*Jay-Z adds yet another title to his resume.
In an announcement on Monday, the rap mogul was named the president of Puma’s revamped basketball division, as the athletic apparel company prepares to revisit its basketball sneaker category for the first time in 20 years, reports ESPN.
Hov will lead the brand’s creative direction for marketing campaigns, will have input into product development and will also help to identify which upcoming NBA players and entertainers may be best suited for the brand to sign.
“We’re making a serious statement about the entry of the category, that we want to be a performance brand, but then also very culturally focused,” Puma’s Global Director of Brand and Marketing, Adam Petrick, said in a statement to Complex.
He added, “It’s clear that we’re looking at basketball through the lens of culture, and thinking about the fashion of basketball, the music of basketball – all the aspects of culture around basketball, all the aspects of culture around basketball as much as the on-court presence that we will have.”
Jay-Z, born Shawn Carter, previously teamed with Puma last year when he sported shoes and apparel from the company during his “4:44 tour as part of a promotional deal. A dedicated basketball fan, the 48-year-old was once part owner of the Brooklyn Nets team before selling his ownership stake in 2013 as he opened his own Roc Nation Sports Agency.
The Puma announcement comes just days after Saturday’s release of “Everything is Love,” his first joint album with his wife Beyonce.
In advance of this week’s NBA draft, Puma has already signed projected first-round picks Deandre Ayton, Marvin Bagley III and Zhaire Smith to multiyear footwear and apparel endorsement deals. The trio represents the first NBA endorsement deals for the brand in two decades. Puma last signed Vince Carter in 1998 to a 10-year deal, although the short-lived contract ended after just two seasons.
Before unveiling its new basketball sneaker this week, Puma signed its first signature athlete, Walt “Clyde” Frazier, to a lifetime contract earlier in an elaborate ceremony event in New York. The brand’s new silhouette is expected to be a modernized update to Frazier’s iconic, original Clyde sneaker from 1973, with a knit construction and today’s technology.
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