How Coca-Cola Launched Tyrese Gibson's Career

As a beverage company, Coca-Cola is in a league of its own. Its history goes back to 1886, according to the Coca-Cola website, when the first-ever beverage was prepared by the brand's founder, Dr. John Pemberton. The brand continued to make waves over the years, launching several products for its consumers. As the company states, "We are passionate about beverages around the world, with around 200 brands — from Coca-Cola, to Smartwater, to Costa coffee."

Coca-Cola has worked with several famous personalities over the years, among them singer and actor Tyrese Gibson. The shared history can be traced to the 1990s when Gibson appeared in a well-known commercial for the company. According to Delish, the collaboration was a big one for Gibson and it paved the way for his career in many ways as he was noticed by other prominent brands shortly thereafter. Thanks to the commercial, in fact, Gibson ended up with many more television offers as well.

As per Delish, the 1994 commercial was just 30 seconds long and featured a 16-year-old Tyrese Gibson as the central character. It was endearing, too, as Gibson was seen singing the "Always Coca-Cola" jingle as he got on a bus. Some of his fellow passengers enjoyed watching Gibson as he smiled and hummed merrily. His TV debut was a huge hit, and before he knew it, Gibson was appearing in advertisements for other notable brands like Guess and Tommy Hilfiger.

Of course, Gibson also went on to have a successful career as a singer-songwriter and actor. Interestingly, Gibson has remained attached to Coca-Cola. In 2016, he partnered with the brand to focus on the Coca-Cola Pay It Forward program, launched to help struggling students pursue their education (via Biz Journal.) Gibson said, "Returning to Coca-Cola, the place where I got my start, brings my story full circle and offers me another opportunity to help inspire, motivate, and give back to our youth."