CANNES — Mariah Carey put on a knockout show for the world’s top ad execs, creative and brand leaders at Cannes Lions.
Carey, in a revealing black gown, performed an hour-long show at a select invite-only event hosted by MediaLink with partner Clear Channel at the Hotel du Cap in Antibes.
Mingling on the hotel’s terrace with host MediaLink’s Michael Kassan were Clear Channel’s Bob Pittman, Google’s Nikesh Arora, PepsiCo’s Frank Cooper III, Coca-Cola’s Wendy Clark, Unilever’s Keith Weed, AOL’s Susan Lyne, BBDO’s John Osborn and JWT’s Jeff Benjamin.
Omnicom president and CEO John Wren and WPP’s Martin Sorrell were seated at the same table, prompting some onlookers to speculate they might be discussing the fallout from the failed merger between Omnicom and Publicis, which would have created the world’s largest advertising agency.
Sorrell certainly hasn’t held back on his thoughts about the deal, telling CNBC in May that he believed it was driven by “ego and emotional issues … I think both CEOs wanted to try and dislodge WPP from its No. 1 perch.”
Also spotted at the party — where Mariah performed hits including “We Belong Together” and “Hero” — were Olympic snowboarder Shaun White, Steve Stoute, Jared Leto, Kanye West, Kris Jenner and Courtney Love, who snuck backstage for a selfie with Carey.