King Korn: Ours To Share

Background

King Korn partnered with PR agency Roth Media to develop an amplification campaign around the recreation of the iconic Umqombothi music video. The objective was to build cultural relevance, reinforce heritage credibility, and strengthen emotional affinity for a proudly South African brand rooted in tradition.

The campaign needed to resonate across generations while acknowledging the reality of changing lifestyles, urbanisation, and evolving relationships with cultural rituals.

The Insight

South Africa is a nation shaped by sharing. Culture, food, music, and storytelling are passed down through generations, often informally and orally.

Umqombothi is made from an ancient grain and holds deep cultural significance, yet many younger, urban consumers rely on elders to carry traditions forward rather than feeling confident to participate themselves. There was an opportunity to position culture as something living and accessible, not distant or ceremonial.

The Idea & Execution

A culturally grounded storytelling platform that celebrated African heritage, beer craft, food, and music as shared experiences. The idea positioned tradition as something that belongs to everyone and can be carried forward in modern life.

The campaign was designed to roll out through PR-led storytelling and pop culture nostalgia, followed by a red-carpet event to launch the recreated music video. Consumer-facing elements included a distinctive calabash as a hero object, supported by content, competition mechanics, and in-store activations featuring motion-triggered audio linked to the song.

Results

The campaign established a strong cultural narrative that reinforced King Korn’s heritage positioning while making tradition feel relevant and inclusive. The platform created a foundation for storytelling across media, events, and retail environments. Due to lockdown restrictions, the campaign was postponed and launched later in 2021 after the strategic development phase had concluded.

My Role

Led strategic thinking and campaign ideation, contributed to insight development, and developed the pitch proposal that shaped the creative direction and storytelling platform.