Cupra, Netflix and BBDO Paris Turn 'Nouvelle École' Rappers Into a Music Project for the Electric Raval
TL;DR: Cupra, Netflix and BBDO Paris co-produced 'Premier Virage', a rap project with eight artists from Netflix's 'Nouvelle École' season five, to promote the all-electric Cupra Raval to younger buyers.
A Carmaker Co-Produces Music
Cupra, with Netflix's Brand Creative Studio and BBDO Paris, unveiled 'Premier Virage' on 16 September 2026. Eight rappers from 'Nouvelle École' season five — Ozzy, Ans, Base, Kynn, Nayte, Mischa, Typhee and Yanamko — each produced freestyles on a 'School of the Streets' theme.
The films were shot by Loris Russier and produced by Cream Paris, distributed on Instagram and TikTok, with a collective cypher airing on Skyrock's Planète Rap.
Content, Not Just a Car Ad
The rollout includes a limited-edition vinyl, large-format ads at Madeleine metro station, and an October showcase at the Paris Motor Show. Media is handled by Re-Mind PHD, with radio by Fuse France.
By borrowing the format of an entertainment franchise rather than a product spot, Cupra reaches younger EV buyers through culture — meeting them in music rather than interrupting them with a car.
The Three-Way Model
A brand, a streamer and an agency co-producing culture is a template gaining ground: the streamer brings the talent and the credibility, the brand brings the budget and the product hook, and the agency stitches it into a coherent idea.
For an EV launch fighting for relevance with a younger audience, this is a way to buy authenticity that a conventional media plan can't.
Marketing Minute's Take
The risk in brand-meets-music is always credibility — audiences smell a logo bolted onto a beat. Cupra hedged it by co-producing with the franchise that owns the culture, not renting its stars. If you want to borrow cultural capital, partner with the people who hold it; don't try to counterfeit it.
Quick FAQ
What is Cupra's 'Premier Virage'?
A rap project co-produced by Cupra, Netflix's Brand Creative Studio and BBDO Paris with eight artists from 'Nouvelle École' season five, promoting the all-electric Cupra Raval.
How is the Cupra music project being distributed?
Via Instagram and TikTok films, a collective cypher on Skyrock's Planète Rap, a limited-edition vinyl, OOH at Madeleine metro station and an October Paris Motor Show showcase.
Why is a carmaker producing music?
To reach younger EV buyers through culture rather than a conventional car ad, borrowing an entertainment-franchise format for credibility.
Brand-meets-music lives or dies on credibility — audiences instantly smell a logo bolted onto a beat. Cupra played it well by co-producing with the franchise that owns the culture rather than renting its stars. The lesson: to borrow cultural capital, partner with the people who actually hold it. You can't counterfeit it. — Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing
The takeaway: to borrow cultural credibility, co-produce with those who own it — don't bolt your logo onto someone else's culture.
When you tap culture, are you partnering with its owners or just renting its surface?
If you would like to know more about this topic, please contact us on danieln@merxmarketing.co.uk
Sources: CB News, danstapub, TOPCOM.
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Written by Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing Ltd and Marketing Minute
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