Problem/Objective: There has been an explosion of emerging tobacco marketing strategies targeting urban communities. Many of the strategies are associated with the sale of blunt wraps, cigarettes and cigars. Upstart tobacco companies have bombarded communities with creative tobacco packaging with non traditional themes and imagery. Larger tobacco companies have modified packaging of existing brands. In marketing tobacco products, the industry has incorporate new themes such as Hip-Hop culture and drug use into their marketing strategies. Many tobacco use prevention advocates and policy makers are unfamiliar with these emerging strategies. As a result, proposed regulatory policies (local, state and federal) may not control for these strategies.

Methods: Emerging tobacco products, tobacco and drug promoting products and marketing materials such as advertisements and promotional items were collected from stores, print media and events. Collected items were scanned for use in this presentation.

Results: While monitoring communities for emerging tobacco marketing strategies, four emerging strategies have been identified: 1) Tobacco Packaging as Advertisements and Point of Purchase Displays, 2) Use of Hip Hop Culture, 3) Use of Drug Themes & Terminology and 4) Tobacco and Drug Promoting Products.

Conclusions: Tobacco use prevention advocates, Hip Hop artists, substance abuse prevention advocates and policy makers should work together to counter emerging tobacco marketing strategies.