Lil Yachty's latest collaboration truly has to be seen and heard to be believed.
The 21-year-old rapper has never shied away from oddball choices in his musical career, so it's fitting that his new campaign pairs him with two of the unlikeliestcounterparts: Chef Boyardee, the canned-pasta supermarket staple; and Donny Osmond, the 60-year-old baby boomer icon.
The result is "Start the Par-dee," a new Chef Boyardee theme song that's like no brand jingle we've ever heard before, featuring vocals from Yachty and Osmond and sampling the brand's original "Thank Goodness for Chef Boyardee" song from the '80s.
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"This is very odd," Yachty told USA Today via email about the collaboration. "You would never expect it, me and Donny together on a song. Thank you, Donny and Chef Boyardee."
Yachty and Osmond's remixed jingle is accompanied by an equally gonzo music video, featuring flying cartoon tomatoes, goofy green-screened effects, and lots of friendly interplay between the two artists, as Yachty teaches Osmond some hip new dance moves and serenades him on top of a Chef Boyardee can.
The whole campaign is intended to be a whimsical nostalgia trip, promoting Chef Boyardee's new "Throwback Recipe" cans by pairing a rapper adored by millennials with a singer who was a household name to their parents.
"It's crazy that I got the chance to remix Chef Boyardee's jingle from start to finish," Yachty said. "Working with Donny was amazing, we collaborated to write the lyrics. Now we got a hit."
The music video comes courtesy of director Calmatic, responsible for similarly-colorful clips for Khalid and Anderson .Paak.
"Start the Par-dee" is Yachty's latest project in the rapper's busy summer, which has included a North American tour, a new collection with Nautica and the new project "Birthday Mix 3," in honor of his 21st birthday on Aug. 23. As for Osmond, he and his sister/performing partner Marie Osmond recently extended their Donny & Marie Showroom residency at the Flamingo Las Vegas through the end of 2018, celebrating their 10-year anniversary on the Strip since it began in 2008.
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