What it had to solve
Subway UK&I wanted to reach a Gen Z audience on World Earth Day with work that celebrated veganism 'in a manner which doesn't feel like an ad', while spotlighting one of the biggest plant-based menus on the high street.
The idea
Clip electrodes to the plants in Subway's vegan menu, read their electrical variations with PlantWave, and build a grime track — 'Vegang' — on the sounds.
How it works
Above+Beyond paired the chain with grime artist and vegan P Money and producers Star.One, giving them free rein to make an authentic track. A making-of documentary directed by Jamal Edwards MBE, developed with RadicalMedia and Wake The Town, ran across Twitter, Instagram and Facebook alongside a TikTok launch video; the track landed on TikTok on 22 April and on Spotify in May.
What it did
The Plant-Based Beats campaign ran for one month across the UK and Ireland. No stream counts or sales figures were disclosed in the launch coverage.
Background
On World Earth Day, 22 April 2021, Subway launched what it called the world's first plant-based grime track: 'Vegang', made by grime artist P Money and producers Star.One from sounds emitted by the plants used in Subway's plant-based menu. The sounds were extracted with PlantWave technology, which detects electrical variations in plants via electrodes placed on the leaves.
The campaign, devised by agency Above+Beyond, was aimed at Subway's Gen Z audience — 'a demographic that will be looking for brands that take action this World Earth Day', as the agency put it. Executive creative director Dom Goldman stressed that the artists had free rein to create 'an authentic grime track they would be proud of', with tongue in cheek delivered alongside a serious story about plant-based eating.
The rollout was built around the story of the collaboration: a documentary directed by Jamal Edwards MBE with RadicalMedia and Wake The Town, broadcast across Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, plus a TikTok announcement video. The track itself went to TikTok on launch day and to Spotify the following month. Subway UK&I marketing director Angie Gosal tied the stunt to the chain's expanding vegan range. The campaign ran one month in the UK and Ireland; no streaming or sales figures were published with the launch coverage.
Why it lands
The data source of the music is the product itself — the menu's plants — so the gimmick is not decoration but a literal demonstration of what the vegan range is made of.
It chose the genre its audience actually respects: grime, with artists given free rein, rather than a jingle wearing grime's clothes.
The documentary format let the process be the content, which is what makes a stunt feel like entertainment rather than an ad.
What you can take
When a brand story needs credibility with a young audience, give the artists free rein and let the product supply the raw material — literally — instead of the script.
Since then
The track went live on TikTok on 22 April 2021 and reached Spotify in May; the campaign ran for a month across the UK and Ireland. Launch coverage disclosed no streaming numbers or commercial results.
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