What do you get when you mix an automotive icon with a pop star? At the very least, an astonishingly good story about the potential of pop culture, brand myths and the art of suddenly giving products a new character.
The VW Golf has always been more than just a car. And Falco has always been more than just a pop star. So it’s hardly surprising that, at some point, someone came up with the idea of bringing the two together. German automotive pragmatism meets Viennese pop charisma with a dash of madness. Everyday life meets attitude. Falco himself would probably have found the idea either brilliant or completely absurd. Presumably both – and that is precisely where its quality lies. Because interesting brand communication today rarely works through pure logic alone. Rather, it works through cultural tension. It’s about the surprising convergence of stories that, at first glance, have little to do with one another – and that’s precisely what makes them so effective.
The Golf brings its own mythology to the table. After all, it’s not just a Volkswagen. It’s pop culture on wheels. A driving school car, a GTI dream, a family car, the left-hand lane of the 1980s, first taste of freedom, your first car, your first cassette in the radio. Hardly any other product has become so deeply ingrained in everyday life. The Golf was always sensible enough for the parents – and at the same time cool enough for the children. A feat that few trainers – and perhaps the Barbour jacket – have managed to achieve.
Falco, for his part, was never simply a musician either. When “Rock Me Amadeus” reached number one in the US charts in 1986, he became the only German-speaking musician to date to top the Billboard Hot 100. He presented himself as a fictional character straddling high culture, nightlife and delusions of grandeur, yet in interviews he repeatedly spoke of loneliness and detachment.
Volkswagen realised early on that cars transport more than just people. As early as the 1980s and 1990s, special editions such as the Golf Genesis, the Golf Rolling Stones and the Golf Pink Floyd were produced. Looking back, these editions almost seem like precursors to today’s cultural collaborations. Back then, however, nobody was yet talking about ‘collabs’. The ideas often seemed a little offbeat, but that was precisely why they stuck in people’s minds. And, of course, a Golf Genesis was still a Golf at the end of the day. But one with an extra story to tell.
The Golf Falco Edition is a unique model that bridges the gap between car design and pop culture. The Golf brings order, Falco a touch of chaos. ( … )
→ Read the full story in the new rampstyle #38 ‘Just for the Plot’.
(Now available in German)
Text: Michael Köckritz
Photos: Volkswagen Austria
rampstyle #38 Just for the Plot
In our culture, we glorify optimization. Everything is supposed to be plannable and as risk-free as possible. And yet, at the same time, there is a growing longing for the detour. For the unplanned. For the real. “Just for the plot” means: I know this may not be the most sensible thing to do. But it tells my story better than reason ever could. Because people remember summers. Journeys. Encounters. That one evening that changed everything. The plot is the story we tell later. Not the Excel spreadsheet we keep today. Find out more
