That is if you have been following the fascinating American Brandstand. Set up by Lucian James, it is a weekly chart of how many brand names were dropped in the lyrics of the top 20 songs of the Billboard Hot 100. This week, which was the final chart of the year, the brand count falls to 21 as G-Unit leave with a fleet of cars, but in at #18 is Twista with an unprecedented third bottle of Hennessy, and a Cadillac Brougham. After some number crunching the winning brand for 2003 is Mercedes Benz and the winning brand-dropping artist is 50 CENT who managed to mention twice as many brands as anyone else in 2003. Nice. Other interesting stats include:

  • There were 82 different brands mentioned in the Billboard Top 20 in 2003.
  • Of the 111 songs in the Billboard Top 20, 43 had brands in the lyrics
  • Only one branded song was not connected to hip-hop or R&B... Good Charlotte's Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.
  • The most amount of brands in a single week of the Billboard top 20 in 2003 was 47, on April 12th.
  • The most brands crammed into one song... 14, by Lil' Kim in The Jump Off.
  • We predict that Polaroid will become the My Adidas of the new millennium...
  • Most bizarre reference of the year - "Put anthrax on a Tampax / and slap you till you can't stand" - Eminem, Superman
  • Most Lil' Kim-ish lyric of 2003 - "Let me show you what I'm all about / How I make a Sprite can disappear in my mouth" - Lil' Kim - The Jump Off
  • Boldest use of a difficult rhyme - "But Louis Vuitton bras all over your breasts / Got me wanting to put hickies all over ya chest (ah!)". Chingy, Right Thurr.

More here: http://www.lucjam.com/brand03.html