From its East Hollywood parking lot origins to its current status as America’s Fastest Growing Restaurant, Dave’s Hot Chicken has come a long way in the last five years. This journey includes a recent investment from Drake and now, the restaurant chain’s first foray into national advertising. Today Dave’s is launching a new creative campaign, called “Don’t Die Before You Try It,” that taps into the hot chicken FOMO that has propelled the company’s meteoric rise.
Created in collaboration with creative agency Party Land, “Don’t Die Before You Try It” is an evocative, edgy, and shareable campaign with an unbelievable, comically dark premise that aims to get people to sit up and pay attention – or laugh and feel slightly guilty about it. The surprising tagline and call to action introduces Dave’s to a national audience in an entertaining way that’s true to the brand’s ethos – one that takes risks and doesn’t play it safe.
The campaign debuts with two :30 TV spots in which fans of Dave’s mournfully tell the story of their loved ones’ untimely fate through outlandish events, like a sunroof mishap and time travel snafu, and lament that they’ll never get to try Dave’s.
In one spot, a young man solemnly describes his friend Sam’s peculiar demise: “No one loved hot chicken more than my friend Sam. And this juicy, hot, spiced-to-order Dave’s Hot Chicken would have been his favorite of all time, if it wasn’t for his other passion: driving with his head out the sunroof.”
In another spot, Ryan’s forlorn sister shares a tearful story: “My brother Ryan loved hot chicken, and he would have loved Dave’s. If it weren’t for his other love: time travel.” The spots end with a soberly funny plea: Don’t mess up and die before you eat Dave’s.
“There’s a reality of FOMO that runs deep in the Dave’s brand. People want to try it from what they’ve read or heard from their friends, and when they do, the word spreads further,” says Matt Rogers, Creative Director, Party Land. “We wanted to take this FOMO feeling and blow it out of the water. At Dave’s they have a history of breaking the rules, so we had a lot of permission from them to go big. ‘Don’t Die Before You Try It’ felt like the ultimate realization of where the brand started.”
The campaign coincides with the company’s triple digital sales growth and hundreds of franchised locations in development across the country, as well as a social media promotion in honor of Drake, who owns a significant stake in Dave’s Hot Chicken.
For his 36th birthday, Drake is hooking everyone up with a free Dave’s Hot Chicken Slider or Tender, on him. The giveaway is available at all Dave’s Hot Chicken locations nationwide on October 24, 2022, from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. local time. To get in on the action, guests simply need to hit their nearest Dave’s Hot Chicken and show proof that they follow @daveshotchicken on Instagram or TikTok. In return, they’ll get a spiced-to-order slider or tender of their heat-level preference.This celebration is only available to guests visiting the restaurant in-person and is not available online or through third-party delivery services.
“Dave’s Hot Chicken will blow your mind! Every Tender is hot, juicy, and spicy,” says Bill Phelps, Dave’s Hot Chicken’s CEO. “Our guests across the world have shown the same level of enthusiasm for this company that the founders had five years ago when they were operating a little pop up in Hollywood. Now, in celebration of Drake’s birthday and our first national ad campaign, our most famous investor wanted to give something back by letting fans try Dave’s Hot Chicken.”
Dave’s Hot Chicken specializes in Hot Chicken Tenders and Sliders, along with sides of house made Kale Slaw, creamy Mac n’ Cheese and crispy French Fries. Offered at seven spice levels ranging from No Spice to Reaper (which requires a signed waiver for those who dare), each piece of hand-breaded chicken is spiced-to-order, using a spice blend crafted specifically for its heat level or no-spice. The brand began a few years ago as a parking lot pop-up and drew lines around the block, with rave reviews by its fanatic Instagram followers.
