Bud Light is lightening up — hiring comedian Shane Gillis to partner with the beleaguered beer brand.
"Welcome to the team @shanemgillis, excited to be a part of your 2024 tour," Bud Light posted on its Instagram platform.
And Gillis toasted the union in his his own Instagram post: "Excited to announce partnership with Bud Light #budlightpartner."
Bud Light sales sunk last year after it partnered with transgender influencer and activist Dylan Mulvaney, the New York Post noted. Mulvaney promoted the Bud Light brand ahead of the March Madness basketball tournament in April, but the message backfired — and triggered a months-long boycott.
The trans activist showed off cans of Bud Light sent by Anheuser-Busch that featured Mulvaney's face, celebrating a milestone in her viral "365 Days of Girlhood" series, where the influencer detailed her daily experiences in her first year identifying as a transgender woman on TikTok, the Post reported.
Sagging sales followed.
In addition to the Mulvaney partnership, Bud Light's marketing VP at the time, Alissa Heinerscheid, shared her growth plan that didn't seem to resonate with Bud Light regulars.
"We had this hangover, I mean Bud Light had been kind of a brand of fratty, kind of out-of-touch humor, and it was really important that we had another approach," she said, the Post reported.
Gillis was hired by "Saturday Night Live" in 2019 — and got the ax after old jokes resurfaced, which many interpreted as racist, The Post reported.
He also appeared on "The Joe Rogan Experience" podcast, where they both discussed the Mulvaney disaster.
"It became a joke," Gillis told Rogan. "That's tough to overcome, marketing-wise. It's tough to get people to order a Bud Light publicly. You're gonna get made fun of."
Todd Allen, vice president of marketing for Bud Light, told Fox News Digital: "Humor has always been at the heart of the Bud Light brand and central to our 'Easy Enjoyment' platform. We're excited to partner with longtime fan of Bud Light, Shane Gillis, for his 2024 Live Comedy Tour where a good time with friends is always easy to enjoy."
Fran Beyer ✉
Fran Beyer is a writer with Newsmax and covers national politics.
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