1

Pepsi: "Is Pepsi OK?"

Image: NIKHIL

If you’ve ever asked for a Coke and heard, "Is Pepsi OK?", you’re not alone—it’s a common scenario that has become a cultural cliché. In 2019, Pepsi embraced that moment and turned it into an ad campaign.

Featuring celebrities, the ads leaned into the joke and confidently rebranded Pepsi as more than just "OK."

2

Westinghouse: "We Can Do It!"

Image: Nayani Teixeira

Westinghouse Electric’s We Can Do It! poster, created during World War II to boost morale among female workers , later became a symbol of female empowerment in the 1970s.

Initially unrelated to the Rosie the Riveter character, the poster eventually gained widespread use in advertisements and pop culture, celebrating women’s strength and independence.

3

Pan-American Coffee Bureau: "Give yourself a coffee break!"

Image: Jakub Dziubak

In the 1950s, the Pan-American Coffee Bureau popularized the concept of the "coffee break" with a campaign that encouraged workers to relax while drinking the popular beverage .

By the 1960s, coffee breaks had become so essential that the United Auto Workers union demanded them in their contracts, even threatening a strike if they were not included.

4

Marlboro: The Marlboro Man

Image: Brendan Stephens

Created in 1954, the Marlboro Man transformed Marlboro from a women’s cigarette into a symbol of rugged masculinity . The iconic cowboy became so recognizable that by the late '90s, nearly 90% of schoolchildren knew him.

The character was retired in 1998 as part of a tobacco industry settlement that banned the use of human and cartoon figures in advertisements.

5

Ad Council: "Friends don't let friends drive drunk."

Image: Aedrian Salazar

Launched in 1983, the "Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk" PSA became a cultural milestone, directly addressing the widespread problem of drunk driving .

At the time, alcohol was involved in roughly half of all car crash fatalities. The campaign played a key role in shifting public attitudes and helped reduce that number to around 31% in the decades that followed.

6

Levi Strauss & Co.: "A Guide to Casual Businesswear"

Image: Varun Gaba

In the 1980s, "Casual Fridays" gained popularity , but many companies quickly regretted the trend as employees began showing up in overly casual or sloppy attire. In 1992, Levi Strauss & Co. capitalized on the situation by releasing A Guide to Casual Businesswear , promoting its Dockers and Levi’s brands as polished, workplace-appropriate options.

By 1995, Levi’s reported record sales of $6.2 billion, helping to redefine "business casual" and promoting a more professional yet relaxed dress code in the workplace.

7

Snickers: "You’re Not You When You’re Hungry"

Image: Shyam Mishra

Snickers’ Super Bowl ad featuring Betty White, in which hunger causes a man to momentarily "become" her during a football game , became an instant hit and introduced the now-iconic tagline: "You’re Not You When You’re Hungry."

The campaign's humor and relatable message made it highly successful, with the concept evolving over the years through new scenarios and celebrities.

8

KFC: "FCK"

Image: Aleks Dorohovich

During a 2018 chicken shortage , KFC used humor to manage the crisis with a bold ad that featured an empty bucket and the letters "FCK" in place of its logo .

This self-aware and cheeky approach helped diffuse customer frustration and strengthened the brand’s connection with its audience through honesty and wit.

9

Pepsi: "Pepsi Challenge"

Image: NIKHIL

Pepsi’s second entry on this list is the iconic "Pepsi Challenge," a blind taste-test campaign that invited consumers to compare Pepsi and Coca-Cola .

By focusing on taste and showing that many participants preferred Pepsi, the campaign successfully shifted public perception and boosted brand loyalty during the fiercely competitive "Cola Wars" of the 1980s.

10

Nike: "Just Do It"

Image: wuyi

Launched in 1988, Nike’s "Just Do It" campaign featured athletes like 80-year-old marathoner Walt Stack to inspire people from all walks of life to take action.

The slogan quickly resonated with audiences, sparking countless personal stories of bold choices and perseverance. It has since become one of the most enduring and recognizable taglines in advertising history.

11

California Milk Processor Board: "Got Milk?"

Image: engin akyurt

Launched in 1993, the legendary "Got Milk?" campaign emphasized the importance of milk through a study showing how people felt when they ran out .

