The most powerful (illegal) branding in a long time.
Including a brief trip to Hong Kong, where I met Angela.
Hey Brand fan,
A quick story first: About three years ago, I was at ApeFest in Hong Kong (yes, Web3, Bored Apes—those were absolutely wild times) and met someone hardly anyone knew back then: the Russian artist Angela Nikolau.
Roofer, artist—incredibly calm and completely fearless at the same time. The Netflix documentary "Skywalkers" about her didn't even exist yet.
This week, Angela and her now-fiancé were suddenly everywhere.
On July 1, she and her partner Ivan climbed to the top of the Empire State Building. 443 meters—without a permit, of course. At the top, they unfurled a black banner that read: "When the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace."
On the way down, Ivan proposed. She said yes. Shortly after, the NYPD picked them up while they were still high up on the building. Getting engaged and arrested on the same afternoon—that's quite a feat.
Fun fact: The quote on the banner is constantly attributed to Jimi Hendrix. It most likely originated with William Gladstone, a 19th-century British politician.
But what happened next is the real branding case study.
Within hours, the banner had become a meme template. Flag edits were everywhere; everyone was swapping out the text, and there was a wave of AI-generated fake videos from the summit. And then the brands jumped on board.
The British electronics retailer Currys edited the image and wrote its message on the banner: "Make your tea in a kettle, not in the microwave." Fast Company promptly devoted an article to the whole thing and called it "brand slop." The path from meme to marketing is shorter—and more boring—than ever before.
Ouch. But fair.
Real Talk
Why does the stunt work for Angela and Ivan, while the meme post backfires for most brands?
Because that's all they've been doing for years. Climbing is their art form, their love story, their whole identity. In 2024, Netflix made an entire documentary about it ("Skywalkers: A Love Story," in which they scale the Merdeka 118 in Kuala Lumpur, the world's second-tallest building at 679 meters).
The Empire State Moment was risky and illegal—no question about it. But it was 100% them—authentic personal branding in its purest form.
By the way, the secret winner in the meme game was the Empire State Building itself. Its statement after the incident, in essence: Visitors were never in any danger. And by the way: Our observation deck is by far the more practical place for unforgettable marriage proposals.
That's newsjacking done right. Their own stage, their own role in the action, dry humor.
My 2 Cents: Newsjacking isn't a content format. It's a fit test.
Before you jump on the next viral bandwagon, here are three honest questions:
Do you have a real connection to the moment? The Empire State Building WAS the moment. The other banners were great for all the marketing teams, but they also got kind of boring after seeing the fourth one.
Are you quick enough? A meme like this is over in 48 hours. If you post on Friday something that went viral on Wednesday, you’ll look like the uncle who explains TikTok trends at a family gathering.
Are you bringing something of your own to the table? A perspective, a joke, a role in the story. Just slapping a logo on it and posting it doesn't count.
If you can't answer "yes" to two out of three, don't do it. No post is better than a half-baked one. And you don't have to jump on every trend—one good post per quarter is better than ten half-baked ones.
With a single move (an illegal one, definitely not recommended for others to imitate), Angela and Ivan generated more earned attention than most campaigns with six-figure budgets. Because that stunt IS their brand.
Here's the test: If your next content move goes viral tomorrow, will people say, "Of course—that's so typical of them"? If not, maybe it's not your moment after all.
.. that's it.
Stay bullish 🔥
Chantalle
P.S. If you're not quite sure what "typical for your brand" actually means: That's exactly why we're here. Just reply to this email, and we'll figure it out. ✉️ chantalle@boredbrands.studio
