Back in 1984, Pepsi released an unforgettable advertisement that perfectly captured the essence of the era. Do you remember it?
The commercial, known as the Pepsi Generation ad, starts with a young boy dressed like Michael Jackson, showing off his dance moves on the street with his friends.
Heโs got the confidence and style down pat. Suddenly, he bumps into the real Michael Jackson, who is there with the Jackson 5.
What follows is a spontaneous dance-off, with both groups grooving together to the iconic tune of โBillie Jean.โ
Check it out in the video below:
In 1984, Pepsi transformed its marketing strategy with the โThe Choice of a New Generationโ campaign. At the time, Michael Jackson was at the peak of his fame, having just released his immensely successful album, Thriller, which went Platinum 34 times.
The megastar re-recorded โBillie Jeanโ with new lyrics for Pepsi, creating a landmark ad that set a high bar for celebrity brand partnerships. Pepsi paid Jackson $5 million for the deal.
For the commercial, Pepsi brought in Bob Giraldi, the director behind Jacksonโs โBeat Itโ video. Jacksonโs newly recorded version of โBillie Jeanโ was featured in the ad.
The boy in the commercial, dressed like Jackson, was Alfonso Ribeiro, who would later gain fame as Carlton Banks on โThe Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.โ On the show, Ribeiroโs character often imitated Jacksonโs iconic dance moves in several classic scenes.