With its clever use of celebrity endorsements and pop culture references, the campaign ran for over two decades and produced hundreds of memorable ads nationwide, cementing its place as one of the most influential marketing successes in advertising history.

12

Dove: "Real Beauty"

Image: Matthew Tkocz

Launched in 2004, Dove’s "Real Beauty" campaign aimed to boost self-confidence by challenging traditional beauty standards.

Featuring real women instead of professional models , the campaign focused on diversity, aging, and natural imperfections, promoting a more inclusive and empowering definition of beauty.

1

Blues

Image: Ahmed Rizkhaan

Originating in the Deep South during the late 19th century, blues evolved from African American work songs, spirituals, and field hollers. More often than not, it channeled pain and the harsh realities of life in a segregated America. Formally, its 12-bar blues structure and expressive guitar playing influenced countless other genres, from rock and roll to jazz.

2

Jazz

Image: Carol Highsmith's America

Born in New Orleans in the early 20th century, jazz blended African rhythms, blues, and brass band traditions. It was a revolutionary genre defined by improvisation and syncopation. Great figures like Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington helped jazz spread worldwide, becoming a symbol of American creativity.

3

Rock and Roll

Image: Ana Grave

Emerging in the 1950s, rock and roll combined elements of blues, gospel, and rhythm and blues to create a high-energy, powerful sound . It soon became the voice of a new, rebellious generation. Pioneers like Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, and Little Richard became universally beloved legends, forever altering the course of popular music.

4

Country

Image: Ben White

Originating in the southern United States, country music evolved from folk ballads and fiddle tunes brought by European immigrants. Initially, the genre focused on stories about blue-collar American life but later expanded to include love ballads and dance tunes. Today, it remains one of the most popular genres in the U.S.

5

Bluegrass

Image: Priscilla Du Preez

A fast-paced, acoustic offshoot of country, bluegrass emerged in the 1940s thanks to Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys. Drawing from Irish and Scottish folk traditions, it prominently features stringed instruments like the banjo, mandolin, and fiddle. A true heartland gem, bluegrass continues to thrive on festival circuits worldwide.

6

Rhythm and Blues

Image: Matthijs Smit

Rhythm and Blues, or R&B, evolved from blues and jazz in the 1940s, featuring soulful vocals and a strong, "insistent" backbeat. Though its boundaries have been historically difficult to define, it laid the foundation for rock, soul, and funk while remaining a powerhouse in American music for generations.

7

Gospel

Image: Iyinoluwa Onaeko

Rooted in African American church traditions, gospel music emerged in the early 20th century, blending spirituals with blues and jazz influences. Artists like Mahalia Jackson and The Staple Singers were among the first to bring gospel beyond church walls, paving the way for future soul and rock musicians.

8

Soul

Image: Kobe Subramaniam

A direct descendant of gospel and R&B, soul music took center stage in the 1960s with its mix of emotional vocals and deep grooves. Legends like Aretha Franklin and James Brown defined the genre, influencing everything from funk to modern pop.

9

Funk

Image: Krisztián Reischl

Emerging in the 1960s, funk placed a strong emphasis on groove and rhythm, featuring heavy basslines and syncopated beats made for dancing. Pioneers like James Brown, Parliament-Funkadelic, and Sly & The Family Stone helped popularize the genre, whose infectious rhythms later influenced disco, hip-hop, and even rock.

10

Disco

Image: Honey Fangs

Rising in the 1970s, disco blended soul, funk, and Latin influences into a beat-driven, club-friendly sound. More than just a music genre, it became a cultural movement centered on dance, freedom, and glamour. At its peak, artists like Donna Summer and the Bee Gees dominated the airwaves.

1

Money Materials

Image: Jorge Salvador

We call them paper bills, but do they undergo the same process as any other paper? Naturally, they don’t. U.S. bills are mainly made of two materials: 75% of their composition is cotton and the 25% left is linen. Besides, they have randomly disbursed red and blue security fibers embedded in the paper.

This special blend is made by only one company in America and that is Crane & Co . The company, based in Massachusetts patented this special blend and it has been the sole provider of paper for currency since 1879.

2

Origin of the U.S. dollar symbol

Image: Paris Bilal

The dollar sign is a matter of debate. One line or two across a capital S, the symbol is today a worldwide sign for money, but where does it come from?

