This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Air Jordan 1, and throughout the past four decades its presence has permeated throughout culture – sports, music, entertainment, design, and much more. Why? Because the AJ1 represents defiance; the NBA tried to ban it in 1985, but MJ and the Jordan Brand said otherwise. The problem? Younger consumers aren’t familiar with the origin story of the Air Jordan 1. So how do you remind a generation of the enormous impact one shoe can have on the world? By showing them a world without it. The Can’t Ban Greatness campaign touched every channel where customers engage with Jordan Brand: TV at big tentpole moments, social, retail, billboards, gaming, e-commerce, and activations. The customer journey was an eight-week stretch starting on Christmas day with TV spots that teased that Jordan Brand was up to something. Each week thereafter were stunts that tied to the 40th anniversary of the ‘Banned’ Air Jordan 1s. All of it leading to the launch of the anthem at the Grammys. Each week was a new experience for the audience touching every piece of culture that the AJ1s have influenced. By extending the original 1985 commercial into a modern context, we were able to honor the heritage of Jordan Brand while emphasizing the cultural impact they’ve made over the past 40 years. This simple approach naturally extended itself into a complete 360 campaign touching everything from social media, to video games, rap lyrics, NASCAR races and online sales. A teaser during NBA Christmas Day ignited a series of strange events. Jalen Hurts was fined by the NFL for wearing ‘unapproved colors’. Air Jordans were ‘banned’ from Nike.com. Jordan Brand’s instagram account disappeared. Someone banned the shoes on Michael Jordan’s statue in Chicago. Lyrics mentioning Air Jordan were banned from Genius. Air Jordans were banned from NBA2K and on Jordan’s NASCAR the wrap was a ‘Banned’ theme. At this year’s Grammy’s, Jordan dropped the full TV anthem to explain why. Then, Jalen Hurts wore a pair of banned Jordan cleats before the Super Bowl. At NBA All Star Weekend, the brand’s ‘suit’ showed up at the dunk contest and the Jumpman logo showed up in the sky during an elaborate drone show above the Jordan Brand fan fest in Oakland. No other brand or shoe has the ability to be able to speak to so many different sports and cultures as the Air Jordan 1.