By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
So, KFC and the tech company Hatch are betting the sound of frying chicken will send you quickly off to dreamland.
In what is definitely one of the more unusual licensing deals we’ve seen, Hatch has licensed the sound of Kentucky Fried Chicken’s new KFC Original Recipe Tenders, for use on its Hatch Restore 2 smart sleep devices.
“Did you ever think you’d use the expression, ‘I could just cozy up to the sound of fried chicken?’,” the companies ask. “Well, from ASMR social media channels to film and television production set rumors, the internet has recently unearthed the humorous phenomenon that the sound of cooking fried chicken sounds almost identical to the soothing, sleep-inducing sound of rain falling.”
From there, it was a short mental hop to the idea that placing the sound of frying KFC chicken in a sleep-inducing app would help defeat insomnia and send listeners into a magical world of slumber, where bottomless buckets of golden KFC Tenders greet the dreamer.
“KFC, the ‘OG’ (Original Gangsta) of fried chicken, and Hatch, a sleep wellness company that creates premium sleep audio content, collaborated to release a new ‘Kentucky Fried Chicken Rain’ content channel to lull you to sleep,” the partners said in a statement. It also seems very possible to TLL that the dreamer will wake up and dig into some chicken and waffles for breakfast.
The custom sound is now available on Restore 2 smart sleep devices with a Hatch+ premium content subscription, along with the Hatch for Sleep and KFC YouTube channels as well as the Hatch for Sleep Spotify page.
Hatch is a sleep wellness company that creates premium sleep audio content, and is now experimenting with the effectiveness of fried chicken white noise with the release of a new Kentucky Fried Chicken Rain content channel that can help lull you to sleep. Fried chicken and ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) lovers will also be able to access the new Kentucky Fried Chicken Rain sound on the Hatch for Sleep and KFC YouTube channels as well as the Hatch for Sleep Spotify page.
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The source for the content channel came straight from Louisville, KY, where Hatch visited KFC’s headquarters and test kitchen to learn more about and to capture the real sound of fried chicken.
Hatch employees worked alongside KFC’s food innovation team to record the soothing sounds of frying KFC’s new Original Recipe Tenders.
“The taste and smell of our secret blend of 11 herbs and spices may be iconic, but who knew the sound of that delicious chicken frying could help you fall asleep?” said Catherine Tan-Gillespie, KFC’s U.S. Chief Marketing and Development Officer. “Now, in addition to enjoying the taste of our new KFC Original Recipe Tenders, people can drift off to sleep thanks to the soothing sound of frying, with the ‘Kentucky Fried Chicken Rain’ content channel on Hatch+.”
This unique brand partnership includes the new content offering, humorous “BTS” brand and social content from Hatch’s visit and recording session at the KFC test kitchen, along with co-branded products, including a Hatch x KFC Sleep Shirt, available for purchase at KFCShop.com. KFC Rewards loyalty members will also be able to purchase a Hatch Restore 2 device at a special discount, so they can enjoy the content for themselves at home in bed, with a limit of one per customer.
The Hatch x KFC partnership content is just one of the many offerings available in the Hatch+ premium audio library, which features everything from rain, guided meditations, screen-free shows, to sleep stories and relaxing music.
The partnership comes just as KFC introduced its new KFC Original Recipe Tenders nationwide on October 14, for $5.