You know what’s a real thug-ass candy? Sour Patch Kids, that’s what. Know how I know? Because Method Man, the 40-year-old rapper and actor of Wu-Tang Clan and How High fame, made a music video co-starring Sour Patch Kids running around his crib and messing around in his recording studio. If you don’t think teens and young adults can connect with this sort of product/celebrity placement on an emotional level, well, you just don’t get it.

From Mother NY comes the greatest Method Man-related collaboration since he teamed up with Mary J. Blige for the 1995 hit, “I’ll Be There for You/You’re All I Need to Get By.” This new track from Meth, “World Gone Sour (The Lost Kids),” will also be featured in a new Sour Patch Kids video game. However there’s no word as of now as to whether or not it will be featured on Method Man’s new album, The Crystal Meth, expected to be released this year after a string of delays.

To be perfectly honest, I’m amazed that Mother NY got a rap legend like Method Man to be the new spokesperson for this Kraft Foods candy brand, and I applaud Method Man for doing something more child-friendly as his focus is shifting from being a hardened representative of East Coast rap to being a family man. But, as has happened with names like Ice Cube, the target audience for this campaign doesn’t remember 36 Chambers or the impact that album had on the pop music landscape.

So, it’s kind of bittersweet that today’s youth might only think of Method Man as “that Sour Patch Kids guy,” as they probably already think of Ice Cube as “that TBS sitcom guy” or Dr. Dre as “that Dr. Pepper guy.” Admittedly, I saw Ray Charles play live before he passed away, and though I had heard of his impact on music (which was obviously much more significant than any of the aforementioned rappers) and in some way understood it, it was hard not to think of him as “that guy from the Pepsi commercials.” But, at the end of the day, maybe that’s alright. At least a new generation of consumers will know the stars of yesteryear in some way. Credits after the jump.

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Meet Sarah, a thin leggy blonde and her new dashing, confused beau, Spencer. With their powers combined, they become “Sparah,” Hollywood’s newest celebrity couple. Isn’t this exactly how you’ve always imagined celebrity couples are formed? A talent agent introduces the pair, goes over (in Spencer’s case) cringe-worthy wardrobe malfunctions and hands them the keys to a new SUV and a mansion?

In this case, Virgin Mobile’s latest campaign with Mother NY will actually make Spencer and Sarah into L.A.’s newest “it” couple over the next six months. That’s right, this sociological experiment will actually take place right before our eyes. “Sparah” will appear in commercials, at store openings and public events like Virgin’s Freefest. Celeb obsessed fans can even monitor Sparah’s rise to fame on Virgin’s Facebook page. Confused how this will play out? As the pair’s talent agent (who we’ll hopefully see more of) says, “That’s a tweet. Tweet that shit.” Credits after the jump.

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Before we get any further, no, I don’t know if sugar “in the raw” is in any way healthier or better than the stuff you sprinkle in your coffee at Starbucks every morning. Really, if I had to guess, I’d assume it’s sort of like natural tobacco cigarettes versus Marlboro Reds. Yeah, it’ll still kill you in large quantities, it probably isn’t ingested as easily, but you buy it because you don’t like the idea of weird, synthetic chemicals being part of your regular diet.

Designing a campaign for a company like In the Raw must be pretty difficult. I mean, what is there to say about sugar and sweetener that hasn’t already been said? What is there to be said about your product that isn’t already in your brand name? Well, Mother found a way to take a new approach with their “It’s Only Natural Campaign,” which according to CDs Bobby Hershfield and Michael Ian Kaye incorporate “human truths and how the product and food in general play a role in daily situations.”

Yeah, it’s an awful lot of copy for one page, but ad placement in women’s fitness, entertainment and lifestyle publications should keep consumers reading, if at least for the fully functioning recipies. If you spouse leaves you, you’re baking something for a loved one, or you’re just trying to save money for one day to see how it feels, sugar and stevia extract “in the raw” will have you covered.

Credits and fuller ads after the jump.

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