Cooper Tire has entered
into a year-long endorsement partnership with custom car show king Funkmaster
Flex.
The popular DJ
will appear in a new print advertisement for the Cooper Zeon XST tire targeting
the popular urban sport truck market. He will also make in-person appearances
to support the Cooper Tire brand.
Funkmaster Flex
is a former spokesperson for Cooper’s rival, BF Goodrich.
used to be with BF Goodrich and I left because I wanted to be with a company
that kind of had my vision," Flex told AllHipHop.com. "Cooper Tire
has my vision in terms of not just being young, they’re ready to step into the
youth market, but they are still going to hold on to their older demographics
that have loved their brand for so many years."
Cooper Tire will
provide Flex with Cooper Zeon high performance tires to customize the look and
performance of celebrity vehicles and custom projects featured on his television
programs and for use on his own personal vehicles.
In addition, the
Cooper Tire interactive mobile tour, an experiential marketing exhibit targeted
toward performance-minded audiences, will appear at several of Flex’s custom
car show events, including Edison, N.J., (June 24), Hartford, Conn. (July 22)
and Ocean City, Md.
Dubbed the "evangelist"
of Hip-Hop’s urban car culture, Flex created the successful Funkmaster Flex
Custom Car & Bike Show, which is entering its fifth year touring the United
States.
Flex also hosts
a radio show on Hot 97 FM in New York City, as well as two television shows,
Spike TV’s Ride with Funkmaster Flex and ESPN 2’s All Muscle with
Funkmaster Flex.
new season [of the latter] starts in June. I already got 50 Cent, Fabolous,
Manny Ramirez [Boston Red Sox], Dale Earnhardt Jr, Jason Giambi [New York Yankees],
Danica Patrick, who’s a huge indie car driver."
Flex also has endorsement
deals with Turtlewax, JL Audio, YahooAutos.com and Ford Motor Company.
In related news,
Ford Motor Company is planning to release 500 limited edition Funkmaster Flex
Expeditions, which will be available in 2007.
The SUV will feature
customized rims, paint, interior, suspension and more.