Bud Light recently sponsored a pride month drag show in Toronto, Canada which featured dancers with exposed breasts dressed in leather suits while wearing what appears to be pantyhoses over their faces with makeup. The event appeared to be quite provocative and even featured a noticeable Bud Light banner in the background, highlighting the beer’s association with the event.
According to Bud Light Canada’s website, the beer has sponsored this event for the last ten years. The website further acknowledges that Bud Light Canada has allocated over $100,000 to different LGBT organizations throughout Canada. The Post Millennial shared a clip of the event on Twitter with the caption, “Bud Light have a stage at Toronto Pride. This is one of the acts.” See it below.
Bud Light have a stage at Toronto Pride. This is one of the acts. pic.twitter.com/4mMYkM98EZ
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) June 24, 2023
Bud Light Canada’s website also noted a specialized can design for the Toronto pride event. The page stated, “This year, we’re commemorating this milestone with Pride Toronto by featuring them on our can design, as well as continuing as the official beer sponsor of the festival. As a brand, Bud Light Canada is excited to once again celebrate and support the LGBTQIA2S+ community through Pride Toronto’s annual pride celebration and parade.”
The site features a graphic of the Bud Light can with a rainbow streaking across it and a Pride Toronto logo at the bottom of the can. This is quite similar to when Bud Light made a commemorative can featuring Dylan Mulvaney’s face. We all know that didn’t work out well for the brewing company after observing the financial consequences of the Dylan Mulvaney disaster.
However, the American Tribune recently reported on Bud Light’s newest summer-themed ad campaign, which was an apparent attempt to win back customers it has lost amid the ongoing boycott against the beer. The ad featured the nostalgic 70s tune “Good Times” while depicting fun summertime activities with friends and family. Everything about the ad was geared toward the average American consumer, trying to capitalize on the summer season’s peak beer demand. Watch the advertisement below.
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Crack a cold one: we've got an epic summer ahead. Sock tans included. pic.twitter.com/CGRCvkHC60
— Bud Light (@budlight) June 22, 2023
However, social media users humiliated Bud Light in the post’s comments section. Many slammed the beer for refusing to issue an official apology to its customer base. One user said, “Have you apologized yet for slamming your loyal customers? Have you admitted that you weren’t trying to expand your demographic, you were trying to replace it and gain points for the vaunted CEI? You jumped into politics and picked sides. Have you come out and admitted how much you regret that? Until that commercial airs, this is too little, too late.”
Additionally, Bud Light’s sponsorship of events like the above Toronto drag show may leave consumers skeptical of Bud Light’s intentions to win them back. It was clear that Bud Light did not get the response it sought in its newest ad. Bud Light’s decision to take a stance on social issues has put it between a rock and a hard place, so to speak.
Bud Light has faced the obvious boycott from conservative beer drinkers, but when it tried to distance itself from Mulvaney to win them back, the beer faced a simultaneous boycott from the gay community as well. It appears Bud Light is trying to please everyone, and it isn’t sitting well with either side.
Note: Featured image is screenshot from embedded video.