Stop, Collaborate & Get Energized: Vanilla Ice Launches Energy Drink With Joyburst
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Vanilla Ice is here to energize your day: The “Ice Ice Baby” rapper has just partnered with natural energy drink brand Joyburst to launch his very own flavor — and yes, it’s vanilla ice.
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Using only sugar-free, plant-based ingredients and green tea-derived caffeine, Joyburst promises a healthier energy boost without the spike-to-crash effect of artificially caffeinated beverages. Plus, Joyburst’s drinks are gluten-free and keto-friendly. The brand also makes hard seltzers — which will get the Vanilla Ice treatment as well — and a flavor catalog of Elderberry, Frosé, Grape, Lime, and Peach.
Joyburst
Vanilla Ice’s namesake Joyburst energy drink will be available to purchase in the U.S. starting June 24 at Walmart, Costco, and Joyburst.com, with a 12-pack case priced at $24.99.
“[Joyburst is] elevating and it’s totally energetic for the Nineties…. and it’s infectious. But most importantly, it’s fun and delicious,” Ice tells Rolling Stone in an exclusive interview.
As part of the collaboration, Ice and Joyburst CEO Brad Woodgate (who you might recognize from the Joyburst’s Super Bowl commercial) recorded a single named after the brand, with an accompanying Nineties-inspired music video to boot.
Joyburst
“It’s almost like a boy band type video and an awesome song with just the right amount of energy and playfulness to promote an amazing new product like Joyburst that I’m so hyped about,” says Ice, whose real name is Robert Matthew Van Winkle. “It’ll have you dancing and turn you into a teenager. No matter how old you are, it will bring you back to those carefree free days when you were a kid.”
Woodgate says the brand chose Ice because he matched Joyburst’s energy, but also because he could go beyond the typical commerciality of a brand-artist collaboration. “This is not an ad. This is not a commercial,” Woodgate tells Rolling Stone. “When we commissioned a song to be written, we wanted to make sure that someone came at it from an artistic perspective with the vibe and the summertime feel and the lyrics that would accomplish that.”
As expected from Ice, Nineties nostalgia was key for the “Joyburst” song and video. “The Nineties are so in full effect right now,” he says. “Pop culture died when computers ruined the world, and everybody wants to relive what it was like before we all stared at screens all day.”
Joyburst
The rapper remembers things like block parties, Blockbuster movies, and keg parties — all decked out in “great fashion and colors” — as staples of the Nineties that make everyone sentimental (even those who weren’t alive yet). “That is still infectious today and that’s what we’re trying to bring back with a Joyburst. The fun and playfulness in life,” he says. “It also shows you that nothing fashion-wise has really changed since the Nineties. And I don’t mind at all because I love being stuck in the Nineties.”
True to his love of the decade, Ice is gearing up to headline the I Love The 90’s Tour alongside All 4 One, Color Me Badd, Coolio, Tone Loc, and others. The tour kicks off on June 25 in Denver, Colorado and wraps up on December 23 in London. See the full list of tour stops and buy tickets at Ticketmaster.com.
Although Ice is critical of computers as the pop culture killer, he boasts a significant presence on TikTok: “Ice Ice Baby” resurfaced as a popular TikTok sound back in 2020, and the rapper now has over 700 thousand followers on the social media platform. “I’m always surprised with TikTok,” says Ice. “I’m always lovin’ the TikTok world because it’s so full of entertainment and you know and it becomes infectious but I see a generation of people out there having fun with life and enjoying being creative,” he says. “I can’t wait for TikTok to get a hold of our Joyburst music video, I think it’s going to be a huge summer hit.”
The Dallas native recently used TikTok to tease the release of his Joyburst drink, captioning the video, “Get some pep in your step! Go get the new Joyburst vanilla ice energy drink at all Walmarts and Costco stores. On shelves June 23.”
@vanillaiceme Get some pep in your step! Go get the new Joyburst vanilla ice energy drink at all Walmarts and Costco stores. On shelves June 23 #joyburst #VanillaicejoyBurst #vanillaice @Walmart @Costco Wholesale
Joyburst’s Woodgate, meantime, predicts a massive resurgence for Ice: “This guy works hard. He wants it, you know. He legitimately feels he’s paid his dues and he’s brought pop culture and hip hop to the main frame. And I think that he’s going to have the next couple of years with his song releases and [then] he’s gonna be back in mainstream media.”
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