Metalheads worldwide are quoting Nietszche in the wake of Motörhead singer/bassist Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister's death on Monday, but some may not have noticed he was in a Kronenbourg 1664 ad back in 2010.
1664, a beer brand owned by Heineken, got Motörhead to record an acoustic blues version of "Ace of Spades" for its "Slow the Pace" ad campaign from BBH London, advancing the idea that 1664's complex flavor needs to be savored.
True to form, Lemmy's explanation for why Motörhead went commercial was an honest one. "We got paid a lot of money by a beer company," he told Q magazine. "They asked us to do it and I said yes. How much? None of your business."
That churlish attitude guided Lemmy's extraordinary career and disproportionately long life. In an industry that ages people in dog years, he made it to 70. More than anyone else in the music industry, he lived on the end of a lightning bolt, playing by his own rules and following his own instincts until the end.
May he rest in peace. He's earned it.
