Trans activist Dylan Mulvaney clapped back at critics of her Bud Light campaign, claiming “they don’t understand me” and asked, “What is their goal?” Mulvaney’s firestorm controversy stems after MAGA-hat-wearing Kid Rock, 52, posted a video shooting hails of bullets at packs of Bud Light after the activist announced she was the latest brand ambassador.
Rock was later joined by artists such as Travis Tritt and John Rich in boycotting the beer with Hit Radio personality Howard Stern and also stating he was “dumbfounded” by famous rockers’ backlash against the trans influencer working with Bud Light.
In an appearance on Rosie O’Donnell’s podcast, Mulvaney who has just completed “365 days of girlhood”, said, “The reason that I think I am so…I’m an easy target is because I’m so new to this. I think going after a trans woman that’s been doing this for like 20 years is a lot more difficult.
I think maybe they think that there’s some sort of chance with me … But what is their goal?”Mulvaney added, “These people, they don’t understand me and anything that I do or say then somehow gets taken out of context and is used against me and it’s so sad because everything I try to put out is positive.
It’s trying to connect with others that maybe don’t understand me. It’s to make people laugh or to make a kid feel seen.” Following the fiery controversy, the beer giant’s parent company Anheuser-Busch suffered a whopping $3 billion loss in market cap value in recent days.
After a string of promotions through Super Bowl commercials featuring Miles Teller and his wife, the beer giant was worth $132 billion on March 31, 2023, its highest market cap all year. After Mulvaney announced her partnership with the brand on April 1, the brand is being battered by trolls who are publicly denouncing the brand. Anheuser-Busch’s share price dipped to $64.96, wiping $3 billion total from the company’s value.
Further, Anheuser-Busch has defended working with the influencer and stands by the campaign. VP of Marketing Alissa Gordon Heinerscheid, who oversaw the campaign, said, “Anheuser-Busch works with hundreds of influencers across our brands as one of many ways to authentically connect with audiences across various demographics and passion points. From time to time, we produce unique commemorative cans for fans and for brand influencers, like Dylan Mulvaney.
This commemorative can was a gift to celebrate a personal milestone and is not for sale to the general public.”Heinerscheid, the marketing exec hired to overhaul Bud Light’s image in 2022, wanted a female lead, adding “inclusivity” as a priority. “I’m a businesswoman.
I had a really clear job to do when I took over Bud Light, and it was this brand is in decline. It’s been in decline for a really long time. And if we do not attract young drinkers to come and drink this brand, there will be no future for Bud Light.
So I had this super clear mandate. It’s like we need to evolve and elevate this incredibly iconic brand. What does evolve and elevate mean? It means inclusivity. It means shifting the tone. It means having a campaign that’s truly inclusive and feels lighter and brighter and different. And appeals to women and to men,” she said in an interview on March 30.
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