Krunk Juice

I'm trying to figure out the controversy between an executive for Louis Roederer, the company that makes Cristal and the champagne's biggest unofficial promoter, rap impresario Jay-Z.

The Economist magazine asked the executive whether the cache that Cristal has with the hip-hop crowd will hurt the wines brand name. The executive replied: "That's a good question, but what can we do? We can't forbid people from buying it. I'm sure Dom Perignon or Krug would be delighted to have their business."

Jay-Z felt dissed by the comments, so he's pulling the $200 a bottle wine from his clubs and promises to erase references to "cris" from his lyrics.

I'm not sure exactly what is offensive about what the executive said. He's saying, look, this is not the audience we were shooting for, but we love the business.

Maybe the executive should have kept his trap shut though.

Upscale Cadillac didn't try to corner the rap market when it introduced the Escalade SUV several years ago. But once the vehicle became the vehicle of choice for both rappers and NBA stars, they embraced the market by making the SUV available with an array of options that young black men favor.

Adidas didn't have hip hop on their mind in the late 1980's when Run DMC sang about "My Adidas". But why would they care? Their product was getting crushed by Nike's Air Jordans back then. So there wasn't a word from executives about their image when their product got a free advertisement on the hit album "Raising Hell." Even better, all of the boys from Hollis Queens were wearing untied Adidas in one of the most popular MTV videos ever "Walk This Way". Aerosmith's career was revived and Adidas enjoyed a renewal because of Run DMC.

It'll be interesting to see what happens to Cristal sales in the upcoming quarter. I bet they'll get dinged.

The company should make amends. The Ghetto doesn't ask for much. Give it some love because they've given you plenty back. Or at least know when to shut the hell up.

Screw what Whitey thinks about your image. Kenny Chesney will never make your product cool.