Two things remain true when it comes to marketing: 1) sex will always sell and 2) even negative publicity is good publicity. The recent controversy surrounding a sexually suggestive ad for T.I.‘s Akoo Jeans proves both. The billboard incited complaints from Newark’s Mayor Cory Booker and residents because it features a woman with her head pressed against a man’s crotch, her tongue wagging through her lips, one hand pulling on his pocket, and the other hand reaching between his legs to tug on the back of his jeans. He has his hand grabbing the back of her head. So it wasn’t a huge stretch to assume she was about to give him a beej. Some say the ad sexualized black women, but I think a black woman was used because Akoo is an urban clothing company. Plus, the ad isn’t any more sexual than the photos on American Apparel featuring women of all races. The Akoo ad is not racist, and I’m not even sure it’s sexist, but it is definitely in poor taste. No one wants to be met with soft-core porn as they drop the kiddies to school. And now, they won’t be because CBS Outdoor, which owns the billboard space, has decided to take the ad down. But did anyone even know T.I. had a clothing line before this controversy began? No? Well, then, the ad did its job. [Essence.com, The Associated Press]
