Cricket: Michael Jackson To Appear On Pepsi Cans

Friday, 4 May 2012

Michael Jackson To Appear On Pepsi Cans

More than one billion cans will be imprinted with the late pop icon's image.
By Gil Kaufman

Michael Jackson
Photo: Michael Caulfield/WireImage

More than three years after Michael Jackson's death , the pop icon will be at the beach, the pool, the 7-Eleven and everywhere in between this summer thanks to a new deal with PepsiCo.

According to The Wall Street Journal the #2 soda company is going back to the future with a massive campaign that will have Jackson's image imprinted on more than one billion cans of soda as part of its new global "Live For Now" marketing push.

Nearly 30 years after Jackson first agreed to be the voice of the brand, an agreement has been reached with Jackson's estate, though reps for both sides declined to disclose the financial terms of the deal. When Jackson signed on to shill Pepsi in 1984 he was paid a then-record $5 million. A representative for the estate said the PepsiCo campaign is the first branding deal executed since Jackson died in 2009 at the age of 50.

While Jackson was handsomely paid in the 1984 deal, it was during the filming of an ad for that sponsorship that his life was forever altered. While shooting a commercial for Pepsi, a pyro effect went wrong and Jackson's hair caught fire, seriously burning his face and scalp and requiring multiple skin grafts and resulting in intense pain. It has been speculated that Jackson's addiction to pain medications may have begun after the mishap.

The new campaign is timed to coincide with the 25th anniversary of Jackson's Bad album. PepsiCo will start distributing the special-edition cans in China this weekend and they will arrive in the U.S. later this month. The 16-ounce, collector's-edition can in the U.S. will feature a special download code that will link to downloads of Bad remixes. Though TV ads will debut in China later this month, it has not been determined yet if similar spots will air in the U.S.