Situation

Music genres split fans into different musical universes. As a brand that stands for bringing people together, Heineken wanted to burst these genre bubbles with an all-new live music platform called REFRESH YOUR MUSIC.

Brief

Our brief was to find a way to brand this platform sonically, without being limited to any single genre.

Objectives

Like the platform itself, our objective was to create a sonic brand that brought genres together.

Our creative idea was to develop a piece of sonic branding that could be expressed in every genre imaginable. A sonic mnemonic that could be recreated, remixed and refreshed. A piece of music that represented our ambition to bring genres together to bring drinkers together.

Implementation

Working with a team with decades of experience in music production, we deconstructed genres, breaking them down into their musical elements – in terms of instrumentations, rhythms and genre conventions.

Placement

We then brought this sonic mnemonic to life through idents that ran on social, telling the story of genres blending together. These idents drove fans to the REFRESH YOUR MUSIC concerts in Vietnam and Malaysia which featured The Chainsmokers - an international act - blending their music with the music of local artists.

Scale

The campaign ran in 22 key cities across 3 markets in Asia with a specific focus on the countries of Vietnam and Malaysia.

Brand relevance

Heineken believes in bringing drinkers together for fresh experiences that open their minds. Refresh Your Music was a continuation of Heineken’s long relationship with live music and using music to bring drinkers together.

Touch points

The mnemonic was used in animated idents as described, and these ran as social ads. But the idents drove fans to concerts and live music events under the banner of REFRESH YOUR MUSIC. In addition, there were Spotify playlists and a Spotify Playlist

Materials, style elements, design choices

In addition, we recorded the sounds of Heineken bottles clinking and used this sound as the basis of our mnemonic, which we would then engineer and alter to fit into different genres.

Methods and process

To incorporate a sonic element that sprung from the brand itself, we recorded the sounds of Heineken bottles clinking together - a sound which represents drinkers coming together - and made it central to our design.

Timeline

The campaign was first published October 25, 2022, with pop-ups and events in Malaysia and Vietnam through November and December 2022.

Impact

So far, REFRESH YOUR MUSIC, and specifically our sonic mnemonic, has reached 67.4 million listeners in 22 key cities across Asia, introducing the platform in a fresh and innovative way. It is now being used globally, adapted to TikTok videos, Spotify playlists and events under the REFRESH YOUR MUSIC platform.

Reach

67.4 million listeners.

Engagement

4.9 million.

Change in Behaviour

120k fans attended the concert.

Brand perception

93% positive brand sentiment.

Achievement against objectives

By creating sonic branding that could be remixed into every genre, we achieved our objective of creating sonic branding that embodied the platform’s goal of bringing genres together to bring drinkers together.