Jack Harlow, “born and breaded” in Louisville, Kentucky, signed for a year-long partnership with KFC in December 2021 with promises of special menu innovation and fan experiences.
He has three Grammy Award nominations, 43 million monthly Spotify listeners and is the “Hitmaker of tomorrow,” according to Variety. Yet Jack Harlow manages to remember his Kentucky roots every chance he gets, which made his partnership with KFC the perfect match.
“We say Jack Harlow was born and breaded in Kentucky,” said Nick Chavez, KFC’s chief marketing officer. “It made for this perfect match of a remarkably gifted, talented and popular young musical artist with a brand he authentically likes.”
KFC announced the year-long partnership with the 24-year-old rapper and Louisville native in December 2021, promising special menu innovation and exclusive fan experiences. It kicked off on December 13 with a KFC x Jack Harlow food truck ahead of Harlow’s first hometown show.
“I think that authenticity is so important in these types of celebrity programs or meal relationships, in some ways because for KFC, a big part of the objective here was to expand our reach and expand our engagement with younger audiences of customers,” Chavez said.
He added millennials and Gen Zers “can smell inauthenticity a mile away, and can smell fake marketing speak and bogus programs. Fortunately for KFC and Jack Harlow, this ain’t one of those.”
“Growing up, I always dreamed of being that guy who would put Kentucky on the map in the music scene,” Harlow said in a statement. “But to team up with an iconic national staple like KFC, the biggest brand to come out of Kentucky, is truly an honor. I’m looking forward to all the amazing things we’re about to do together.”
In June, customers could order the Jack Harlow Meal, a mix of KFC classics and new menu items including the Spicy KFC Chicken Sandwich, Secret Recipe Fries, Mac & Cheese, a side of ranch and a lemonade, all served in customized Jack Harlow x KFC packaging. Harlow picked out the items after visiting the KFC test kitchen, where he also learned how to bread and fry the chicken with Chris Scott, KFC’s head chef.
“I think of it as a little bit of old school meets new school in Jack Harlow,” Chavez said.
That theory proved accurate when the brand released a 15-second video promoting the meal deal and featuring Harlow’s new song, “Nail Tech.” YouTube comments ranged from “I’m feeling the retro Colonel Sanders vibe Jack’s giving off, good marketing” to “Jack Harlow is from Kentucky and reps Kentucky everywhere he goes so it’s only right that he reps KFC.”
A restaurant takeover on June 4 outside of an Atlanta KFC enticed thousands of Harlow fans who were surprised when Harlow himself made an appearance.
“He actually worked the drive-thru that day, believe it or not,” Chavez said. “There are very funny clips online of people going through the drive-thru and Jack Harlow is both taking their order and serving them food. He was a great sport about it, and pretty darn good at working the drive-thru.”
KFC’s social media channels saw a 30 percent increase in reach since the start of their partnership with Harlow in December, driven largely by Harlow’s fan base, Chavez noted. Audio clips recorded by Harlow played as customers added the Jack Harlow Meal into their carts in the app, which has seen a “significant increase” in the number of new users.
KFC hopped on the celebrity partnership train later than its Yum sister brand, Taco Bell, which partnered with Harlow’s friend and music collaborator, Lil Nas X, and named him chief impact officer last year. As KFC considered potential collaborations with actors, athletes and entertainers, Harlow’s name quickly popped up, Chavez said.
The deal came together with help from Nimbus, a Louisville-based strategic multicultural marketing agency that tapped Latinx-led production company Famous After Death to bring both Harlow’s and KFC’s creative vision to life.
“As we reach more younger customers, reaching better and more authentically connecting with diverse, multicultural and multiethnic customers is a huge priority for us, and is a personal passion of mine as a Latino CMO,” Chavez said.
“The Jack Harlow partnership is a big part of ushering in this new era for an iconic brand and building greater relevance, great engagement and greater authenticity with younger generations.”