B R A N D I N S I G H T S F R O M T H EantichristM A R I LY N M A N S O N ’ S M A S T E R C L A S S I N M A R K E T I N G

B Y P H I L I P E L L I S F O R O G I LV Y & M AT H E R

B R A N D I N S I G H T S F R O M T H E A N T I C H R I S T : M A R I LY N M A N S O N ’ S M A S T E R C L A S S I N M A R K E T I N G

Antichrist SUPERSTARROCK STAR, PAINTER, writer and self-proclaimed ‘god of fuck’ Marilyn Manson has been a consistently controversial brand for over 20 years, and admits that way back at the beginning, he had his persona, costumes and stage presence all planned out before he wrote a single song. He’s never been worried that his image would overshadow his music, quite to the contrary in fact; “I worried my music would overshadow the image.”

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B R A N D I N S I G H T S F R O M T H E A N T I C H R I S T : M A R I LY N M A N S O N ’ S M A S T E R C L A S S I N M A R K E T I N G

BORN VillainCREATIVE THINKING HAS ACTUALLY saved Manson from a prison sentence. While touring in Detroit, he simulated a sex act with a security guard — a spur of the moment move which landed him in court. He recalls how, when asked to justify it, he experienced a moment of clarity and simply replied; “it was a theatrical gesture.” Five words that potentially saved his life.

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B R A N D I N S I G H T S F R O M T H E A N T I C H R I S T : M A R I LY N M A N S O N ’ S M A S T E R C L A S S I N M A R K E T I N G

He Doesn’t Like The Drugs, BUT THE DRUGS LIKE HIMSPEAKING ABOUT HIS CREATIVE PROCESS, Manson says 3am was often the golden hour when it came to pinning down the muse (helped by copious amounts of drugs and alcohol, naturally). “It was the time that my brain would go impossibly off the rails,” he says. “Sometimes I’ll wake up, look at my notebooks, and it’s like a Christmas present, not knowing where it came from.”

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B R A N D I N S I G H T S F R O M T H E A N T I C H R I S T : M A R I LY N M A N S O N ’ S M A S T E R C L A S S I N M A R K E T I N G

SHOCK Is DeadYOU MIGHT RECALL the ‘Mechanical Animals’ album cover, on which Manson sported prosthetic breasts. “I really wanted to see if that cover would get banned,” he says, before remarking that nipples are his absolute favourite body part. Millennials are harder to surprise than audiences in the Nineties; “they’re more cynical, there’s more information available to them.”

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B R A N D I N S I G H T S F R O M T H E A N T I C H R I S T : M A R I LY N M A N S O N ’ S M A S T E R C L A S S I N M A R K E T I N G

DISPOSABLE TeensTHESE DAYS, EVERYBODY IS A BRAND in their own right, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they have something to say, and shock value alone is meaningless. According to Manson, far too many people believe that their opinion makes them important. “Having an avatar isn’t the same as having an identity,” says Manson. “Having a persona isn’t the same as having a personality.”

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