Latest / Brand Storytelling with Fexingo: Narrative, Mission, and Stories That Sell / How Liquid Death Turned Water Into a Rebellious Brand
Transcript
- Lucas: So there's this water company that sells tallboys of sparkling water in a can that looks like a tallboy of beer, and their tagline is 'Murder Your Thirst.' And somehow, that company is now valued at over one point four billion dollars. Luna: Liquid Death. I swear every time I see one of their cans at a concert, I do a double take. It looks so much like a craft beer label. Lucas: Exactly. That confusion is the whole point. The founder, Mike Cessario, came from an ad agency background, and he realized that water is the most boring product you can sell. It's clear, tasteless, and universally available. So his insight was: don't sell the water. Sell the rebellion. Luna: Right, because no one wakes up excited to buy a bottle of water. But they might wake up excited to join a movement. Lucas: That's the core of it. They built an entire brand around heavy metal, skulls, and death imagery — things that are the exact opposite of what you associate with hydration. And it worked because it was so unexpected. The brand launched with a viral video called 'Mountain Water' that parodied those overly dramatic bottled water ads from the 90s, and it racked up millions of views. Luna: I remember that video. It's shot like a perfume commercial, but the product is literally tap water in a can. And they're deadpan the whole time. Lucas: Exactly. That video cost almost nothing to produce, but it established the tone: self-aware, irreverent, and punk rock. From there, they've built an entire ecosystem of content — music videos, live events, even an NFT collection. But the real genius is how they've turned the product itself into a prop for a lifestyle. Luna: So the question is: can a brand that thrives on shock value keep growing without becoming mainstream and losing its edge? Because once you're on the shelf at Walmart next to Dasani, the rebellion starts to feel a little staged. Lucas: That's the billion-dollar question. Cessario has said he's fine with being a 'one percent of the water market' brand — they're not trying to take on Coke or Pepsi. Their goal is to build a cult. And so far, the numbers back that up. They grew revenue by over three hundred percent year-over-year in 2023, and they've got a subscription service called 'Death Plan' that sends you a coffin-shaped box of cans every month. Luna: Wait, a coffin subscription? That is either the most brilliant or the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Lucas: It's both. And that's exactly what makes it work. They're leaning so hard into the bit that it becomes endearing. But I think the real staying power comes from the community they've built. They have over two million followers on Instagram, and they treat those followers like co-conspirators rather than customers. Luna: Which is interesting because, if you think about it, most beverage brands talk to you like you're a thirsty consumer. Liquid Death talks to you like you're in on a joke. And that's a very different relationship. Lucas: It is. And that relationship is what allows them to sell merchandise — hats, shirts, even a branded chainsaw — alongside the water. People buy into the identity, not the hydration. In fact, I've heard that their merch business is a significant chunk of revenue. It almost doesn't matter if you drink the water. Luna: So it's more of a media company that happens to sell water? That feels like a pattern we've seen with Red Bull, with Glossier, with a bunch of successful modern brands. Lucas: Exactly. And that's the through-line of this show. The best brand stories aren't about the product — they're about the world the product lets you inhabit. Liquid Death lets you inhabit a world where you're a little rebellious, a little punk, and you care about the planet—because the cans are infinitely recyclable, by the way. Luna: And you look cool holding a skull can at a barbecue. I mean, that's not nothing. Lucas: It's very not nothing. But let's talk about how they've navigated the tension between authenticity and growth. Because as they've expanded into retailers like Target and Whole Foods, they've had to adjust their packaging slightly — making the skull a little less menacing, the language a little less edgy. Luna: Didn't they get in trouble with some retailers early on for the 'Murder Your Thirst' tagline? I feel like I remember a story about that. Lucas: Yeah, some stores refused to stock it because they thought the word 'murder' was too violent. So the brand responded by printing the tagline on the inside of the box instead — so you'd see it when you opened the case. That's such a clever workaround. It turned a restriction into a moment of discovery. Luna: That's a great example of how constraints can actually enhance the narrative. If they had just caved and dropped the tagline, they would have lost the edge. But by hiding it, they made it feel even more rebellious. Lucas: And that kind of thinking is what separates a gimmick from a genuine brand. They're constantly looking for ways to inject the personality into the experience, whether it's the can design, the social media content, or the live events. They've even started a record label, Liquid Death Records, and they host metal concerts in parking lots. Luna: Okay, I have to interrupt because I think this is actually a perfect segue. You know, listening to this conversation, I'm struck by how much intentionality goes into every detail of the brand. And it reminds me why shows like this exist. If these marketing conversations have sparked something you've actually used in your own work or just made you think differently about a brand you love, there's a way to keep this going ad-free. Luna: Exactly. And now back to the death metal water company. Lucas: So the record label and the concerts — that's not just marketing fluff. They're actually creating cultural artifacts that reinforce the brand. When you see a band play at a Liquid Death event, you associate that raw energy with the product. It's a halo effect that a TV ad can't buy. Luna: Do you think this model is replicable for other commodities? Like, could a toilet paper brand pull off a similar pivot? Lucas: I think it's possible, but it requires a founder who is genuinely immersed in the subculture. Cessario is a punk rock guy. He lived this aesthetic before he sold it. If a corporate team tries to manufacture edge, it usually falls flat — think of those 'hip' ads from banks or insurance companies. Luna: Like when Pepsi tried to be cool with the Kendall Jenner ad and it backfired spectacularly. Lucas: Exactly. Authenticity is earned, not declared. And Liquid Death has earned it by staying consistent. They've never apologized for being weird. They've never tried to appeal to everyone. And in a market where water is essentially free, they've convinced millions of people to pay a premium for a can with a skull on it. Luna: So the lesson for marketers is: find the thing that makes your category boring and invert it. Water is boring — so make it dangerous. Insurance is boring — so make it entertaining. The category itself gives you the blueprint for rebellion. Lucas: That's a really good way to put it. And I think the next frontier for Liquid Death is sustainability. They've already made the cans aluminum, which is infinitely recyclable, but they've also pledged to donate a percentage of profits to cleaning up plastic from the ocean. That gives the rebellion a purpose. Luna: It's hard to rebel for the sake of rebelling without a cause. But if you're rebelling against plastic waste, that's a cause people can get behind. Lucas: Right. And that's what will allow them to survive the inevitable backlash as they get bigger. Because people will start to ask: is this just a gimmick? And they can point to actual environmental impact and say, look, we're putting our money where our skull is. Luna: I think that's a good note to end on. Liquid Death is a case study in how to build a brand by selling identity, not product, and how to maintain authenticity as you scale. Whether you love the aesthetic or hate it, you have to respect the execution. Lucas: Absolutely. And I'd love to hear what our listeners think. Are there other commodity brands that have successfully pulled off this kind of narrative inversion? Drop us a line. For now, I'm Lucas. Luna: And I'm Luna. Thanks for hanging out in the brand storytelling studio with us.