- Alexander Wang's new Instagram ad features celebrity lookalikes promoting the Ricco bag.
- The video features lookalikes of Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Ariana Grande and Kylie Jenner.
- Reactions have been mixed, with some praising the marketing effort and others saying it's problematic.
No, your eyes were not deceiving you.
If you were one of the 1.6 million people who saw Alexander Wang's latest Instagram video, posted on May 20, you might have thought that Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Ariana Grande, and Kylie Jenner were joining forces to promote one of the designer's bags.
But of course, they didn't.
Instead, the brand has tapped four social media stars known for their sometimes eerie, sometimes disturbing resemblance to A-listers to promote its popular products.
The video was captioned “certified 100% authentic,” with a note that the $850 and $1,050 Ricco bags would be restocked on May 22.
“We wanted to play with the idea of deepfakes and explore multiple realities in the digital world,” a representative for Alexander Wang told Business Insider about the creation of the ad. “After all, imitation is the highest form of flattery.”
Two TikTok users featured in the video are Paige Niemann, an Ariana Grande lookalike with 10.3 million followers, and Ashley Lee-Chin, a Taylor Swift lookalike with 1.9 million followers.
Also featured was Taylor Madison, a Kylie Jenner lookalike with 855,000 TikTok followers, and an Instagram user who goes by the name SurB and has 69,000 followers who resembles Beyonce.
Viewers are now trying to make sense of the ad, with some praising the effort.
“The marketing team needs a raise 😂😂😂,” one Instagram user wrote.
“Alexander Wang's marketing is always top notch,” said another.
“The response has been overwhelming,” a brand representative told BI. “Our community is always so engaged in what we do, so seeing this video go viral has been so special. We love creating content that resonates globally and having fun with celebrity culture.”
Still, using a celebrity impersonator in an advert was a bold move, as look-alikes have come under fire in recent years for taking their impressions too far.
Billie Eilish called out people who impersonated her online in 2020.
Some viewers pointed that out in their reactions to the ad, criticizing the marketing choice.
“I love Alexander Wang's designs but this ad is sloppy and messy,” one person commented. “It also makes the product look cheap and not aspirational. Please do better.”
The Alexander Wang “Ricco” bag is a new version of the brand's “Rocco” design, which was released in 2009 and became hugely popular throughout the early 2010s.
According to the brand, the latest handbags feature “the best design elements” of the original, but showcase new “bold, energetic and unconventional codes.”
So by using celebrity lookalikes rather than the actual stars to promote the bags, the brand appears to be making a playful nod to both the similarities and differences between the two accessories.
And one thing is for sure: the brand has definitely succeeded in garnering attention.
