and an examination of advertising messages, specifically, the study of resemantization. The operationalisation of variables through the first research technique stands out as the innovative aspect of this study. This approach offers a quantitative tool for analysing brand presence in entertainment products, enabling broader application.

The findings highlight how brands are seamlessly integrated into the music video landscape and how, in turn, brands serve as channels for the artist to convey the image they wish to project through their song and/or video. One of the main conclusions is the mutual transfer of values between the brand and the artist, underscoring the importance of musical brand placement in contemporary advertising strategies.