‘Kool Mixx remix: How Al Capone cigarillos infiltrated Hip-Hop to promote cigarillos use among African-Americans

Al Capone is a brand of cigar products—little cigars, cigarillos and large cigars—manufactured and distributed in the USA by the Inter-Continental Cigar.1 2 Burger Sohne, which owns the Al Capone brand, has the stated goal of cultivating ‘smiling consumers, loyal to (its) brands, in every continent.’3 To that end, Inter-Continental Cigar relies heavily on online marketing through social media platforms to advertise, market and promote the Al Capone brand of cigar products to consumers.4–6 A specific example of the Al Capone brand’s use of social media marketing is its paid sponsorship and promotional collaboration with cult-favourite battle rap league, Ultimate Rap League (URL).

Battle rap is a subgenre of Hip-Hop music that originated in the African-American and Hispanic community of the South Bronx, New York in the late ’70s and early ’80s. A type of lyrical boxing match, battle…

Read the full article ›