Even though they already serve 69 million people a year, McDonald’s is still trying to attract even more customers. In an attempt to engage with a younger generation, the fast-food giant has now partnered with the Hip-Hop icon, Travis Scott to create his own meal. The meal, also called the Cactus Jack for Scott’s clothing line, started selling on Tuesday, September 8th.
Scott, who was born Jacques Webster II, has amassed a large following with listeners in over 60 countries. According to Spotify, as of September 2020, Travis Scott has over 47 million listeners monthly. Scott’s last two albums, “Birds In The Trap Sing Mcknight” and the highly acclaimed “ASTROWORLD”, have both debuted at number one on the Billboard 200.
Travis Scott is not the only celebrity to partner with McDonald’s. Thirty years ago, NBA Hall of Famer, Michael Jordan partnered with the burger chain for a meal called the McJordan. The Travis Scott meal and the McJordan share the same components, a Quarter Pounder with bacon, fries, and a drink. Scott and McDonalds will be looking to donate to charity as apart of the month-long promotion. Customers can also see employees of the fast-food titan wear “Cactus Jack” apparel. “We are bringing together two iconic worlds,” Scott said in a statement about his new partnership.
This is not the first time that Scott has used his fame to promote a brand. In April, Scott partnered with the video game developer Epic Games to put on a virtual concert for the popular video game “Fortnite”. This virtual performance boosted Fortnite’s popularity along with Scott’s popularity amongst the younger demographic that play the game.
Other restaurants have also partnered with celebrities in recent years. In early 2019, Chipotle partnered with social media star, David Dobrik. Dobrik, a famous connoisseur of Chipotle, received his own burrito for National Burrito Day. In early September, Dunkin Donuts announced “The Charli” a coffee drink named after viral Tik-Tok star, Charli D’Amelio. “The Charli” is D’Amelio’s go-to drink when ordering from Dunkin Donuts. Those who order the drink can expect a cold brew with whole milk along with three pumps of caramel swirl.
Controversy arose when photos of how to construct the Travis Scott burger were released online. The Quarter Pounder is made with all of the vegetables beneath the beef patty. Typically, a burger has all of the vegetables on top of the beef patty. This strange construction launched a flurry of Internet memes. Others were upset with the fact that Scott did not add anything to the menu.
“The Travis Scott Burger just tasted like a regular quarter pounder, but the crispy bacon was the best thing about it,” says staff writer Khan Ho. “The fries in the barbecue sauce just overpowered the fries only tasting like sauce. The Sprite was nice afterward.”
Ho said he liked the $6 price, half the price of buying the items individually.
Fans of Travis Scott and McDonald’s lovers can buy the meal through October 4th.