Even if there are several theories as to where the U.S. dollar symbol comes from, all of them agree that it was derived from the Spanish peso . When the time came, and the new nation needed its own currency, the basis was that of the Spanish coinage, which was the most common currency in the colonies before the country’s independence.

The adoption of the sign was made official in 1785, and today, the United States is not the only country that uses this symbol, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand do too!

3

Who appears on the bills?

Image: AR

Having your face forever stamped on the little piece of paper that rules the world should be a milestone in your career, right? However, there were certain rules as to who qualifies to be granted this honor .

Probably, the most surprising, yet the most logical one is that no living person can be portrayed in American currency. Since the Founding Fathers considered it unpatriotic to be portrayed while alive, this was first a tradition and then made official in an Act of Congress in 1866 .

However, contrary to popular belief, this honor is not only reserved for presidents! Anyone who contributes to the nation can be portrayed.

4

Folding Papers

Image: Emilio Takas

Bills come and go all the time. We take them out of our pockets and put them in our purses only to take them out again a few hours later and give them to the shop assistant. For a life that busy, we can only hope the paper is tough enough , right?

Well, as a matter of fact, it is. Compared to regular paper, which can only be folded 400 times before it breaks, money paper can be folded up to 8,000 times before it breaks .

It's not that you’re going to try it out and see, but you can rest assured: Fold your bills away, they can handle it!

5

Damaged Goods

Image: Jp Valery

Even if they can be folded that many times, the life of bills is limited, not to mention accidents happen. Who hasn’t sent a bill to the washing machine by chance?

So, what happens when a bill is damaged? Well, at least 50% of it has to be clearly identifiable for the bank to replace it , otherwise, you’ll just lose your money. You don’t feel like folding them much now, right?

On the other hand, and mainly due to time damage, at least 70% of the new bills are used to replace old bills . These bills, once taken out of circulation are shredded and sent to companies that can recycle them!

6

Security Features

Image: Colin Watts

Counterfeiting has been a problem ever since paper money was created and statistics about which countries counterfeited most of the money are simply shocking. But we won’t get into that.

What we will say is that thanks to technological advancement, the U.S. bill is getting harder and harder to counterfeit. In modern bills, there are at least six security features which are: UV security ribbon, raised printing, microprinting, 3D security ribbon, color-shifting ink, and traditional watermarks. Do you pay attention to them?

7

U.S. Coins

Image: Kenny Eliason

Coin production in America is in charge of the U.S. Mint and there are four production facilities across the country. They are located in Philadelphia, Denver, San Francisco, and West Point.

It is estimated that every year the Mint produces about 16 trillion coins which are valued at over $1.09 billion dollars. What is truly impressive is that Americans throw away an estimated 62 million dollars worth of coins every day!

They may not be worth much alone but don’t throw them away, all of them together can make you rich!

8

Green Ink

Image: maria pagan

Have you ever wondered why the U.S. dollar bills were green? It is not about design or aesthetics, even if we think they look pretty.

The decision to use green ink was a matter of security, in order to prevent counterfeiting. Back then, black and white ink made it easier to create photographic fakes. For that reason, green was the color of choice, and, when paper money was standardized in 1929, it had great acceptance due to the positive connotations of the color . Do you like it?

9

Andrew Jackson’s Take on Paper Money

Image: Elsa Olofsson

Every denomination has an important figure stamped on the front. In the case of the 20-dollar bill, Andrew Jackson was the chosen one.

Jackson was the seventh president of the United States and, even if it is not a rule that only presidents can be portrayed, his contributions gained him this honor.

Ironically, Jackson was not in favor of using paper money. For him, only gold and silver coins should have remained legal tender. After learning this, one can only assume he wouldn’t be so happy to be the face of the 20-dollar bill, right?

10

Facelifts and redesigns

Image: Kenny Eliason

One of the ways of keeping paper money safe and hard to counterfeit is by giving the bills new designs.

New faces were expected to appear in future bills, but, in the meantime, the changes always had to do with the proportions of the elements within each denomination. Bigger faces, rearrangement of the signatures, stuff like that.

Now, these changes and facelifts haven’t reached all the bills. 1-dollar bills haven’t been changed or redesigned ever since 1929. Why is that? Because it is not worth the trouble for criminals to counterfeit. One dollar won’t take them too far!