The authentic celebrity brand: unpacking Ai Weiwei’s celebritised selves

This research extends prior work on celebrity brands to focus on the issue of how authenticity is constructed, communicated and managed in the manufacturing of celebrity. Using a case study approach, this paper explores the branding of contemporary artist-activist Ai Weiwei, who has emerged as a heroic celebrity figure. We find that authenticity is key to this brand narrative and is derived from a unique vision of the world which is amplified, reproduced and co-created to create emotional engagement. We argue that by analysing the celebrity brand as a corporate brand, a more holistic understanding of what constitutes an ‘authentic celebrity’ can be attained.