At 3:59, the Men’s Health video below shifts into a discussion on Ludacris’ fitness routine. I watched this because I just saw Fast 9 and as usual the comedic timing of Tyrese and Ludacris was definitely an added bonus in a film that was actually ludicrous. The stunts were insane, and Tyrese and Luda rode a Fiero into space. Yep, A Pontiac Fiero… with a rocket attached to it, and they were wearing diver’s gear instead of astronaut’s gear, lol.
In this men’s health video we get to take a look at the emcee/actor’s kitchen and home gym. I’m watching the video and as I’ve done in other posts, I pay violet to the footwear.
I tend to be very critical of influencer marketing and in every instance when I find that an athlete or entertainer supposedly rocks hard with one brand or is endorsed, I look for why those same entertainers can’t be considered authentic representations. If you click through on the Puma article above you’ll find a picture of Big Sean who has a Puma deal (or had a Puma deal), wearing Jordan Brand. Ludacris isn’t known as a big sneaker person, but just last week on Sole Collector’s Full Size Run they made a point to highlight Luda’s lifetime free Jordans.
What I’ve found is that when the camera isn’t on and athletes and entertainers don’t have to chase cool, they immediately fall into what they are comfortable in. In this case, throughout this video, Ludacris is rocking NOBULL Trainers. This is compelling because the brand isn’t prominent and is really a performance option that HIIT’s where it’s supposed to hit. NOBULL understands its position in the market as the go to for CrossFit and serious fitness enthusiasts. Luda doesn’t get any cool points from the SoleCollector crowd for wearing NOBULL, but in my opinion this speaks to what I call the small cracks in the foundation of Nike.
If you look at the screenshots I took, you can see how many times this video has been viewed. For those who are into fitness, Luda became an unintentional endorser of the startup fitness brand. While Luda is just one entertainer, like when The Rock wore On Cloud Runners as he introduced the Super Bowl, instead of his Under Armour Project Rock footwear, it only takes one moment to gain momentum. If NOBULL didn’t know, now they know. Cut me my check for giving the heads up, lol.
