Racialicious/Hip Hop and Advertising had a neat bit on some recent Nissan ads from an issue of Vibe. It’s a shot of a barbershop in Shimokitazawa, Tokyo (which is a really neat spot to be, for the record. Nice bars.) with the caption, “The Black Experience is everywhere.” Writer Michael Miraflor writes:

I’m not too idealistic to see the flip side, though. I would understand if some may see this as an acute case of swagger jacking, that the people in the ad are merely trend-hopping caricatures of a culture that they do not and will never understand. The ad could be seen as a perfect example of the commodification of hip hop as culture-for-sale. Nissan calling this The Black Experience further confuses- the Black Experience is an American one of struggle, pain, and underrepresentation overcome by some through a redemptive form of art and culture called hip hop. The Black Experience is not wearing $100 t-shirts and getting braids at a trendy overpriced Tokyo barbershop.

Interesting stuff. Check out the advertisements, and the commentary, at the link below.

Racialicious – Nissan SHIFT_respect