With Axe finding its sweet spot with Generation Z men, its latest marketing effort looks to expand that reach to Gen Z women. The brand recruited two of the generation’s biggest music stars—diamond-certified producer Metro Boomin and platinum-selling artist Coi Leray—with the latter becoming the first woman to lead an Axe campaign.
Both Boomin—who recently made history when his song “Sunflower,” from the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse soundtrack, became the first single ever to hit double diamond status—and the “Players” rapper bring their star power to “Fit Check,” the first installment in the brand’s “Smell Finer. Get Closer” campaign.
Created by The Martin Agency and directed by Joseph Mann through Blinkink, the visually surreal 30-second spot follows two friends being transported from a store after the woman sprays her guy pal with the brand’s Black Vanilla fragrance. They arrive on a yacht in a sherbet-colored dreamscape, where Leray and Boomin are waiting to aid in their twisty courtship with their song, “Enjoy Yourself,” serving as a seductive backdrop.
The melodic, laid-back track—made exclusively for Axe to celebrate the launch of the new fragrance and get couples in a “scentimental” mood—boasts lyrics touting the power scent plays in deepening attraction.
Axe teased the spot on Instagram, and it will officially launch during National Basketball Association games March 7. It will also run during sports and entertainment programming across major broadcast networks and streaming services.
“In a world where everything is a swipe away, real human connection is rare,” Garrick Sheldon, associate creative director at The Martin Agency, told ADWEEK. “That’s where scent has a role to play. It has the power to deepen attraction, to pull people closer, to take two friends and turn them into something more. That’s the story we set out to tell, both visually and in the track Coi and Metro created for the campaign.”
Caroline Gregory, global brand director of Axe, explained that Leray and Boomin will be involved throughout the duration of the “Smell Finer. Get Closer” campaign, with “more exciting news to be unveiled later this year” regarding Leray’s role as the official first lady of Axe.
“Knowing that women play a critical role in influencing the scents that the men in their lives wear, partnering with Coi as Axe’s first-ever female talent made perfect sense,” said Gregory. “Her persona and high energy really clicks with both guys and girls and, as a prominent figure in pop culture today, Coi allows Axe to appeal to and attract a new audience.”
Boomin shared a TikTok promoting the fragrance over the weekend, which garnered almost 90,000 views in less than 24 hours.
Music to the ears of Gen Z
The Unilever brand has ramped up its efforts to tap into fragrance and cultural trends within the Gen Z zeitgeist. It has enlisted world-renowned noses to develop its Fine Fragrances Collection, partnering with artists like rapper (and documented Axe evangelist) Lil Baby, and meeting its audience on social platforms to viral effect.
Its playful spots featuring relatable average-guy protagonists, over-the-top visuals driven by meme and GIF culture, and the intentional licensing of upbeat music have eschewed the tropes of traditional men’s fragrance campaigns.
“We are constantly looking to better understand the Gen Z male market and aim to provide them better ways to smell their best, so they can always feel their best,” said Gregory. “This also includes activating on social platforms like TikTok and Twitch, where we know our guys spend their time.”
